Lebanon's Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee approved a government-drafted bill on June 22 that would grant residency status to non-residents who invest at least US$500,000 in the country. The legislation still requires a vote by the full Parliament and the issuance of implementing regulations before it can take effect.
Committee Chair Ibrahim Kanaan presented the measure as a tax-residency instrument rather than a conventional golden visa. The bill would confer "golden residency" upon "the non-resident in Lebanon, whether a foreigner or a Lebanese working abroad who requires what is called tax residency," he explained, conditioned upon an investment of "no less than US$500,000" across three designated sectors. He drew a parallel to Dubai's golden residency programme.
Qualifying capital would be required to flow through three sectors, which the committee has yet to specify, with real estate acquisitions remaining subject to Lebanon's foreign-ownership restrictions.
Funds would have to originate from abroad and undergo what Kanaan characterised as "strict scrutiny … to prevent any attempt at money laundering." This requirement channels the programme through Lebanon's "fresh dollar" mechanism—post-2019 funds that continue to move freely—while pre-2019 deposits remain frozen across the banking system.
Each family member seeking the same tax-residence status would be required to pay an annual fee of "no less than US$50,000," according to Kanaan. He framed the programme as "a door that creates jobs, brings money into the state treasury, and encourages investments," adding that it would achieve these objectives only "when the conditions and requirements are available." The bill originated with the government.
Existing Routes
Foreign nationals already have the option of securing Lebanese residence permits without local employment through the independent-means route. While the existing permit requires only proof of self-support, the proposed programme demands a substantial, monitored investment and confers tax-residence status. Whether the new programme will operate alongside the existing permit or replace it remains unclear.
The tax-residence framing carries its own strategic logic. Lebanon taxes income on a territorial basis, reaching only earnings from activities conducted within the country, not worldwide income. For a non-resident Lebanese professional, a formal tax domicile within such a system can hold greater value than the residence card itself.
A Challenging Proposition
The timing of the proposal invites scrutiny. Since October 2024, Lebanon has remained on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) gray list, a designation that the June 2026 plenary session maintained.
Depositors remain locked out of billions of dollars frozen since the 2019 financial collapse. A US-Iran framework agreement signed on June 17 calls for an end to military operations in Lebanon; however, neither Israel nor Hezbollah has signed the agreement, Israeli forces have not withdrawn, and strikes continued in the days preceding the committee's action.
Maria Wehbe, an advisor at Arton Capital, characterised the draft as "somewhat ambitious." She pointed to laws that Lebanon has yet to modernise, noting that "Lebanese mothers still cannot pass their Lebanese nationality to their children or non-Lebanese spouses."
Her more fundamental objection is commercial in nature. Wehbe questioned who would commit US$500,000, plus US$50,000 annually per family member, to Lebanon when the same capital could be deployed in jurisdictions "that are not on the FATF gray list, have not endured one of the largest banking collapses and alleged Ponzi-like financial crises in modern history, and are not still dealing with the aftermath of billions of dollars in frozen deposits since 2019."
Two practical concerns follow. Excluding the bank-deposit route and leaving only real estate or company investment as options, she asked who, "in a heavily cash-based economy such as Lebanon's," would verify that the full US$500,000 "was genuinely invested and transparently transferred."
There is also the question of administrative capacity. "Can General Security realistically process and manage a potentially large volume of applications efficiently?" she asked. "There are many unanswered questions."
Wehbe does not dismiss the underlying intent. The effort to propose solutions and initiatives is welcome, she acknowledged, yet "this may not be the right timing, nor the right framework in terms of investment thresholds and mechanisms." All of this, she added, comes "before even addressing Lebanon's complex internal dynamics, infrastructure challenges, and numerous other sensitivities."
Others interpret the proposal as part of a broader shift in awareness. Tony Ebraheem, founder of Triple One Immigration Services, observed that he is seeing "a sharp increase in awareness from government officials in different countries of golden visas, or even citizenship by investment (CBI), as important tools to attract high-net-worth individuals."
He expects the trend to continue: "Soon many countries will follow, and now it's the investor's choice to choose the best option."
The next steps involve a parliamentary vote, followed by implementing regulations that would need to specify the three eligible sectors, establish the compliance process, and assign administrative responsibility to General Security. Until such text is published, the US$500,000 investment threshold and the US$50,000 annual fee rest on a committee chair's summary rather than on enacted legislation.
