Malta is to sell citizenship to people from outside the EU.
The price tag is €650,000 for a passport, which will give people the right to work and to reside in any of the EU’s 28 member states.
The initiative has been approved by the Maltese parliament in a bid to attract wealthy residents who might invest in the island and to garner funds for its coffers.
Joseph Muscat, the prime minister, estimated the scheme could deliver €30 million in its first year – meaning around 45 people would be sold citizenship.
Eric Major, the CEO of Henley and Partners, the international group that will administer the scheme, said that between 200 and 300 individuals were expected to apply every year.
The government says that each applicant will be vetted and anyone with criminal connections will be refused.
Similar programmes already operate in Portugal and Spain.
The Mediterranean island is the smallest state in the EU, with just 400,000 people. It is said not to be the size of Wales, but of the Isle of Wight.
The island has been the target of refugees fleeing from various problem areas in Africa. This year alone more than 1,000 have arrived and over the last ten years some 18,000 have been delivered by smuggling gangs using virtually unseaworthy vessels.
Malta’s opposition Nationalist Party has opposed the sale of citizenships, claiming that the programme is not linked to residence or investment.
