Income of €12 million to the OCAG from "golden passports"
Ministry of the Interior would not proceed with the issuance of the naturalization certificate if the supporting documents proving the payment of the contributions were not presented.
The income of the Cyprus Land Development Organization (COAG) from the granting of Cypriot citizenship to foreign investors from 2019 to 2022 through the Cyprus Naturalization Program (CPP) reached €12 million.
According to the answer of the former Minister of the Interior Nikos Nouris in the Parliament, in 2022 a total amount of €2,525,181 flowed into the Organization from the granting of Cypriot citizenship to foreign investors, compared to €5,975,160 in 2021, €1,775,062 in 2020 and €900 thousand in 2019.
Mr. Nouris, in his response letter to the questions of the MP of the Environmentalist Movement, Alexandra Attalidou, emphasizes that the income of the KOAG in the year 2022 comes from applications that were approved in the years 2020 and 2021.
Regarding the process of confirming the realization of the required investments, Mr. Nouris mentions that the control for the satisfaction of the KEP's investment conditions was carried out by the Ministry of Finance, which sent opinions to the Ministry of the Interior.
He adds that the views of the Ministry of Finance were always included in the proposal to the Council of Ministers, a copy of which was always sent to the House of Representatives.
With regard to the questions regarding the process of confirming the payment of the required contributions, it is stated that the Ministry of the Interior, prior to the issuance of the naturalization certificate and the consequent granting of Cypriot citizenship, asked the investors to provide the Ministry with supporting documents proving the payment of contributions.
In particular, it requested the presentation of copies of the remittances of the amounts of the contributions from the bank accounts of the investors to the bank accounts of the organizations that were recipients of the contributions, as well as receipts of payment of the contributions by said organizations.
He emphasizes that the Ministry of the Interior would not proceed with the issuance of the naturalization certificate if the supporting documents proving the payment of the contributions were not presented.
Source: stockwatch.com.cy
Photo: stockwatch.com.cy
3 April 2023
