The Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) also known as ‘Golden visa’ was introduced in April 2012 to encourage inward investment and create business and employment opportunities in Ireland. The programme provides investors with the opportunity to invest in Ireland. Key to the programme is that the investments are beneficial for Ireland, generate or sustain employment and are generally in the public interest. To date, more than 1,500 IIP applications have been approved for investment with a value of over €1 billion.
The Immigrant Investor scheme offers the four investment options to secure a immediate path to permanent residency (stamp 4 status) to investors and family members. The IIP is the most underrated golden visa program. Lately the program has gained more popularity after UK has shut down its investor visa route.
The Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) is only open to non-EEA nationals who commit to an approved investment in Ireland. EU/EEA citizens cannot apply.
Investors who wish to undertake eligible investments in Ireland and must demonstrate of good character and also must prove minimum net assets of €2 million euros, else they cannot apply.
- Endowment (€500,000), reduced to €400,000 if you invest in a group
- Investment Fund (€1 million euro)
- Real Estate Investment Trusts (€2 million euro)
- Mixed Investments (€2 million euro)
Investors and their family members receive residence permit to live in Ireland for initial five years. The Investor is not required to live in Ireland, however required to visit Ireland for one day each year to maintain the Residency Permission.
Visa Statistics
The Department of Justice has published visa statistics with number of applications and investments received through the immigrant investor program. See the tables below
As of mid 2022, her is a quick summary
- 1,547 applications has been approved
- 1,1 billion euros invested in Ireland
- Chinese and Americans are top investors
- Enterprise is the most popular investment option attracting over 800 foreign investors.
- Social housing projects benefited with 353.5 million euros
| Year | Approved applications | Value of Approved Investment € |
| 2012 | 2 | 1,500,000 |
| 2013 | 16 | 12,200,000 |
| 2014 | 8 | 4,450,000 |
| 2015 | 71 | 38,800,000 |
| 2016 | 33 | 18,750,000 |
| 2017 | 373 | 253,700,000 |
| 2018 | 156 | 139,750,000 |
| 2019 | 237 | 209,300,000 |
| 2020 | 270 | 188,000,000 |
| 2021 | 265 | 186,100,000 |
| 2022 | 116 | 82,500,000 |
| TOTAL | 1,547 | 1,135,050,000 |
Breakdown by nationality and approvals…
| Nationality | Overall number of approvals |
| China | 1,458 |
| USA | 32 |
| Vietnam | 12 |
| Rest of World | 45 |
| TOTAL | 1,547 |
The tables below provides a breakdown by investment type and by category of project.
| Investment Type | Total Applications Approved | Total Value of Investment € |
| Enterprise | 826 | 684,000,000 |
| Investment Fund | 228 | 210,000,000 |
| REIT | 6 | 12,000,000 |
| Endowment | 431 | 175,100,000 |
| Bond & Mixed Investment | 56 | 53,950,000 |
| TOTAL | 1,547 | 1,135,050,000 |
List of Projects receiving value of approved investments
| Category of project | Value of Approved Investment € |
| Social Housing | 353,500,000 |
| Investment Fund | 206,000,000 |
| Nursing Home | 184,700,000 |
| Hospitality/Tourism | 120,200,000 |
| Property/Housing | 50,950,000 |
| Healthcare | 45,800,000 |
| Education/Training | 35,200,000 |
| Sports | 22,500,000 |
| Other | 116,200,000 |
| TOTAL | 1,135,050,000 |
Source: Department of Justice
