An IMGlobalWealth.com News Report
Lebanon is exploring whether a Residency-by-Investment (RbI) programme could offer a limited fiscal lifeline to a state still struggling to stabilise its economy. Finance Minister Yassine Jaber has been promoting the idea of a Lebanese-style ‘Golden Visa’, according to reporting by L’Orient Today* on 10 February 2026.
The proposal is expected to be raised during the visit of a delegation from the International Monetary Fund to Beirut on 9 February, amid renewed discussions over long-delayed economic reforms.
As reported by L’Orient Today, the programme would allow wealthy foreigners or expatriates to obtain Lebanese residency in exchange for investment, potentially under a preferential tax framework.
“The idea, however, collides with Lebanon’s broader structural constraints”
Jaber has argued that such a mechanism could help finance reconstruction in southern Lebanon, contribute to resolving frozen bank deposits, and ease pressure on public-sector wages. He has cited investor-residence models in Switzerland and Italy as precedents, framing the proposal as a relatively quick way to broaden revenues without raising domestic taxes.
The idea, however, collides with Lebanon’s broader structural constraints. The country remains exposed to recurrent security shocks, including periodic hostilities along its southern border with Israel, tensions involving Hezbollah, and the long-term social and fiscal burden of hosting large Palestinian refugee populations. These dynamics continue to weigh on investor confidence and long-term capital formation.
Economically, Lebanon’s crisis remains profound. Since 2019, the collapse of the banking sector, prolonged capital controls and currency depreciation have eroded household incomes and savings. Inflation surged into triple-digit territory at its peak, while unemployment has risen sharply, particularly among younger workers.
According to IMF and World Bank assessments cited in international reporting, GDP per capita has fallen by more than 35 percent since the crisis began, with over half the population now living below the poverty line. Political paralysis, rooted in the country’s sectarian power-sharing system, has repeatedly delayed the reforms demanded by international lenders.
Globally, RbI programmes operate in dozens of jurisdictions and typically require investments of €100,000–€500,000. While they have generated sizeable inflows in countries such as Greece, Malta, Italy and Portugal, analysts quoted by L’Orient Today note that Lebanon’s weak regulatory capacity, unresolved banking losses and fragile governance raise questions over implementation.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has warned that such programmes require robust transparency and enforcement to avoid reputational and financial risks. In Lebanon’s case, a “golden visa” may offer marginal fiscal relief, but it cannot substitute for structural reform, institutional credibility or political stability.
*L’Orient Today – Link
