Sadly, UK Tier 1 Investor visa is now abolished and it is no longer possible to apply. This blog post is left unaltered for historic purposes only.

As an ultra high net worth individual you may feel bombarded with the vast choices you can make and yet unable to make your decision.

You hear people talk about UK Tier Investor visa, European Golden visa and Citizenship by Investment schemes.

They all require substantial investment. Still you are not sure what you are getting if you went with one choice, but not the other. How likely you are to make the right choice or overlook the necessary details and miss out on the life-changing opportunity altogether.

What does it entail to you exactly? What are the practical consequences for you and your family?

UK Tier 1 Investor visa as a version of British Golden visa 

UK Tier 1 Investor visa is a UK immigration category. This is an opportunity for you to relocate to the UK and earn long-term residence rights, known as indefinite leave to remain.

Only after you meet specific residence requirements and earn your own indefinite leave to remain you may be eligible to apply for British citizenship.

There is no direct route to British citizenship based on making an investment alone.

European Golden visa

Golden visa is coined by property developers. Typically, the golden visa was started in Portugal (Europe / EU).

The idea was that if you bought property in Portugal, this would allow you to relocate to Portugal.

Portugal being a member of the European Union (EU) with free movement rights means that you would be able to travel throughout Europe on your Portuguese residence permit.

Similar Golden visa proposition was extended to Spain and some other European (EU) countries.

This option is no longer relevant if you are looking to create your residence rights in the UK. The UK left the EU and the EU free movement rights are no longer supported in the UK. 

Global Invitation: Citizenship by Investment

Citizenship by Investment is an option that you find in the Caribbean islands and some other remote areas, such as Vanuatu. 

Some European countries set up their own schemes, such as Cyprus, Greece and Malta. All in an attempt to attract additional funds in support of their own fragile economies.

The European Commission is known to have fiercely criticised such regimes.

Nonetheless, some countries appear to be doing better than others.

The most attractive part of the citizenship by investment option is the opportunity to be awarded citizenship and passport soon after you make the necessary investment.

In some jurisdictions it may take less than a year, while in others, this may take a bit longer.

However, the final reward is the actual passport.

This can be an important choice if you are looking to acquire secondary citizenship, which allows you a visa free travel.

If you are coming from a country where international travel may be unduly tricky, this may be one of the options you may be considering.

However, if your ultimate destination is to move and live in the UK, then citizenship by investment may not be what you are looking for.

Perhaps, you are better off applying for the UK Tier 1 Investor visa and earn your rights to British citizenship.

Not sure where to start or how to find the right UK immigration adviser for you to apply for the right UK visa for you and your family, schedule a phone call with me!

Book a call with me to discuss your Global Wealth Strategy as you invest operate or relocate to the UK or Switzerland. You may submit your enquiry here.

Book a call with me to discuss your UK immigration application. Submit your UK immigration enquiry here if you need assistance with any UK immigration application.

You will be first guided to a payment page when you choose “book a call” option. After making the payment, you will be able to choose the most convenient date and time for our Zoom meeting. You can report a payment issue here.

Saule Voluckyte, M.A.E.S, LL.B, FAIA

I have been working exclusively with UHNWI in Mayfair, London since January 2008. I built specialist knowledge and expertise required to serve ultra high net worth individuals investing, operating and relocating to the UK or Switzerland.

Within the industry, I am the single adviser who is able to traverse the different areas of expertise and bring a comprehensive approach across: global structuring, UK immigration, international taxation and FOREX to develop their global wealth strategy, while they build, grow and expand their wealth worldwide.

Previous experience as one of the senior advisors for the government, made me a go-to person when delicate and uncomfortable scenarios involving heads of state need to be handled with care and preserve privacy.