Kestrel Private compares the European residence-by-investment routes and names who should not apply

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — 15 July 2026 — Kestrel Private, a residence and citizenship-by-investment advisory, has published a comparison of the principal European residence programmes that sets out what each is genuinely best suited to, together with the client profiles the firm declines to act for.

The comparison describes the Greek programme as offering the lowest entry threshold and the most straightforward property route; the Portuguese programme as the strongest path toward long-term citizenship for applicants prepared to maintain ties; the Cypriot programme as offering fast processing toward a clear permanent-residence outcome; and the Maltese programme as carrying the most rigorous vetting and the strongest standing with banks.

Most comparisons of these programmes are written by firms that earn more on one route than another. We would rather set out what each is genuinely best for — and tell an applicant honestly when no programme fits what they are actually asking for.

— Andrew Taylor, founding partner of Kestrel Private

The firm states that an applicant seeking citizenship within eighteen months without physical presence or scrutiny will not find a legitimate programme that delivers it, and that any adviser promising such an outcome should be avoided.

According to Kestrel Private, processing time is determined less by the programme selected than by the quality of the application submitted, with well-prepared files in slower programmes regularly outperforming rushed applications in faster ones.

The comparison is published at kestrelprivate.com/insights/golden-visa-comparison — a side-by-side comparison of the Greek, Portuguese, Cypriot and Maltese programmes.