The overwhelming majority of those buying Maltese passports prefer to rent property rather than purchase it.
According to information tabled in Parliament in reply to questions by Nationalist MP Claudio Grech, 81 per cent of those granted Maltese citizenship have signed five-year rent contracts to the tune of €21,000 a year.
Chris Kalin, president of Henley & Partners, said a few weeks ago many of his clients were only interested in getting a Maltese passport rather than living on the island. He said most of the individual investment programme clients were citizens of former Soviet republics seeking a foothold in the European Union.
Justice Minister Owen Bonnici said in Parliament that, until the end of April, 143 applicants were given a Maltese passport. These included 116 who chose to enter into a rent contract rather than buying property. The remaining 27 opted to invest in a dwelling, on average investing about €950,000 each.
According to the rules of the cash-for-citizenship programme, those buying a Maltese passport must meet a number of conditions. Among the conditions imposed is the acquisition of real estate with a minimum value of €350,000 to be held for at least five years or to provide proof of leasing residential immovable property for a period of five years at an annual rent of at least €16,000 a year.
Also, applicants will have to pay €650,000 in cash and invest a minimum of €150,000 in stocks, bonds or special purpose vehicles, holding them for five years.
According to Dr Bonnici, 667 individuals had applied to buy a Maltese passport as of last April. A total of 143 have been given the green light and granted Maltese citizenship while the rest of the applications were still being processed. Only 84 applications were refused after a due diligence conducted by Identity Malta.
It was reported last week that about 100 applicants who had acquired Maltese citizenship had also been granted the right to vote by the Electoral Commission. The Nationalist Party said there were illegalities and has taken the matter to court.