EU pushes for crackdown on 'golden visas'

The European Union was set to urge member states yesterday to crack down on schemes to grant "golden visas" to foreign investors, warning they bring corruption and money laundering in their wake.

Officials told AFP the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, will publish its first report urging members to curb the practice of giving wealthy foreigners -- often Chinese, Russians and Americans -- residency or citizenship in return for investment.

"What the reports finds is that these schemes pose a number of risks, in terms of security, money laundering or tax evasion," an EU official told AFP.