Getting the right to live and work in another country can be a long and difficult process. But that’s not always the case for those with money to spend.

Golden visas offer the opportunity for wealthy people to essentially ‘buy’ the right to residency – sometimes without even having to live in the country.

And their popularity in the European Union is growing as people look to move away from countries facing instability and political decisions such as Brexit that may limit their safety and rights.

With the re-election of Trump in the US, applications for golden visas from Americans are also projected to increase.

But golden visas are now gradually being phased out across Europe.

Spain has finally secured a legal route to ending golden visas via property investment, with reports suggesting the ban could come into force by January 2025. The ban, which has been approve by the country’s Congress, could also affect other investment pathways.

Portugal removed real estate investment as a basis for golden visa applications back in October 2023 in the hope of reducing property speculation.

The Netherlands followed suit, ending its golden visa scheme in January 2024.

But Hungary has bucked the trend by reintroducing its golden visa scheme, with applications open as of this month.

So what exactly are these golden visa schemes and why has the EU raised questions about their safety in recent years?

What is a golden visa?

Residence by investment schemes, otherwise known as ‘golden visas’, offer people the chance to get a residency permit for a country by purchasing a house there or making a large investment or donation.

Any applicants must be over the age of 18, have a clean criminal record and have sufficient funds to make the required investment.

There are also golden passports, known officially as citizenship by investment programs, that allow foreigners to gain citizenship using the same means.

For countries in the EU, this also means gaining access to many of the benefits of being a resident of the bloc – including free movement between countries.

Why is the EU against golden visas and passports?

In 2022, the European Commission called on EU governments to stop selling citizenship to investors.

Though this is different to golden visas, which offer permanent residency rather than citizenship, the call came as part of a move to crack down on this combined multi-billion euro industry. In the wake of the Ukraine war, there were concerns that these schemes could be a security risk.

Brussels also called for countries to double-check whether people sanctioned due to the war were holding a golden passport or visa that they had issued.

In the past, the EU has also said that schemes of this kind are a risk to security, transparency and the values that underpin the European Union project.

In October 2022, the European Commission urged Albania to “refrain from developing an investors’ citizenship scheme (golden passports)”. Such a scheme would “pose risks as regards security, money laundering, tax evasion, terrorist financing, corruption and infiltration by organised crime, and would be incompatible with EU norms,” it warned in a report. The country has since suspended its plans to introduce a golden visa.

Threats also come from outside the bloc. Also in October 2022, the European Commission proposed a suspension of Vanuatu‘s visa waiver agreement due to golden passport risks. This is because the scheme enables nationals of third countries to gain Vanuatu citizenship, which then earns them visa-free access to Schengen zone countries.

Which other countries have scrapped their golden visa schemes?

In February 2022, the UK government scrapped its golden visa scheme that allowed wealthy foreign nationals to settle in the country in exchange for bringing part of their wealth with them. The decision to end the scheme came as part of a move to clamp down on dirty money from Russia.

In February 2023, Ireland also axed its golden visa scheme – the Immigrant Investor Programme – which offered Irish residence in return for a €500,000 donation or three-year annual €1 million investment in the country.

Ireland had already suspended the scheme for Russian citizens in March 2022 as part of sanctions imposed on the country for the invasion of Ukraine. The following month, the European Parliament warned that the programme was vulnerable to tax abuse. The final decision to end the scheme was the outcome of various international reports and internal reviews.

Which EU countries still offer golden visas and what are the requirements?

There are only a few places that still offer golden passports in the EU. One of these countries is Malta. Here, the minimum investment amount starts at €690,000 and offers citizenship for between 12 and 36 months.

Many others, however, still offer golden visa schemes. Here are a few examples of exactly how much it costs to get residence by investment in these countries.

Does Spain still offer a golden visa?

Spain launched its residence by investment scheme in 2013. It allowed wealthy people from outside the EU to obtain residency permits on investing more than €500,000 in real estate or certain types of business.

However, in April, the country’s government said it plans to scrap the real estate route – which accounts for 94 per cent of applications – to reduce pressure on the housing market.

Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the reform was part of his minority coalition government’s push to make housing “a right, not a speculative business”.

Spain’s Congress of Deputies has finally approved the bill that will put an end to Spain’s golden visa.

The cancellation is being passed under the Law for the Efficiency of Justice, which has been approved in the Plenary Session of Congress and initial reports suggest it will finally be scrapped in January 2025. According to local media reports, applications made before then are likely to be honoured.

Before this happens, however, it will still need being submitted to the Senate for possible amendments and then back to the Congress for final approval before it’s officially cancelled.

The government says over 15,000 such visas have been issued since the measure was brought into law in 2013 by a previous right-wing Popular Party government as a means to attract foreign investors.

