Montenegro has stopped providing Russians with passports for investments
There were too many Russians applying for "golden passports"
Montenegro has stopped issuing passports for investments. The government has informed the European Commission about this, The Moscow Times reports. The program officially ended on December 31, 2022.
Details. The European Union demanded that the program be terminated. European officials believed that it did not comply with EU principles, which Montenegro has been trying to join since 2006. The EC document explained that "golden passports" create risks for committing serious crimes, including corruption. Montenegrin citizenship can also be used to enter the EU.
Montenegro launched the golden passport program in 2019. Citizenship was offered to foreigners for an investment of 250,000 to 450,000 euros. It brought the country about 46 million euros. The largest number of Montenegrin passports for investments were received by Russians – 1211 people.
In 2022, Russians set a record for the number of Montenegrin investment passports received in a year. Since the beginning of 2022, Russian citizens have acquired 42% of all "golden passports" of the Balkan country and have become the largest group in this regard.
Last year, a total of 400 people received Montenegrin citizenship for investments.
After the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Union demanded that all countries that are members of the Union or claim to be, stop issuing citizenship or residence permits for investments, and revoke the citizenship of people associated with the Kremlin.
For example, in April, Cyprus revoked 21 "golden passports" from Russian oligarchs and persons under sanctions.
Background. As it became known, Cyprus will revoke Deripaska's "golden passport" and deprive him of citizenship.
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