Latvia is situated in Northern Europe on the Baltic Sea. Known for its rich heritage, incredible local cuisine, and stunning mix of art nouveau and medieval architecture, Latvia attracts visitors from all over the globe. The official language is Latvian, but Russian is also widely spoken by most of the population.
Riga is the cosmopolitan capital and largest city of Latvia. Moreover, it is the political, economic, and cultural center of this small but proud country. Today, more than a third of the country’s population lives and works in Riga. Latvia has been a member of the UN since 1991 and a member of the EU and NATO since 2004. In 2007, Latvia joinedEurope’s Schengen Area, which brought significant benefits to the country’s citizens and residents.
The Latvia Residence by Investment Program is one of the fastest and most competitive programs in Europe. The program was launched on 1 July 2010 by the Latvian government as an initiative to sustainably overcome the economic crisis of 2007–2009. Five years after the program’s launch, Latvia’s economy received more than EUR 1.3 billion, of which more than EUR 1.1 billion was generated from the purchase of real estate by foreign investors.
Since its launch, the programme has undergone a number of reforms and updates. However, it continues to provide qualifying investors and their families with a pathway to Latvian residence, access to the European market, and visa-free travel throughout the Schengen Area.
Many people believed that the real estate option was suspended in January 2022. There was a lot of confusion around it.
What happened with Latvia’s real estate route:
- Late 2023-2024: Latvia’s parliament, the Saeima, passed amendments that tightened the program. They restricted eligible locations to Riga, Jūrmala + 14 surrounding municipalities, banned off-plan/undeveloped land, and blocked applicants from Russia/Belarus. Lots of headlines said “Latvia ends golden visa” but those referred to other EU countries like Portugal, Spain, Ireland.
- Suspension power added: The 2024 amendments gave the Latvian government authority to temporarily suspend issuing residence permits by nationality for up to 5 years if they see national security or economic risks. So far no full suspension of the real estate route itself has been triggered.
- 2025-2026 update: As of 2026 the program is still open. Real estate made up 45% of Latvia’s golden visa approvals in H1 2025. The minimum is still €250,000 + 5% state fee.
Why people think it’s suspended:
- Portugal, Spain, Ireland, and Netherlands did close their real estate golden visa routes.
- Latvia’s rules changed a lot in 2023-2024, so it felt like a closure even though the route stayed.
- The “suspension power” in the law makes it sound like it could be paused anytime.
Bottom line today: Real estate investment residency is still available for most nationalities. If the government uses its suspension power in future, new applications from specific countries could be paused, but there’s no blanket suspension right now.
