Portugal freezes 'golden visas' for wealthy investors
Lisbon
Portuguese officials said Tuesday that the granting of "golden visas" for foreign investors had been frozen following a scandal surrounding the issuing of the residence permits and new legislation.
Since the end of 2012, Portugal has granted these special visas to foreigners ready to shell out at least 500,000 euros ($550,000) for a house or apartment, make a capital transfer of one million euros or create 10 jobs.
A new immigration law that went into effect July 1 officially repealed the "golden visas", but did not replace them with other options, creating a sort of legal vacuum.
"The processing of residence permit applications for investment has been suspended since July 1 until the publication of an order regulating" the measure, border police told AFP, confirming press reports.
Earlier this month, Portuguese prosecutors said they planned to charge former interior minister Miguel Macedo for his role in a money-laundering scandal involving the "golden visas" that also implicated the former head of border police.
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