Turkish investors held 5,403 active Golden Visa investor permits in Greece at the end of September 2026, four times the 1,268 they held at the end of 2024, Ministry of Migration and Asylum data show. China still leads with 13,070, but Turkey’s share has doubled to 19.6%.
The figures come from the ministry’s monthly legal migration reports, which list active initial investor permits by the nationality of the main investor. We compared the reports for December 2024, December 2025 and September 2026.
The numbers
| Nationality | December 2024 (permits) | December 2025 (permits) | September 2026 (permits) | Share, September 2026 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 6,457 | 9,926 | 13,070 | 47.4 |
| Turkey | 1,268 | 3,291 | 5,403 | 19.6 |
| Lebanon | 765 | 994 | 1,187 | 4.3 |
| Iran | 535 | 816 | 1,024 | 3.7 |
| Israel | 332 | 636 | 893 | 3.2 |
| United Kingdom | 544 | 797 | 839 | 3.0 |
| Egypt | 404 | 558 | 675 | 2.4 |
| United States | 388 | 578 | 659 | 2.4 |
| All nationalities | 12,928 | 20,732 | 27,602 | 100 |
Source: Ministry of Migration and Asylum, legal migration reports, Annex B, Table 12a. Active initial permits for main investors; renewals are counted separately.
Active initial permits more than doubled over the 21 months, from 12,928 to 27,602. China accounted for 6,613 of the 14,674 extra permits, or 45%. Turkey added 4,135, or 28%. Israel was the other fast riser, from 332 to 893.
In the first nine months of 2026, Turkey kept gaining ground. Turkish permits rose by 2,112, or 64%, against 3,144, or 32%, for China.
The United Kingdom and the United States grew more slowly. British permits rose by 42 in 2026, to 839, and American permits by 81, to 659.
Renewals tell an older story
Renewed permits reflect investors who came in earlier years. Of the 8,255 active renewed permits in September 2026, China held 5,393, or 65.3%, Turkey 607 and Russia 495, the ministry’s data show. In December 2024, Russia was second among renewals, with 424 against Turkey’s 409.
What it means for buyers
The data show where Golden Visa demand comes from, not where buyers purchase. They count active permits on each date, so the change between dates is a net figure: new permits minus those that expired or moved to renewal. The reports do not show purchases by nationality.
Turkey has consolidated its place as the second Golden Visa market after China, and it is the fastest-growing of the large ones. For buyers from any country, the thresholds are the same: €800,000 in Attica, the Thessaloniki regional unit, Mykonos, Santorini and islands with more than 3,100 residents, €400,000 elsewhere, and €250,000 for conversions to residential use and listed-building restorations. See our Golden Visa hub and the September permits tracker.
How we got these numbers
All figures come from Table 12a of Annex B of the Ministry of Migration and Asylum’s legal migration reports for December 2024, December 2025 and September 2026. The table lists the ten largest nationalities for initial permits and for renewals; all others are grouped. The changes and shares of growth are our calculations. The ministry notes in the report that its monthly data are updated continuously.
Sources
- Ministry of Migration and Asylum, Legal Migration report December 2024, Annex B (PDF)
- Ministry of Migration and Asylum, Legal Migration report December 2025, Annex B (PDF)
- Ministry of Migration and Asylum, Legal Migration report September 2026, Annex B (PDF)
- Migration Code, Law 5038/2023, Article 100: investor residence permits