The NATLAN will promptly inform you of any new developments. If you have any questions or require an individual assessment of your situation, you may schedule a consultation with our company.
Committee Chair Ibrahim Kanaan presented the measure as a tax-residency instrument rather than a conventional golden visa. The bill would confer "golden residency" upon "the non-resident in Lebanon, whether a foreigner or a Lebanese working abroad who requires what is called tax residency," he explained, conditioned upon an investment of "no less than US$500,000" across three designated sectors. He drew a parallel to Dubai's golden residency programme.
Qualifying capital would be required to flow through three sectors, which the committee has yet to specify, with real estate acquisitions remaining subject to Lebanon's foreign-ownership restrictions.
Funds would have to originate from abroad and undergo what Kanaan characterised as "strict scrutiny … to prevent any attempt at money laundering." This requirement channels the programme through Lebanon's "fresh dollar" mechanism—post-2019 funds that continue to move freely—while pre-2019 deposits remain frozen across the banking system.
Each family member seeking the same tax-residence status would be required to pay an annual fee of "no less than US$50,000," according to Kanaan. He framed the programme as "a door that creates jobs, brings money into the state treasury, and encourages investments," adding that it would achieve these objectives only "when the conditions and requirements are available." The bill originated with the government.
Existing Routes
Foreign nationals already have the option of securing Lebanese residence permits without local employment through the independent-means route. While the existing permit requires only proof of self-support, the proposed programme demands a substantial, monitored investment and confers tax-residence status. Whether the new programme will operate alongside the existing permit or replace it remains unclear.
The tax-residence framing carries its own strategic logic. Lebanon taxes income on a territorial basis, reaching only earnings from activities conducted within the country, not worldwide income. For a non-resident Lebanese professional, a formal tax domicile within such a system can hold greater value than the residence card itself.
A Challenging Proposition
The timing of the proposal invites scrutiny. Since October 2024, Lebanon has remained on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) gray list, a designation that the June 2026 plenary session maintained.
Depositors remain locked out of billions of dollars frozen since the 2019 financial collapse. A US-Iran framework agreement signed on June 17 calls for an end to military operations in Lebanon; however, neither Israel nor Hezbollah has signed the agreement, Israeli forces have not withdrawn, and strikes continued in the days preceding the committee's action.
Maria Wehbe, an advisor at Arton Capital, characterised the draft as "somewhat ambitious." She pointed to laws that Lebanon has yet to modernise, noting that "Lebanese mothers still cannot pass their Lebanese nationality to their children or non-Lebanese spouses."
Her more fundamental objection is commercial in nature. Wehbe questioned who would commit US$500,000, plus US$50,000 annually per family member, to Lebanon when the same capital could be deployed in jurisdictions "that are not on the FATF gray list, have not endured one of the largest banking collapses and alleged Ponzi-like financial crises in modern history, and are not still dealing with the aftermath of billions of dollars in frozen deposits since 2019."
Two practical concerns follow. Excluding the bank-deposit route and leaving only real estate or company investment as options, she asked who, "in a heavily cash-based economy such as Lebanon's," would verify that the full US$500,000 "was genuinely invested and transparently transferred."
There is also the question of administrative capacity. "Can General Security realistically process and manage a potentially large volume of applications efficiently?" she asked. "There are many unanswered questions."
Wehbe does not dismiss the underlying intent. The effort to propose solutions and initiatives is welcome, she acknowledged, yet "this may not be the right timing, nor the right framework in terms of investment thresholds and mechanisms." All of this, she added, comes "before even addressing Lebanon's complex internal dynamics, infrastructure challenges, and numerous other sensitivities."
Others interpret the proposal as part of a broader shift in awareness. Tony Ebraheem, founder of Triple One Immigration Services, observed that he is seeing "a sharp increase in awareness from government officials in different countries of golden visas, or even citizenship by investment (CBI), as important tools to attract high-net-worth individuals."
He expects the trend to continue: "Soon many countries will follow, and now it's the investor's choice to choose the best option."
The next steps involve a parliamentary vote, followed by implementing regulations that would need to specify the three eligible sectors, establish the compliance process, and assign administrative responsibility to General Security. Until such text is published, the US$500,000 investment threshold and the US$50,000 annual fee rest on a committee chair's summary rather than on enacted legislation.
The NATLAN will promptly inform you of any new developments. If you have any questions or require an individual assessment of your situation, you may schedule a consultation with our company.