Honorary Consul of Russia in Portugal has a company that promises to facilitate the acquisition of golden visas
Contacted by CNN Portugal, the honorary consul assumes that the company may represent a conflict of interest, but guarantees that it never dealt with any golden visa. Russian Embassy in Portugal maintains confidence in its representative
The honorary consul of Russia in Portugal owns a company that promises to facilitate the acquisition of golden visas for foreign investment in the country, a fact that, he assumes, contacted by CNN Portugal, “may eventually translate into a conflict of interests”.
At issue are the links between Bruno Valverde Cota, appointed honorary consul by the Russian Embassy in 2020, and the company Optimistic Plus, Lda, which he founded in 2012 with the aim of providing, among other activities, financial, real estate and marketing .
On the website of the company that owns the honorary consul, services are currently being advertised for “golden investments and visas”, which include three options that start at 280,000 euros for properties in sparsely populated areas and can reach 500 thousand euros.
For João Massano, president of the Lisbon Regional Council of the Portuguese Bar Association, despite this case “very unlikely to be criminally punishable in Portugal, “it is not morally acceptable” and could translate a conflict of interests. “In fact, it may be being used the office he holds to pass clients from one place to another.” That is, from the Consular Section of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Algarve for your company.
The danger of these moves, underlined João Massano, is related to a possible situation of abuse of power. “You can get to the situation where, based on your influence, you find clients for the company you own”.
Bruno Valverde Cota, on the other hand, denies that such exchanges took place. Contacted by CNN Portugal, he explains that, “in reality, the company has this information within the scope of the general offer on the website”, however, “since we consider that there could eventually be a conflict of interest, we discussed not proceeding with visa support gold”.
In addition to underlining that support for golden visas “does not fall within the scope of the commercial strategy”, the honorary consul guarantees that “he has never helped to deal with golden visas, nor does he intend to do so in the future”.
Along the same lines, the Russian Embassy assured CNN Portugal that it “has no knowledge that the honorary consul allegedly deals with gold visas” and underlined that Bruno Valverde Cota is “someone with a strong ethical sense and very sensitive to this type of issues” .
CNN Portugal tried to obtain a reaction from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in relation to these facts, but did not receive a response.
In its offer of services, the company also promises “support in the purchase and sale of real estate”, through a “resident portfolio” and “a vast network of contacts”. “Leave us the difficult task of finding the property that serves your purpose, whether it is to install your company, your business or even your family”, announces the company.
Bruno Valverde Cota was named Honorary Consul of Russia in Portugal by Ambassador Mikhail Kamynin, in 2020.
The company where he is the main manager, was created in 2012, the year of creation of the golden visa regime. Between 2020 and 2021, the company’s turnover almost tripled: according to a financial report obtained by CNN Portugal, Optimistic Plus Lda went from a turnover of 2,198,761 euros (2020) to 6,396,930 euros in 2021 .
In addition to this charge, he is also the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Portugal and Communities of the Independent States (CCIPCEI). This chamber of commerce, for its part, works in partnership with another real estate consultancy company, PDA Portugal, which specializes in “helping international clients obtain tax benefits for non-habitual residents and golden visas”.
The CCIPCEI not only has institutional support from the Russian Embassy in Portugal and the Portuguese Embassy in Russia, but the Russian ambassador in the country considers it strategic. By the way, the very former Russian economy minister, Maxim Oreshkin, who is also considered “important” for the “business development” between Russia and Portugal.
Golden visa authorization for citizens of Russian nationality suspended
Two days after the outbreak of war in Ukraine, following the Russian invasion of February 24, 2022, the Foreigners and Borders Service suspended the protection of applications for Residence and Investment Permit (ARI) for Russian citizens. So far, according to the latest data from the Aliens and Borders Service, ten requests have been refused after the Government took a decision in parallel with the economic and political guarantees imposed on Russia by the European Union.
The Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) was quick to protect Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: two days after the outbreak of war, it suspended the protection of applications for Residence and Investment Permit (ARI) for Russian citizens. But even so, nothing prevented these citizens from submitting requests for golden visas in Portugal: between May and August, 10 requests for residence permits via investment were made by Russian citizens. All were refused by the SEF.
In November 2022, the Government announced the creation of a working group to assess the end of gold visas, a residence permit in the country accommodated following, for example, the purchase of a high-value property in Portugal. This analysis comes at a time when investment in the real estate market of this type has declined in recent years.
At this time, this type of investment represents only 1.5% of the national sector. And, in 2022, it was the Americans who most used this regime that until now was dominated by Chinese citizens.
What is certain is that since the golden visas were created – in 2012 with the PSD/CDS coalition government – almost seven billion euros (6.54 billion) have been invested. According to data provided by the SEF, under the supervision of the MAI, in the total ten years of the program’s life, officially called the Residence Permit for Investment (ARI), 11,180 investors and 18,368 beneficiary family members were registered.