The EU Court of Justice has ruled that granting citizenship to foreign investors is unlawful, directly targeting Malta’s “golden passport” scheme, which offers citizenship in exchange for significant investment—such as purchasing real estate worth at least €700,000—under the pretense of “exceptional services.”

This landmark decision emphasizes that EU citizenship cannot be treated as a commodity. Since 2020, Malta has allowed individuals from non-EU countries to obtain Maltese (and thus EU) citizenship through direct investments. However, the EU’s highest court has now determined that this practice breaches Union law, effectively commodifying both national and EU citizenship.

While EU member states are generally free to set the rules for granting or revoking citizenship, that discretion must align with EU law. The court stressed that EU citizenship ensures freedom of movement within a shared space of liberty, security, and justice, built on mutual trust and recognition among states. Granting citizenship in exchange for investment undermines these principles and violates the duty of sincere cooperation between member states.

As a result, no member state may offer its citizenship—and thus EU citizenship—in return for predetermined payments or investments. Doing so would reduce citizenship to a commercial transaction, weakening the essential bond of solidarity and trust between a country and its citizens, and between EU states themselves.

It’s worth noting that so-called “golden visa” programs, offered in several EU countries, only provide residency rights—not full citizenship—unlike the Maltese golden passport model.