Investment in Real Estate in Latvia and Residence Permit as Bonus

According to The Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs’ latest data (on 01/01/2018), 4537 persons have residence permit because of real estate in Latvia. More interested in investment are Ukrainians, Russians, Chinese.

Why to invest in Real Estate in Latvia? Let’s compare amount of necessary investment with other other European countries.

As on chart, you have to invest in real estate in Spain or Portugal quite more that in Latvia.

Have a look at requirements to apply for residence permit based on investment.

According to Immigration Law, if a foreigner has purchased real estate in Riga, Jurmala, Adazi, Babite, Baldone, Carnikava, Garkalne, Ikskile, Kekava, Marupe, Olaine, Ropazi, Salaspils, Saulkrasti or Stopini region, and he owns one functionally related real estate (Real estate can not be vacant land) with a value of at least 250 000 euro or more than two administrative properties, each is one functionally connected real estate with total value at least EUR 250 000 and if the following conditions are present at the same time:

a) he has not and never had property tax payment arrears,

b) the total value of the real estate was paid in cash,

c) the real estate is purchased from a legal entity registered in the Republic of Latvia or Member State of the European Union, country of the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation who is a taxable person in the Republic of Latvia or from a natural person who is  Latvian citizen, non-citizen, citizen of the European Union or a third-country national residing in the Republic of Latvia with a valid residence permit issued by the Republic of Latvia,

d) the cadastral value of estate is not less than EUR 80 000. If the foreigner purchased two real estate outside Riga, Jurmala, Ādaži, Babīte, Baldone, Carnikava, Garkalne, Ikskiles, Kekava, Marupe, Olaine, Ropazi, Salaspils, Saulkrasti or Stopini region,cadastral value of each real estate is not less than € 40,000. If the cadastral value is less, the market value of the immovable property may not be less than 250,000 euros or, if the third-country national purchased two real estate, the market value of each real estate shall not be less than 125,000 euros,

e) upon requesting a first-time temporary residence permit, he pays five percents of the value of the real estate to the state budget,

f) Real estate does not include agricultural land or forest land:

for up to five years.

To sum up, buying Real Estate is not so expensive as it could look like. Don’t forget that Latvia is known as one of the greenest country of the world.

How do you choose the perfect real estate?

Investing in real estate is not as easy as buying a car. It can be a very long process before you get your dream real estate. You need to see all aspects before buying it. You can’t just buy anything "blindfolded", right?



At first, you need to see the market. You need to check the market, what are the prices, how expensive the real estate in that region is, what to expect and so on. You can research the market by yourself, but it will be time-consuming, so you can also choose a company to do it for you. Many companies and law firms offer consultations and di research on the available real estate. Choose what is more suitable for you.

After that, you should decide what type of real estate you want, what is better to invest your money in and is it worth your money. Maybe you want to buy a forest, maybe you just want flat, or you want to buy an office to start your business there? Choose carefully!

After you done your market research and decided what type of real estate you want - you need to make a list of advantages and disadvantages for that. For example, buying a flat, you should probably want to see if it is not far from a shop, if there is a bus stop somewhere near, see if there is a hospital in the city, and so on. Also, you should see if the real estate value will grow or not, because you don't want to spend a lot of money in real estate if after some time it will cost nothing, right?

When everything is done and you what real estate you want - next step is to talk to the owner. Very often local owners increase the price if approached by a foreigner. That is why a group of local professionals will do the work more effectively. You can do it yourself, but it is more effective if professionals do their work. Searching for and checking property as well as negotiating with owners will be done better by professionals who know the local real estate market and language. You can use our team to do it for you here.

Once everything is done, you can purchase the real estate.

Escrow Account in Latvia

When you are choosing escrow account the question “Trust or not to trust other part of agreement?” is not actual anymore.

Escrow account that sometimes also called impound account is an arrangement made under contractual provisions between transacting parties, whereby an independent trusted third party (usually a bank) receives and disburses money or documents for the transacting parties.

