Europe is in danger of shutting the door on global talent

By blocking schemes like Malta’s, the EU risks losing the very entrepreneurs and investors it says it wants to attract, says one reader

Sir,

Your feature on Europe’s golden visa debate (Summer 2025 edition, p.42 and online here) struck a chord with me. The ECJ ruling against Malta’s citizenship programme may have been intended to protect EU values, but the effect is to make Europe look unwelcoming and indecisive.

Other regions — from the UAE to Singapore — are racing ahead with smart, flexible residence schemes that actively draw in entrepreneurs and investors. Europe, meanwhile, seems more interested in posturing than in competing. If policymakers can’t see the link between attracting capital and attracting talent, then they are missing the bigger picture.

Golden visas are not about “selling passports”; they are about opening doors to people who bring skills, networks, and investment. To undermine that because of political anxiety is short-sighted, and it risks turning Europe into a follower instead of a leader.

Yours faithfully,
Helen Brooks, Geneva, Switzerland