Murblz log · 2025-2026
Immigration changes 2026: golden visas and citizenship
Three European investor programs closed in eighteen months. Every change here comes with a date, before and now, and an official source.
In eighteen months Europe shut three doors that money used to open: Malta's citizenship for a contribution, Spain's golden visa and Latvian residence through property. Portugal doubled the road to citizenship and Germany scrapped its 3-year fast track. A program brochure printed last spring now works best as a bookmark.
We put 29 changes across 23 countries and the EU into one log. Every entry has a date, what it was, what it is now, a link to the official source and to our full guide.
Latest citizenship and residence program changes
Fresh and upcoming changes are at the top. The filter narrows the log to one country or one year.
No changes logged for this country and year. Ask a manager in the chat and we will check.
| Date | Country and program | What changed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| takes effect | 🇲🇪 Montenegro Entry and residence | Russian and Belarusian citizens need a visa Before: 30 days visa-free Now: Entry with a visa or a residence card | official source |
| announced | 🇦🇷 Argentina Citizenship by investment | A citizenship-by-contribution program is announced Before: No program Now: A $350,000 contribution or an $800,000 bond, applications promised by the end of 2026 | official source |
| 🇱🇻 Latvia Residence by investment | Residence through property purchase is closed Before: Up to 5 years of residence for property or a subordinated investment in a bank Now: Both routes are closed to new applications | official source | |
| 🇺🇸 USA Birthright citizenship | Executive orders against birth tourism are signed Before: A birth on a tourist visa gave the child a US passport Now: Visas for birth trips are revoked and paid births do not confer citizenship; a court has partly paused this rule | official source | |
| 🇦🇺 Australia Work visa 482 | The minimum salary for the visa went up Before: ~$54,000 a year Now: ~$56,000 a year | official source | |
| 🇵🇹 Portugal Naturalisation | Residence needed for citizenship doubled Before: 5 years for everyone Now: 10 years, 7 for EU and Portuguese-speaking countries | official source | |
| 🇵🇹 Portugal Citizenship by birth | A foreign couple's child qualifies only after 5 years of parental residence Before: 1 year of parental residence was enough Now: One parent has lived in Portugal legally for at least 5 years | official source | |
| 🇬🇩 Grenada Citizenship by investment | US tourist visas now require a bond Before: No bond Now: A bond of $10,000 to $20,000, refunded after a compliant trip | official source | |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom Investor visa | The investor visa extension window has closed Before: A 2-year extension for visa holders Now: No extensions; settlement applications until 17 Feb 2028 | official source | |
| 🇳🇷 Nauru Citizenship by investment | The contribution is cut by $25,000 until the end of 2026 Before: $115,000 Now: $90,000 for applications filed by 31 Dec 2026 | official source | |
| 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone Citizenship by investment | The US fully suspended entry for its nationals Before: Partial visa restrictions Now: Entry suspended on both immigrant and temporary visas | official source | |
| 🇩🇲 Dominica Citizenship by investment | The US restricted visas over citizenship by investment Before: Standard US visa processing Now: Immigrant, tourist, business and student visas are suspended | official source | |
| 🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda Citizenship by investment | The US restricted visas over citizenship by investment Before: Standard US visa processing Now: Immigrant, tourist, business and student visas are suspended | official source | |
| 🇲🇽 Mexico Temporary and permanent residence | Immigration fees roughly doubled Before: Fees about half as high Now: 1-year residence ~$620, permanent residence ~$750, 50% off for family and job routes | official source | |
| 🇫🇷 France Naturalisation | Higher language bar and a new civics exam Before: French at B1 level Now: B2 in speaking and writing plus a 40-question civics test | official source |
14 more changes: 3 Feb 2025 - 1 Jan 2026
| Date | Country and program | What changed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇨🇦 Canada Start-up visa | The start-up visa program is paused Before: Permanent residence for a project backed by a fund or incubator Now: No new applicants are accepted | official source | |
| 🇱🇺 Luxembourg Citizenship by ancestry | The route for descendants of Luxembourgers has closed Before: A passport with no residence or language for descendants of a Luxembourger as of 1900 Now: The deadline has passed; naturalisation and other routes remain | official source | |
| 🇪🇺 European Union Visa-free travel for investor passports | Selling citizenship became a ground to suspend visa-free travel Before: Visa-free travel was suspended over irregular migration and security threats Now: The EU can suspend visa-free travel for a country that sells citizenship without a genuine link | official source | |
| 🇨🇦 Canada Citizenship by descent | The first-generation limit is lifted Before: A Canadian born abroad could not pass citizenship to a child born abroad Now: They can if they spent 3 years in Canada before the child's birth | official source | |
| 🇩🇪 Germany Naturalisation | The 3-year fast track is abolished Before: 3 years for exceptionally well integrated applicants Now: 5 years for everyone | official source | |