Since Spain announced plans to end its golden visa, Chinese investors have rushed to buy property in the country, a report by Spanish state broadcaster RTVE revealed.

The visa can also be gained by starting certain types of business in Spain, holding company shares or bank deposits with a minimum value of €1 million in Spanish financial institutions, or making a government bonds investment of at least €2 million. The ban could extend to these types of investments, also.

Hungary golden visa scheme

Bucking the trend, Hungary announced plans to reintroduce its golden visa scheme in July 2024, after having ended it back in 2017.

The so-called Guest Investor Program (GIP) offers three routes to residency, including through real estate investment funds (minimum €250,000), purchasing a residential property (minimum €500,000) or donating at least €1 million to a higher educational institution in the country.

The visa is extended to the spouse and dependent children of the applicant and grants visa-free travel in the EU.

Initial applications opened at the end of October, with further real estate investment funds expected to be released by the end of the year.

Italy’s golden visa scheme

Italy is another popular destination for those looking to get residence by investment.

Introduced in 2017, its golden visa grants non-EU nationals a residence permit for two years in exchange for an investment in Italy.

The minimum investment here is €250,000 which must be done through an Italian limited company. Those holding these visas can also include their family in the application and benefit from a special tax regime.

Once those using the scheme have lived in Italy for 10 years, they can be eligible for citizenship.

Greece’s golden visa scheme

Greece offers golden visas, with one of the quickest processes for gaining residency. Qualifying foreigners can get a permit within 60 days of applying.

It used to have one of the lowest thresholds for investment at just €250,000 spent on property in the country. But the country raised this to €800,000 in September in areas facing severe housing shortages, such as Athens, Mykonos and Santorini.

Elsewhere, it only rose to €400,000 to encourage investment in a wider range of places.

Golden visa holders aren’t required to stay in Greece to keep their visas.

By the end of 2021, the country had seen 9,500 applications for these residence by investment schemes, one of the highest numbers in Europe.

Planning to visit or travel within France this November and December?

Be warned that this is expected to be the season of the strike, as several of France’s largest unions, including transport workers and farmers, plan to take industrial action.

All four of France’s major rail unions have joined together for an initial one-day action on Thursday 21 November. This collective strike day is expected to cause significant disruption, and it could even extend to the Christmas holidays and beyond.

Earlier this week, the unions highlighted that if the French government does not meet their demands, they will go on what’s being called a longer and stronger strike (‘un mouvement de grève plus long et plus fort’) from 11 December.

The timing is no coincidence: December is the busiest time for the country’s railways.

Why are there strikes in France?

Unions are concerned about the increasing privatisation of the French state rail company SNCF, the regional train network ‘Transport Express Régional’ (TER), the commuter rail network Transilien and the non-high-speed services Intercité.

In fact, the SNCF has been state-owned since it was founded in the late 1930s, but unions are aggrieved that, since 2019, the French rail network has been open to other potential players so that the national company no longer has a monopoly.

For example, rail companies such as the Spanish state-owned Renfe and the partially Italian state-owned Trenitalia now run some of the Paris services.

France is not the only European country opening up its state railways: this is part of a wider EU initiative to improve the network and encourage more people to choose rail over car or plane travel.

France strikes: How will flights be affected?

You might expect some delays at the airports too, as France’s National Union of Airline Pilots, the SNPL, have issued a strike for 14 November.

This action is likely to affect the national airline Air France and other carriers that employ pilots on French labour contracts.

While the SNPL has only warned of a one-day action, it is possible that this, too, could be extended.

This strike has come about because pilots are unhappy about the French government’s scheme to raise flight taxes by 300 per cent, which they say is being introduced without consulting the aviation industry.

Known as the solidarity tax, right now, passengers pay just under €3 to fly in economy class or €18 in first class, which is added directly onto the cost of their ticket.

But if the tax increase goes ahead, the price could rise to €9.50 when flying economy to a destination in Europe and as much as €120 for a business class ticket from Paris to New York.

France hopes to raise an additional billion euros each year from the aviation sector to cover gaps in the country’s 2025 budget.

Protests and strikes have long been engrained in French culture

Alongside these travel strikes, farmers will also be protesting, which will likely include road blockages that target Spanish and other EU truckers delivering produce.

Likewise, three days of action by two unions representing civil servants are expected to take place in early December. Specific dates have not yet been announced.

When it comes to the sheer breadth of strike action each year, France tends to be at the top of most European countries. However, 2024 has been relatively peaceful compared with previous years until this month.

France has been known for its so-called ‘orderly disorder’ since the 1789 Revolution, which was fuelled by starvation.

Striking was legalised in 1864 and has always been seen as a last resort for demanding better living conditions, but in recent years, it’s become an easy way for groups to make themselves heard against the centralised state government.

