The Latvia golden visa now runs through a single open door: €50,000 invested in the share capital of a Latvian company, plus a €10,000 one-time payment to the state budget. Latvia replaced its former immigration rules with a new Immigration Law on 15 September 2026, and the new law closed the real estate and bank deposit routes to new applicants. Permits issued under the new law run for two years at a time, and the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (OCMA) decides every application. One investment covers the main applicant, and a spouse and children under 18 apply under the same file.
What Is the Latvia Golden Visa?
The Latvia golden visa is an investor temporary residence permit (TRP) issued under Article 27(1)(10) of the Latvian Immigration Law. Citizens of countries outside the European Union (EU) use the permit to live in Latvia on the strength of an investment, with no separate employment or study ground required. Latvia launched the program in 2010, and price built the reputation: the €60,000 combined minimum of investment and state payment undercuts every competing EU scheme. Each approved applicant receives a residence card in his or her own name, and the card shows the two-year term of the permit.
What Changed on 15 September 2026
The new Immigration Law cut the investor permit term from five years to two years and abolished the annual registration of the residence card. Under the old system, an investor held a five-year permit but travelled to Latvia every year to register the card. Applications filed on or before 14 September 2026 are still examined under the old law, so a buyer who filed on 12 September 2026 keeps the five-year track. The Saeima adopted the final text on 20 August 2026 by 60 votes to 26, after President Edgars Rinkēvičs returned an earlier version to parliament in June 2026. Two former permanent residence statuses merged into one status under the reform: the EU long-term resident status.
Investment Routes Open in 2026
Two investment routes stand in the new law, and only the company share capital route accepts applications today. The second route, a state alternative investment fund, exists on paper while the fund itself remains unbuilt. Each route carries the same €10,000 payment to the state budget, and each route excludes citizens of Russia and Belarus.
Company Share Capital: €50,000 or €100,000
An investor qualifies with €50,000 in the share capital of a small or medium-sized Latvian company, or with €100,000 in a large company. A small or medium-sized company employs fewer than 50 people and records annual turnover or a balance sheet total below €10 million. Tax records add a second test: the company pays at least €40,000 a year in taxes. A Riga logistics firm with 22 employees and €3 million of turnover passes both tests with room to spare. Latvian law caps the route at 10 investors per company, and the investor pays the €10,000 state budget contribution only after OCMA returns a positive decision. A refusal does not strand the money, because company law allows a statutory reduction of share capital and a return of the €50,000.
Alternative Investment Fund: €150,000
The fund route requires at least €150,000 placed for at least five years with the manager of a state-established alternative investment fund (AIF). OCMA has confirmed that the fund structure has not been established, and no applicant can file on this ground until the fund launches. The planned permit term under the fund route runs five years, longer than the two-year term on the company route. Investors who want a Latvian permit in 2026 therefore file under the company route or wait for a launch date that the government has not announced.
Routes That Closed for New Applicants
Real estate purchases, subordinated bank capital, and Latvian government securities no longer qualify a new applicant for a residence permit. The property route asked for at least €250,000 in real estate plus a state fee of 5 percent of the value, €12,500 at the minimum threshold. Bank subordinated capital demanded €280,000 locked for five years plus a €25,000 state fee, and the securities route demanded €250,000 in interest-free bonds plus a €38,000 state fee before the government removed the securities route ahead of the 2026 law. Transitional provisions protect existing holders: permits stay valid until expiry, and property or bank-route holders may request a repeated permit for up to five years. Holders who re-register under the transition rules pay a contribution to a state economic development programme, capped at €5,000 in total.
How Much Does the Latvia Golden Visa Cost in Total?
A single applicant commits €60,000 at the threshold: a €50,000 share capital investment plus the €10,000 payment to the state budget. Government review speed sets the state duty, and an applicant picks the 30-day, 10-business-day, or 5-business-day tier per person. Document preparation, certified translation, and legalisation add at least €1,000 on agent estimates. The table below prices the company route for one applicant on the standard 30-day review.
| Cost item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Share capital investment, small or medium-sized company | €50,000 |
| One-time payment to the state budget, due after approval | €10,000 |
| State duty, application review in 30 days | €160 per person |
| State duty, application review in 10 business days | €280 per person |
| State duty, application review in 5 business days | €560 per person |
| Document preparation, translation, and legalisation | from €1,000 |
| Total committed funds at the threshold, single applicant | €60,000 plus duties and document costs |
Family files multiply only the per-person items. A couple on the standard tier pays €320 in state duties, because each adult pays the €160 duty once. Children under 18 join the same investment, and no second €50,000 arises for a spouse or a child. Specialist firms quote full family handling from €65,000 all-in, a figure that bundles the €60,000 threshold with duties and document work.
Who Can Apply and Who Cannot
Any third-country national aged 18 or older with a clean criminal record and a legal source of funds can apply, and citizens of Russia and Belarus cannot apply under either investor route. The exclusion for Russian and Belarusian citizens covers both the company route and the fund route, and the government may also suspend investment permits for a named nationality for up to five years on security grounds. A legally married spouse and children under 18 join the same application, and persons under the investor’s legal guardianship can join as well. Funds evidence follows set benchmarks: the main applicant shows at least €950 per month, and each family member adds €285 per month. A spouse and two children therefore add €855 per month to the funds test, because three people at €285 equal €855. Every applicant also holds health insurance valid in Latvia for the permit period.
