The new Visitor Investor Visa in Hungary
The recently adopted Act XC of 2023 on the General Rules for the Entry and Residence of Third-Country Nationals creates new opportunities for foreign nationals seeking to reside in Hungary while investing. The new legislation allows for residence in Hungary by means of a visiting investor visa and residence permit. A visitor investor visa entitles the holder to enter the country more than 90 days and more than once within 180 days, while a visitor investor residence permit entitles the holder to apply for a residence permit.
A number of conditions must be met before a visitor investor visa can be issued. The conditions are that a third-country national who:
-has a national economic interest in entering and staying in Hungary in view of his/her investment in Hungary,
-hold a valid travel document,
-holds the necessary permit for return or onward travel,
-provides proof of the purpose of his/her entry and stay,
-has sufficient means of subsistence to cover his/her subsistence and subsistence costs and the costs of departure for the entire duration of his/her stay,
-is insured for the full cost of health care or is able to cover the cost of health care,
-is not subject to expulsion or a ban on entry and residence, or if his/her entry or residence does not endanger public policy, public security, national security or public health interests in Hungary,
-is not subject to a Schengen Information System (SIS) alert,
-holds or intends to hold at least one of the appropriate investments,
-certifies that he/she holds an amount corresponding to at least one of the required investments, of lawful origin, which must be available or transferable within the territory of Hungary,
-submit a written commitment to make at least one of the required investments of a specified amount and type within three months of entering Hungary on the basis of a visitor investor visa.
For the purposes of the legislation, the following investments shall be considered to be of national economic interest:
-the acquisition of units of at least EUR 250 000 issued by a real estate fund registered by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank,
-ownership of a residential property with a value of at least EUR 500 000, situated in the geographical territory of Hungary and registered in the Land Register under its parcel number, free of legal title, encumbrances and claims, or
-a monetary donation of at least EUR 1 000 000 to a higher education institution maintained by a public trust with a public-service mission, for the purpose of supporting educational, scientific research or artistic creation.
At the time of acquisition of the real estate investment by a third-country national, a prohibition on alienation and encumbrance of the residential property shall be registered in the Land Register for a period of 5 years from the date of conclusion of the sale and purchase contract. For a period of 5 years, the property may be owned exclusively by the third-country national or jointly by the third-country national and a member of his/her family who holds the residence permit for the purpose of the host investor.
The maximum validity period of the visitor investor visa is 2 years.
The Visitor Investor Visa expires once the Visitor Investor Residence Permit has been issued.
Dr. György Zalavári summarises the conditions of the new residence permit for visiting investors in a separate article on a related topic.