OREANDA-NEWS. According to RBC, the government of Malta has published a list of participants in the state program of "golden passports" for foreigners investing in the economy of the island state.

According to the information provided, more than three thousand people received Maltese citizenship under this program in 2019, of which at least 300 are citizens of the countries of the former USSR, including Russia.

This list includes the full namesake of a number of Russian businessmen: the founder and co-owner of the manufacturer of roofing materials Technonikol Sergey Kolesnikov, the founder of the Petrovich chain of stores Andrian Melnikov, the son of the ex-president of Rosneft Sergey Bogdanchikov Alexey, the general director of Rusenergosbyt Andrey Zinoviev "Valenta Farm" by Anton Strekalov and others.

The Golden Passport program has been launched in Malta since late 2013. Initially, investors who met the following conditions could apply for citizenship: a contribution of 650 thousand euros to a national investment fund, buying real estate in the amount of 350 thousand euros or leasing for at least five years at a rate of 16 thousand euros. There was also the option of investing 150 thousand euros in government securities.

In October 2020, the conditions for obtaining documents were tightened according to the requirements of the European Commission. Now for this it is necessary to spend one to three years in the status of a resident, and each applicant will be carefully checked by lawyers.