Here's @OCCRP's latest project -- the culmination of months of work by a huge, talented team. It's a cross-border investigation into how the world's wealthiest people can literally buy citizenships in other countries. /1 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
This is a very direct and tangible consequence of inequality. Some people drown in the Mediterranean trying to reach a new European home. Many get kicked out if they make it. Others can just pay money - sometimes a surprisingly small amount - and boom. Schengen visa. /2
Here's a video explaining the project. Read on for the country stories. /3
First off, what exactly is a "Golden Visa" and where did they come from? Read here. /4 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Oleg Deripaska — a well-connected Russian billionaire and one-time business partner and employer of Paul Manafort — got citizenship in Cyprus. This lets him travel around the EU without visa restrictions. /5 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Lots of other wealthy Russians — some on the US Treasury Department's 'Kremlin List' — did the same in Malta, which is swimming in new Russian construction. Maltese recently voted on whether to extend the program. Results not yet out. /6 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
And here's a look at how the influx of new wealthy citizens is transforming Malta. There's also a Saudi connection. /7 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
For another angle, here's a story by one of our reporters who went undercover into a special expo in Cannes that's designed around "Golden Visa" programs. Very juicy. Read it. /8 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
On the other side of Europe, here's another "global citizenship" conference in Montenegro. Robert De Niro was there. (You'll learn to grow wary of the seemingly benign words 'global citizenship' after reading this series). /9 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
But how do the "global citizens" themselves view the world? Here's an interview with Romy Hawatt, an Australian reporters found at the conference who bought his way into Montenegrin citizenship through investment. /10 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Some are pushing back. Here's the story of Ana Gomes, a member of the European Parliament from Portugal who is sounding the alarm about how these programs facilitate money laundering, tax evasion, and other crimes. /11 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Now on to Central Europe. Here's how Bashar Assad's cousin -- wealthy (and sanctioned) Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf -- tried to "fast-track" his way into Austrian citizenship. /12 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
And here's more about how the Austrian program works and the scandals that it's already inspired. /13 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
In some places, like Latvia, "Golden Visa" programs aren't faring as well as they used to. It might have something to do with... Crimea! Numbers dropped after 2014. /14 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
In Lithuania, the numbers are also on the decline. It's even kicked some wealthy Russians out. /15 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Meanwhile, Armenia doesn't have a Golden Visa program -- yet. But here's how one firm, Arton Capital, is recommending to the country that it set one up. (And guess who would probably get to run it?) /16 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
Here's a story about new Chinese citizens in Hungary. They invest €300k into gov't bonds in exchange for residence permits. One quirk here is that you get your money back after five years. But - surprise! - it's all funneled through shady offshores! /17 occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
That's it for now, though there is more coming. Note that this project is part of @OCCRP's collaboration with @anticorruption through the Global Anti-Corruption Consortium, a partnership in which journalists do the reporting and advocates take action. /18 occrp.org/en/gacc/
Finally, take a look at how many people it takes to make a project like this possible. I'm immensely proud to work with them all. They are all overworked and underpaid. So, to keep this possible, please support investigative journalism. occrp.org/en/goldforvisa…