Account is reducing the risk between the parties and providing a mechanism which ensures trust and confidence in the deal until all contracts and agreements have been fulfilled.

The buyer, the seller and third part (usually the bank) sign an agreement, whereby they agree on necessary documents, terms and other conditions as required to complete the deal, along with any critical milestones along the way. An escrow agent – the bank, acts as an impartial holder of the money or documents, and in this way keeps the risk of such things as fraud to a minimum for both parties. Note that escrow fees vary from company to company (bank to bank).

An escrow account can be used for the sale of a house or flat (for Real Estate transaction) and it can reduce the risks to all parties.  It gives guarantee for all parties.Escrow is basically a third party that will hold the homebuyer's money and the home seller's deed or deposits for a property rental or selling/buying object will be in safe and can be transacted to the part of contract when points of this contract will be done only and until all the paperwork is completed.

Other option for escrow account is purchase of a second hand car, where the money may be released at the end of a warranty period.

Escrow is a financial tool that will help to parties and so everyone will be satisfied with the outcome.

Why immigrate to Latvia? II

We hope that you already read the first blog about reasons to immigrate to the Republic of Latvia. This is a second blog to think about this option.

1. The cost of living in Latvia is relatively low. Although cities like Riga or tourist city Jurmala are more expensive than cities in rural areas. Price, for example, for bread starts from 0,35 EUR, for potatoes from 0,30 EUR. 
2. Interesting and reach cultural life. As one of the cities on the UNESCO World Heritage List, the city of Riga is proud to offer a rich cultural environment. This year (2018) Latvia is celebrating its 100th year and it is glad to present an enjoyable cultural program. Latvia is known for The Nationwide Latvian Song and Dance Festival that longs 1 week every five years. It involves hundreds of choirs and folk dance groups, entrancing thousands in the audience.
3. Education. Latvian universities follow the Bologna system, offering three levels of study (bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D.). There are numbers of English-taught programs available and many of which are specifically aimed at foreign students. According to QS University Rankings: EECA – a dedicated ranking of the top universities in Emerging Europe and Central Asia, University of Latvia is on 44th place, Riga Technical University on 55th place. 

For sure, we can give you more reasons and benefits of life in Latvia.

Did you find the most reasonable point for good to live in the Republic of Latvia?

Why immigrate to Latvia? I

Latvia is small country with huge potencial.

At the first part of the blog, we presents some reasons to move to Republic of Latvia:

1.Latvia is one of the European Union and Schengen Area country.

Schengen visa holder to voyage liberally around the 26 Schengen zone member states.

2.Excellent geographical position. Latvia, officially Republic of Latvia is one of the three Baltic States in Northern Europe in the Baltic region. It is bordered to the north by the Baltic state Estonia, to the south by the Baltic state Lithuania, and to the east both by Belarus and the Russian Federation. Across the Baltic Sea to the west lies Sweden. Article about Latvia in Baltic States.Enjoy all 4 seasons of the years. Latvia is located in the temperate climate zone and has four pronounced seasons. Residents and tourists can enjoy warm summer, colourful autumn, mild spring and winter with subzero temperatures.

3.It is easy to travel from Riga. Riga International Airport is the largest airport in the Baltic region, and has flights to and from many major worldwide destinations.

4.You do not need to know Latvian to get  temporary residence permit and for some reasons foreigner shall present a certificate on state language skills evidencing the knowledge of state language at level A2 only to get permanent residence permit.

5.Latvian nature. The sheer volume of wild nature makes Latvia one of the greenest countries in the world. Latgale (one of the region of latvia) is called "the Land of the Blue Lakes". 10% of the Latvian territory is within a protected nature area. This includes 4 state reserves, 3 national parks, 22 nature parks, 211 nature reserves, 6 protected landscape areas, and 1 biosphere reserve.

6.Low population means more spaciousness. The current population of Latvia is 1,934,782. The population density in Latvia is 31 per Km2.

Follow us and get to know more reasons why you should move to Latvia.