May 19, 2023

No More Golden Passports?


No More Golden Passports?
Annulled Maltese passports. Dans, Wikimedia Commons.

Wealthy Russians have historically taken advantage of citizenship-for-investment policies. However, Malta and Cyprus have recently annulled dozens of "golden passports" of EU-sanctioned Russian nationals and their families. Options for EU citizenship for Russians are disappearing.

Malta and Cyprus' “golden passports” have long been controversial. After the invasion of Ukraine, the EU asked both countries to deny Russians and Belorussians a path to naturalization via investments and to revoke passports given to investors from these countries. Der Spiegel reported that European Parliament member Moritz Körner solicited Malta to revoke the citizenships of two sanctioned Russians. The deputy also asked Cyprus to annul nine Kremlin-allies' passports and 34 people associated with them. Körner said that these passport holders should “feel the consequences” for enriching themselves off the Kremlin.

Russians have how turned to Vanuatu, whose visa is waived for the Schengen area, for alternative citizenship via investment. Yet Vanuatu is now at risk of losing its visa-free status for its "golden passports" policy.

Malta and Cyrpus have benefited from their passport policies, with Cyprus reporting that between 2007-2020 their citizenship-for-investment made gains of 9.7 billion euros. However, not all hope is lost, since a record number of Americans have begun to apply for such citizenship.

 

You Might Also Like

Financial Paradise Lost?
  • April 16, 2023

Financial Paradise Lost?

The second-largest bank in the UAE will block investment accounts from Russians, citing pressure from EU depositories.
No Money, Only War
  • March 29, 2023

No Money, Only War

Russian authorities blame the "special military operation" for the disruption of infrastructural and social projects.
Cry for Me, Argentina
  • February 19, 2023

Cry for Me, Argentina

Six pregnant Russians were detained while entering Argentina, prompting a criminal investigation into birth tourism agencies.
Screws are Tightening
  • April 12, 2023

Screws are Tightening

March has seen a serious tightening of the screws of repression by the Russian regime.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955