French strikes are typically led by well-disciplined unions that can quickly mobilise with specific demands and aims. In turn, this has increased participation, and strikes are nowadays celebrated as a symbol of social victory.

A volcano on a remote Indonesian island continues to spew towering columns of hot ash into the air, making it too dangerous for flights to land or depart from Bali’s international airport.

Travellers have been stranded at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai airport since flight cancellations began at the weekend.

“The airline did not provide accommodation, leaving us stranded at this airport,” said Charlie Austin from Perth, Australia, who was on vacation in Bali with his family.

It is unclear when the ash cloud will clear and allow the airport to resume normal operations.

Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano on the island of Flores in East Nusa Tenggara province has been shooting hot ash high into the air since it first erupted on 4 November, killing ten people so far and injuring dozens of others.

The 1,584-meter volcano shot up ash at least 17 times on Tuesday, with the largest column recorded at 9 kilometres high, the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation said in a statement.

Bali flights: Are all departures and arrivals cancelled?

I Gusti Ngurah Rai airport’s website currently shows most international departures for today (Wednesday) as either cancelled or delayed, while a few flights, to destinations such as Istanbul and Kuala Lumpur, do appear to be taking off as scheduled.

The advice to passengers is to contact your airline or check their website or social media channels before leaving for the airport.

Sicne the weekend, 84 flights, including 36 scheduled to depart and 48 due to arrive, were cancelled or delayed.

Airport authorities said that at least 26 domestic flights and 64 overseas ones were cancelled on Wednesday alone, including airlines from Singapore, Hong Kong, Qatar, India and Malaysia. For these cancellations, the airlines were offering travellers a refund, or to reschedule or reroute.

Air New Zealand cancelled a flight to Denpasar scheduled for Wednesday and a return service to Auckland due to depart Bali on Thursday. Passengers would be rebooked and the airline would continue to monitor the movement of ash in the coming days, Chief Operating Officer Alex Marren said.

Jetstar Bali flights: Australian airlines worst hit by cancellations

Australian airlines use Bali’s international airport more than any others, since Bali is a very popular holiday destination with Australians.

Budget airline Jetstar has paused its flights to Bali until at least Thursday, it said on its website, saying it was “currently not safe” to operate the route.

They say they understand that some passengers may no longer wish to fly to Bali, in which case anyone with flights booked between 13 and 17 November have the option to postpone their flight by three weeks or get credit to use with the airline. For full details on your options, check their website.

Jetstar’s statement went on to say:

“We understand that this is a difficult situation for impacted customers. Safety is always our number one priority and we thank customers for their patience and understanding.

Impacted customers will be notified directly and will be provided with a range of options.

Capacity on our existing scheduled services is limited and we understand that some customers may be concerned about how quickly they can rebook their flights.

We continue to monitor the situation closely and are planning to add extra flights to get customers to their destination as soon as possible.

We will provide an update on flights scheduled to operate after 12noon AEDT on Thursday.”

Virgin Australia’s website showed 10 services to and from Bali were cancelled on Wednesday. Qantas said it has delayed three flights. Some airlines are offering fare refunds for upcoming Bali flights to passengers who don’t want to travel.

Are passengers on Bali flights entitled to a refund or compensation?

Rules vary by country or region but EU airlines have to offer a refund or new flight if they cancel your flight. However if the cancellation is due to weather-related events, they sometimes claim this is an “act of God” to get out of paying passengers.

However for this volcano affecting Bali, some airlines have already said they will cover refunds or offer new flights so the chances are quite good.

Travel insurance is designed to cover unforeseen events, such as emergency medical expenses, lost or stolen belongings and last-minute cancellations.

In some cases, you can be reimbursed if your trip is cancelled due to extreme weather – but certain conditions usually apply.

Check your policy for a list of covered reasons for trip cancellation, as these vary by provider. Some may provide add-ons for weather-related circumstances.

Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano: 9 kilometre high ash cloud

Authorities on Tuesday expanded the exclusion zone as the volcano erupted again to 9 kilometres high. Volcanic materials, including smoldering rocks, lava, and hot, thumb-size fragments of gravel and ash, have been thrown up to 8 kilometres from the crater since Friday.

About 6,500 people were evacuated in January after Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki began erupting, spewing thick clouds and forcing the government to close the island’s Fransiskus Xaverius Seda Airport. No casualties or major damage were reported, but the airport has remained closed because of seismic activity.

Lewotobi Laki Laki is one of a pair of stratovolcanoes in the East Flores district of East Nusa Tenggara province, known locally as the husband-and-wife mountains. ‘Laki laki’ means man, while its mate is Lewotobi Perempuan, or woman. It’s one of the 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, an archipelago of 280 million people.

The country is prone to earthquakes, landslides and volcanic activity because it sits along the ‘Ring of Fire’, a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines around the Pacific Ocean.