Malta free to sell EU citizenship, commission says

The European Commission said on the 13 November 2013 that it had no power to stop Malta, or any other member state, from selling EU citizenship.

The comment came after Malta passed a law on the 12 November 2013 to sell its passports for €650,000 each.

It became clear that Malta was not the only EU country to give perks to rich foreigners to settle and invest in countries, including in certain cases rights of citizenship. Other countries cited included the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal and Austria.

• Primary Source

Wikipedia: Citizenship of the European Union http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizenship_of_the_European_Union

European Commission: DG Justice: EU citizenship http://ec.europa.eu/justice/citizen/

EUDO Observatory on Citizenship: News, 13.11.13: Citizenship News Malta: contentious citizenship scheme for foreign investors approved http://eudo-citizenship.eu/news/citizenship-news/984-malta-contentious-citizenship-scheme-for-foreign-investors-approved

Malta: Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security: Services: Citizenship http://mhas.gov.mt/en/MHAS-Information/Services/Pages/Citizenship.aspx

Spiegel Online International, 13.11.13: EU Passports for 650,000 Euros: Citizenship for Sale in Malta http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/malta-passes-bill-giving-citizenship-to-foreigners-for-payment-a-933360.html

EurActiv, 13.11.13: Maltese parliament approves selling citizenship to non-EU citizens http://www.euractiv.com/justice/maltese-parliament-approves-sell-news-531636

Der Standard, 14.11.13: Don't let Malta flog off EU passports (via Euro|Topics) http://www.eurotopics.net/en/home/presseschau/archiv/aehnliche/archiv_article/ARTICLE133478-Don-t-let-Malta-flog-off-EU-passports

The Malta Independent, 14.11.13: Malta a Trojan horse in Europe (via Euro|Topics) http://www.eurotopics.net/en/home/presseschau/archiv/aehnliche/archiv_article/ARTICLE133538-Malta-a-Trojan-horse-in-Europe

Blog: Rhein on Energy and Climate, 15.11.13: Malta will sell its Citizenship for €650 000/ http://rhein.blogactiv.eu/2013/11/15/malta-will-sell-its-citizenship-for-e650-000

Blog: Coleurope.eu, 17.12.13: Passports for Sale: Is it an EU problem? http://blog.coleurope.eu/2013/12/17/passports-for-sale-is-it-an-eu-problem/

EUObserver, 07.01.14: Malta's sale of EU passports causes controversy http://euobserver.com/justice/122627

The Malta Independent, 13.01.14: Malta must explain sale of EU passports (via Euro!Topics) http://www.eurotopics.net/en/home/medienindex/media_articles/archiv_article/ARTICLE136562-Malta-must-explain-sale-of-EU-passports

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