The Bitcoin-friendly country of El Salvador just unveiled its limited Freedom Visa program to entice BTC millionaires into participating in its nation-building projects.
The Freedom Visa
Freedom Visa is part of El Salvador President Nayib Bukele’s Bitcoin initiative, which earlier resulted in the official declaration of the digital coin as the country’s legal tender and reserve asset. The announcement last Thursday stated that the Central American nation will only be approving 1,000 applicants for the program annually.
Authorized participants of the program are entitled to Salvadoran citizenship that also extends to their spouses and children under 18. Aside from the benefits applicable to its citizenry, nothing else was disclosed about the extra perks or any tax incentive the initiative brings to successful applicants.
How It Works
The program comes with the slogan, “Experience Freedom, Security, and a Bitcoin lifestyle by adopting El Salvador as your home. El Salvador has been reborn as the land of economic liberty. But this is just the beginning. Come help us build the future you want to see.”
Interested parties can apply for Freedom Visa via the program’s official website where they will be asked to settle the processing fees. Acceptance will be sent through email containing a secure link to a payment portal where the applicant can pay using BTC or Tether’s USDT.
The special Visa will be issued around three months after completion of the payment process and it can be retrieved by the applicant personally or via postal mail. Holders of the document will be eligible for a Salvadoran passport, too.
How Much It Costs
A non-refundable $999 fee will be charged for the initial processing of the application. Upon approval, the applicant will have to fork out $1 million in its Bitcoin or USDT equivalent.
For short, it is a “Pay us $1M in BTC or USDT so you can spend more of your Bitcoin in our country” scheme, which is counterintuitive due to the lack of advertised extra advantages and the fact that everyone can just apply for a cheaper Visa. What’s more, other countries offer special Visas much less than what El Salvador offers.
El Salvador, however, appeals to donors with promises that attaining a Freedom Visa will help the country’s economy, culture, and people.
“Their $1 million contribution will go toward economic development, cultural enrichment and social programs meant to achieve maximum economic development and rebirth. Successful applicants are fast tracked to a Salvadoran passport,” says El Salvador’s Migration Authority.