| 🇵🇹 Portugal Residence permits | Family reunification only after 2 years of residence Before: Family could join right away Now: After 2 years with a permit; minor children with no wait | official source | |
| 🇺🇸 USA US visas | Interviews in the country of nationality or residence Before: Any consulate could be used Now: Russian citizens are assigned Astana and Warsaw; fees paid elsewhere are not refunded | official source | |
| 🇲🇹 Malta Citizenship by investment | The scheme is repealed by law after the EU Court ruling Before: An EU passport for a contribution after 1-3 years of residence Now: No investment route; naturalisation and the merit route remain | official source | |
| 🇪🇸 Spain Residence permits | New foreigners regulation in force Before: Settlement-based residence after 3 years in Spain Now: After 2 years; family and job-search routes rewritten | official source | |
| 🇪🇸 Spain Residence by investment | The golden visa is closed for every investment type Before: Residence for property from $570,000 or other investments Now: No new applications; existing visas stay valid until they expire | official source | |
| 🇳🇿 New Zealand Investor visa | Two simple categories replace weighted investments Before: Investments were weighted by asset type Now: From $2.8 million for 3 years or from $5.6 million for 5 years | official source | |
| 🇮🇹 Italy Citizenship by descent | Citizenship by descent is sharply limited Before: No limit on generations Now: People born abroad with another citizenship do not qualify, except for a closed list of cases | official source | |
| 🇷🇴 Romania Citizenship restoration | Descendants of former citizens need a Romanian language test Before: No language test Now: A Romanian certificate at B1 or higher, biometrics and stricter checks | official source | |
| 🇻🇺 Vanuatu Citizenship by investment | The EU made the Schengen visa requirement permanent Before: Visa-free travel temporarily suspended Now: Vanuatu is on the permanent Schengen visa list | official source |
No law stops you from filing on your own. But after a rule change, mistakes cost more than the fees: an application built on the old document list, a missed transition deadline, residence counted under a repealed rule. Murblz support removes these risks: we check which rules apply to your passport and filing date and prepare the file for the new version of the law. We guarantee professional work and a transparent process, and in most cases a result on the first application.
Immigration changes in 2025-2026: the big picture
Four trends explain almost every entry. In short: money without residence buys less, and years in the country count for more.
- Europe stops selling status. After the EU Court ruling Malta repealed citizenship for a contribution, while Spain's golden visa and Latvia's property route closed.
- The road to a passport gets longer. Portugal now asks for 10 years instead of 5, Germany for 5 years from everyone, France for B2 French and a civics exam.
- Caribbean passports are under pressure. Since 30 Dec 2025 the EU can suspend visa-free travel for a country that sells citizenship. The US restricted visas for Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica and added a visa bond for Grenada.
- Ancestry routes move both ways. Italy sharply limited citizenship by descent, Luxembourg closed its route for descendants and Romania added a language test. Canada went the other way and lifted its first-generation limit.
New doors open too. Nauru cut its contribution to $90,000 and Argentina announced citizenship for a contribution from $350,000. To compare every open program by price, see the second passport cost ranking.
What changes before the end of 2026
Three dates are worth circling now. Bureaucracy is not kind to latecomers, and transition periods in 2025-2026 rarely lasted more than a couple of months.
- 31 Oct 2026 is the last visa-free day in Montenegro for Russian and Belarusian citizens. From 1 Nov 2026 entry needs a visa or a residence card.
- Q4 2026: Argentina promises to open applications for citizenship for a $350,000 contribution or an $800,000 bond.
- 31 Dec 2026 is the last day Nauru's contribution costs $90,000. From 2027 it returns to $115,000.
How to follow program changes
Follow the Murblz Telegram channel for news on citizenship and residence programs. Every log entry also goes straight to the RSS feed, which works in any news reader: feed address.
How we keep the log
An entry goes in only when a government source confirms it: a law, an official gazette, or the website of a migration service, ministry or court. Rumours and promises from intermediaries stay out.
- The date is the day the rule took effect. Announced programs carry the announcement date, upcoming changes are marked as taking effect.
- Before and now fit in one line each. The full analysis sits on the program page linked from the country name.
- Amounts are in US dollars at the ECB rate on the check date, rounded up.
- All entries were last checked against official sources on 5 Oct 2026.
How to cite the log and download the data
You may use the log for free in articles, research and presentations, including commercial ones. The only condition is an active link to this page.
In Russian
Источник: Murblz. Журнал изменений программ гражданства и ВНЖ 2025-2026. https://murblz.com/izmeneniya-programm-2026 (версия от 05.10.2026)
In English
Source: Murblz. Citizenship and residence program changes log 2025-2026. https://murblz.com/en/program-changes-2026 (version of 5 Oct 2026)
All entries in one file: download CSV. The file holds 29 changes in Russian and English, with links to official sources and to our pages.