The President of Latvia Refused to Sign the Immigration Law – It Ambiguously Addresses Russian Citizens 0 14

The head of state notes that 158 proposals were submitted for the third reading of the bill. Among them were not only technical clarifications but also amendments introducing fundamentally new legal regulations, including those concerning the right of foreigners to obtain temporary residence permits in exchange for investments in the economy of Latvia.

In the president's opinion, several aspects require further assessment by the parliament.

Questions Regarding 'Investment' Residence Permits

Rinkēvičs draws attention to the provision of the law that allows a foreign citizen to obtain a temporary residence permit for up to five years if they invest at least 150,000 euros in a state-created Alternative Investment Fund for a minimum of five years and additionally transfer 10,000 euros to the state budget.

The president reminds that special attention was paid to national security issues during the development of the law. In particular, the document contains specific restrictions for citizens of Russia and Belarus when obtaining temporary residence permits.

However, Rinkēvičs notes that the initial version of the law did not directly limit the ability of citizens of Russia and Belarus to obtain residence permits through the investment program. In this regard, he believes it is necessary to ensure that the corresponding restrictions are reflected in all necessary articles of the law.

Furthermore, in the president's opinion, it is necessary to grant the Cabinet of Ministers the authority to verify the origin of the invested funds and determine the purposes for which such investments are used.

Real Estate for Friends

Separately, the president suggests that the Saeima reassess the possibility of issuing temporary residence permits to citizens of friendly countries in exchange for purchasing real estate.

In his opinion, such an opportunity could extend to citizens of NATO countries, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), European Economic Area states, as well as other countries that the government may include in a special list of friendly states.

Rinkēvičs reported that he received similar proposals from major representatives of the real estate market.

The president believes that lawmakers can either independently establish criteria for such a program — for example, determine the territories of Latvia where the purchase of real estate by foreigners is allowed, the minimum cost of properties, and other conditions — or assign the development of these criteria to the Cabinet of Ministers.