Egypt s interior ministry said it is offering residency to foreigners who own residential properties in the country, in a bid to boost hard currency needed to improve the country s finances.
The decision came five months after the parliament passed amendments in July offering citizenship to foreigners who deposit at least 7 million Egyptian pounds (approximately $390,000) in Egypt and then hand it over to the state coffers after five years.
Under the new regulations, foreigners who own a registered property worth $100,000 will be offered one-year residence, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
Those who own a $200,000 residential unit will be offered three-year residency and others who own a $400,000 unit will be granted five-year residency, it added.
Foreigners are required to have used hard currency to buy the property after exchanging it to Egyptian pound through an Egyptian bank.
The unit should be officially registered and continues to hold the applicant s name. Foreigners who have bought under-construction homes will be offered the same types of residence for the same values of units assigned.
Those will be required to submit a document proving that foreign currency has been transferred from abroad to make the purchase.
Egypt aims at stabilising its economy and luring back foreign investors scared away by years of instability following the 2011 revolution.
The ministry said Saturday that the new regulations are also aimed to make it easier for foreigners to acquire residency in Egypt.