How to Apply: Step by Step
OCMA decides each application on documents, and a complete file moves from submission to decision inside the review tier the applicant pays for. Most applicants work through a Latvian lawyer under a power of attorney and travel to Latvia once, for biometrics and card collection. Follow the sequence below.
- Select a qualifying company and agree the share capital increase of €50,000 or €100,000.
- Gather the document set: passport, criminal record certificate, proof of funds, and marriage or birth certificates for family members.
- Legalise and translate the documents into Latvian where OCMA requires certified copies.
- Pay in the share capital and register the increase with the Latvian Enterprise Register.
- Submit the application to OCMA in Latvia or at a Latvian embassy or consulate, and pay the state duty for the chosen review speed.
- Pay the €10,000 payment to the state budget after OCMA issues a positive decision.
- Enter Latvia, give biometrics, and collect the residence card; applicants who need a visa enter on a long-stay D visa.
Standard review takes 30 days, and the full run from first document to residence card in hand typically spans 2.5 to 4 months. Preparation eats most of that span: document gathering and legalisation alone take 2 to 3 weeks on agent timelines. An applicant who files in early November 2026 with a complete file can plan on holding a card in the first quarter of 2027.
Rights You Get With the Permit
The permit grants the right to live in Latvia and to travel across the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. The travel right covers 29 Schengen countries, and border officers count the 90 days across the whole area rather than country by country. No minimum stay applies in Latvia, so an investor keeps the permit without relocating and travels to Riga for biometrics at issue and at each renewal. A spouse may work and study in Latvia, and children under 18 attend Latvian public schools free of charge. Consider a consultant who lives in Dubai: the Latvian card alone covers a 90-day run of client meetings in Germany, France, and Spain inside one half-year.
Renewal, Permanent Residence, and Citizenship
The company route permit renews in two-year blocks, and five years of continuous residence opens the EU long-term resident status, the single permanent status under the new law. Renewal demands a live investment: the share capital stays in the company, and the applicant files before the current permit expires. Permanent residence tests presence, not paperwork alone, and an applicant shows residence in Latvia for at least four of the five qualifying years. Latvian language at A2 level forms part of the permanent residence test, while the investor permit itself carries no language condition. Citizenship follows after 10 years of legal residence, the last five years as a permanent resident, and naturalisation adds Latvian language plus constitution and history examinations. An investor who settles in Riga in January 2027 reaches the permanent residence window in 2032 and the citizenship window in 2037.
Why Investors Still Choose Latvia
Latvia posts the lowest entry price of any EU residency by investment program, €60,000 of committed funds at the threshold. Price alone does not explain the draw, because the company route also hands the investor a working EU business base. Latvian corporate tax falls only on distributed profits at 20 percent, and retained earnings sit untaxed inside the company. Labour costs run near €16 per hour against an EU average of €35 per hour, a gap that suits small trading and service companies. Euro membership since 2014 removes currency conversion from daily operations, and Riga works as a logistics point between Scandinavia, the wider EU, and Central Asia.
FAQs
Can I still get a Latvia golden visa through real estate?
No. The new Immigration Law removed the property ground on 15 September 2026. Existing property-route permits stay valid until expiry, and holders may re-register under the transitional provisions.
How much does the Latvia golden visa cost in total?
The threshold cost is €60,000: a €50,000 share capital investment plus a €10,000 payment to the state budget. State duties add €160 to €560 per person, and document work starts near €1,000.
How long is the Latvia golden visa permit valid?
Two years under the company route, renewable in further two-year blocks. The fund route carries a five-year term on paper, and the fund itself has not launched.
Do I have to live in Latvia to keep the permit?
No. The investor permit carries no minimum stay. Holders travel to Latvia for biometrics at issue and renewal, and only the permanent residence stage tests physical presence.
Can my spouse and children join one application?
Yes. A legally married spouse and children under 18 file under the investor’s single application. Each family member pays the per-person state duty, and no extra investment applies.
Can citizens of Russia or Belarus apply?
No. The 2026 law bars citizens of Russia and Belarus from both investor routes. Permits they already hold stay valid until expiry, and renewal under the new investor grounds is closed to them.
How long does approval take?
Review speed follows the duty paid: 30 days, 10 business days, or 5 business days. The complete run from document preparation to card collection typically takes 2.5 to 4 months.
When can a golden visa holder apply for Latvian citizenship?
After 10 years of legal residence, with the last five years held as a permanent resident. Naturalisation also requires Latvian language skills and examinations on the constitution and history of Latvia.
Conclusion
The Latvia golden visa in 2026 is a company investment program: €60,000 at the threshold, a two-year renewable permit, and one file for the whole family. Property buyers now look at Greece for a €250,000 real estate route, while business investors keep Latvia at the top of the EU price table. The €10,000 payment to the state budget falls due only after OCMA approves the application.
