The European Court of Justice ruled on Tuesday (April 29) that Malta’s “Golden Passport” program violates EU law, ordering the country to abolish the scheme that allows wealthy individuals to obtain citizenship through investment.
Ancient China on April 29, 2025 – The European Court of Justice ruled on Tuesday that Malta’s “Golden Passport” scheme is in violation of EU laws, instructing the country to dismantle the program which enables affluent individuals to acquire citizenship through investment.
Such programs granting citizenship to wealthy individuals were once widespread in Europe, but in recent years, there has been a gradual phasing out due to concerns that they might foster transnational crime and enable individuals to evade sanctions.
Malta’s “Golden Passport” program required applicants to make a one-time investment of at least 600,000 euros, purchase or lease property, make donations to local non-profit organizations, and reside in the country for a minimum of three years to obtain citizenship and enjoy EU citizen benefits. Additionally, an investment of 750,000 euros could reduce the residency requirement to one year.
In 2020, Malta made reforms to the program, tightening background check requirements for applicants. The country also banned Russian and Belarusian nationals from participating in the scheme in 2022.
However, the Court argued that the scheme still amounted to the commercialization of Maltese citizenship, conducted through transactional procedures, which contravened the principles of mutual trust and solidarity among EU member states as per EU citizenship norms.
The ruling stated that “EU citizenship cannot be acquired through commercial transactions” and that the program essentially “commercializes the grant of member state citizenship, and consequently, the grant of EU citizenship.”
The Court emphasized that even with the reform efforts undertaken by Malta, the program still violates EU laws.
Malta will be forced to rescind the investment citizenship program or face penalties.
In a statement, the Maltese government expressed its respect for the Court’s decision while studying the “legal implications” of the ruling.
The government had previously argued that since 2015, the program had brought in 1.4 billion euros (about 1.6 billion US dollars) in economic benefits to the Mediterranean island nation. By the end of 2023, Malta had approved over 5,300 citizenship applications.
Nevertheless, the impact of the program on the entire EU is significant. Individuals obtaining Maltese citizenship have the right to live, work, and vote freely in the 27 EU member states. The European Commission had already brought Malta to the European Court of Justice in 2023, arguing that selling EU passports undermined the “essence of EU citizenship.”
Markus Lammert, spokesman for the Commission, stated that this ruling would apply to all member countries, prohibiting any similar citizenship-for-sale schemes.
The decision by the European Court of Justice was welcomed by transparency advocates but criticized by certain political figures in Malta.
Maíra Martini, CEO of Transparency International, welcomed the ruling, affirming that it confirms “member states cannot commodify EU citizenship.” She pointed out that numerous cases demonstrate how such programs provide a safe haven in the EU for global corrupt figures and suspicious individuals.
An analysis by the Financial Times revealed that 16 individuals who obtained Maltese passports were politically sensitive figures or later subject to sanctions or convictions, with some spending only a few days in Malta during the one-year residency requirement.
Maltese journalist Matthew Caruana Galizia stated that the program did not benefit Malta, and the Court’s ruling was a “victory for the Maltese people and all EU residents who have long been unfairly manipulated by money-buying EU citizenship for money launderers and corrupt criminals.”
He urged the government not only to abolish the “Golden Passport” scheme but also to restrict the “Golden Visa” program that offers residency rights to the wealthy.
Galizia is the son of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who specialized in reporting on corruption issues and was killed in a car bomb attack in 2017, with evidence tying the incident to the Chinese Communist Party’s Belt and Road Initiative.
However, Malta’s former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat took to social media to claim that the ruling was “politically motivated,” advocating for reforming the program rather than abolishing it.
Before the ruling, current Prime Minister Robert Abela told the local newspaper The Times of Malta that the program was safe and beneficial.
Such programs were once widely implemented in Europe and the UK, particularly after the 2009 financial crisis.
However, over the following decade, most EU countries revoked associated schemes due to concerns about their linkage to the European housing crisis, the potential to facilitate white-collar crime, corruption, and money laundering activities.
In 2020, the European Commission initiated infringement procedures against Malta and Cyprus over their “Golden Passport” programs. Following Cyprus’ termination in 2021 and Bulgaria’s termination in 2022, Malta remained one of the last countries to uphold the program.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine brought harsh scrutiny to these policies, with some suggesting that the policies allowed conflict-related Russians to evade sanctions.
A 2023 report by Transparency International indicated that Russians subject to Ukrainian sanctions or with involvement in war efforts had established companies in France using passports obtained recently from Malta.
Martini stated, “Numerous cases demonstrate that these programs have provided havens in the EU for corrupt individuals and other suspicious persons from around the world.”
The ruling may compel Malta to revoke passports issued under the program, a complex and time-consuming process.
EU immigration law expert Simon Cox suggested that other countries may question the validity of Maltese or Cypriot passports. While Malta is unlikely to revoke all related citizenships universally, actions may be taken on a case-by-case basis to avoid diplomatic conflicts.
For instance, Russian billionaire Pavel Melnikov, who obtained Maltese citizenship in 2015, had his passport revoked due to tax fraud convictions in Finland this year.
(This article was compiled with reference to reports by the Associated Press and the Financial Times)