Spain Ends Golden Visa Program as Congress Overturns Senate Veto

Spain’s Congress has officially passed the Law for the Efficiency of Public Justice Service on December 19, overturning the Senate’s earlier veto and marking the end of the country’s Golden Visa program.

This decision concludes a key initiative introduced by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in April 2024, aimed at terminating the program, which he argued contributed to rising property prices and posed potential risks of enabling foreign criminal activity.

However, María L. De Castro, General Director of CostaLuz Lawyers, disputes this rationale. “The Golden Visa program did not harm Spain’s economy or housing market. On the contrary, it provided significant benefits,” she stated, contradicting the government’s position.

Previously, the Senate, dominated by the Popular Party (PP), temporarily blocked the bill with a veto on December 2, 2024. Congress, where the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) and its coalition partners hold a majority, exercised its constitutional authority to override the veto, passing the law with 177 votes in favor and 170 against.

Dr. Jacinto Soler-Matutes of Emergia Partners expects the law to be published in Spain’s Official State Bulletin (BOE) “next week, on Monday or Tuesday.” He predicts the program will officially terminate around March 23-24, 2025.

De Castro, however, offers a different timeline. She suggests the program will end just 20 days after the law is published in the BOE, significantly earlier than the three-month implementation period proposed by Soler-Matutes.

The legislation includes protective measures for pending applications. Investors who submit their applications before the law’s publication in the BOE will still be processed under the current regulations.