Latvia Residence Permit for Bangladeshi Citizens — From €65,000

Why Bangladeshi families are looking at Europe differently in 2026

For successful Bangladeshi families, a European residence permit has become part of sensible long-term planning — a hedge for the family, a route to European universities for the children, and travel freedom that does not depend on visa queues. The programmes most families hear about first are Portugal and Greece. Both work. Both are expensive: Portugal's Golden Visa now requires a €500,000 qualifying fund investment and runs to roughly €550,000–€575,000 all-in for a family of four; Greece's post-2024 thresholds put a family at €420,000–€835,000+ depending on location.

Latvia's investor residence permit — governed by Article 23 of the Latvian Immigration Law and operating continuously since 2010, with approximately 17,000 permits issued through this route — produces the same end result: a five-year EU residence permit for the whole family, Schengen mobility across 29 countries, and a pathway to permanent EU residence at year five. The all-in cost starts from €65,000 for the family. That is the cheapest legitimate EU residence-by-investment route that exists in 2026.

There is no obligation to relocate. You keep your businesses in Dhaka or Chattogram, or your position in the Gulf or Singapore, exactly as they are. The only mandatory presence in Latvia is approximately five days per year for the annual residence-card renewal in Riga.

If that framing already answers the question you came here with, the fastest next step is a free 30-minute call — we walk through your family's specific numbers, in plain English, with no commitment.

Applying from Bangladesh — and applying from the diaspora

Bangladeshi citizens come to this programme from two different starting points, and the practical path differs.

Bangladeshi citizens resident in Bangladesh

Your source-of-funds story is built on your Bangladeshi businesses, banking, and assets. Two questions decide how smooth your application will be: how cleanly your funds can be documented, and how the money moves to Latvia. Both are exactly the questions we resolve with you on the first call — before you sign anything or send a single euro. Every family's banking situation is different, and we would rather map yours properly than publish a generic checklist that fits nobody.

The Bangladeshi diaspora in the UAE, Singapore, and Malaysia

A large share of the Bangladeshi families we speak with live and bank outside Bangladesh — in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, or Kuala Lumpur. If that is you, you apply from your country of residence, using the banking and residency documentation of the place where you actually live. Funds already held in well-regulated international banking systems tend to move through source-of-funds review smoothly — the same reason UAE-based applications are typically the cleanest files we handle. If you hold UAE residency, our guide for UAE residents covers that route in detail.

Either way, the starting point is the same: a short call in which we tell you honestly which path fits your situation. Message us on WhatsApp and we will set it up.

The full cost — in euros, with nothing hidden

Accelerated 10-business-day processing (€280) and urgent 5-business-day processing (€560) are available instead of the standard fee. Real all-in for most families runs from €65,000 once translations, apostilles, courier, and travel to Riga are included. Complex source-of-funds reviews or families above four can run higher. We quote your specific total in writing before you pay anything.

The €50,000 share capital subscription is repurchased by the company for €1 at the end of your engagement — typically at year five when permanent residence is secured. In economic terms the €50,000 is the price of the residence, not a refundable investment. This is disclosed in the shareholder agreement before you pay. We put this on every page of the website because we would rather lose a prospect at this paragraph than surprise a client at year five.

Want the numbers for your family size and situation? We prepare a written line-item quote after the first call — book it here.

Source of funds — what we look at, and why we sometimes say no

Latvia examines where the €50,000 comes from, and so do we — before you pay, not after. For Bangladeshi families the qualifying sources are the usual ones: business ownership and distributions, salaried employment, the sale of property, inheritance, or documented investment returns. What matters is not the category but the paper trail: bank statements, business records, and tax history that tell one consistent story.

Our senior Latvian advocate, Mārtiņš Grīnbergs — a sworn advocate of the Latvian Bar since 2008 — reviews every file personally before any money changes hands. We turn away roughly one in ten applicants at this stage, and we tell them before they have paid us anything. That honesty is precisely why the files we do submit succeed.

We deliberately keep this section high-level. Whether your specific funds and banking arrangement will pass review is a question we answer for your case, individually and honestly, on the free first call — not something a webpage can decide for you.

Latvia compared to Portugal — for a Bangladeshi family

Greece, the other programme Bangladeshi families commonly shortlist, now costs €400,000–€800,000 in qualifying real estate depending on location — €420,000–€835,000+ all-in for a family. Latvia produces the same five-year EU residence outcome for less than a fifth of the cheapest of those figures. Portugal's main genuine advantage is the year-5 citizenship pathway — if that specific feature matters to your family, we will tell you so honestly on the call rather than pretend Latvia matches it.

Not sure which programme actually fits your family? That comparison, for your numbers, is exactly what the free 30-minute consultation is for.

Who you are dealing with

For a Bangladeshi family sending a significant sum to a country you may never have visited, the honest question is: who are these people? Here is the answer, with independently verifiable references.

Jānis Rupeiks, founder. A former Latvian diplomat who served three and a half years as First Secretary at the Embassy of Latvia in New Delhi (2014–2017), where his consular portfolio covered applications from Indian and wider South Asian nationals, and three years as Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Latvia in Cairo (2018–2021). He has sat on both sides of the consular desk — first as the officer deciding on residence applications, now as the consultant preparing them.

Mārtiņš Grīnbergs, sworn advocate. A member of the Latvian Bar since 2008, with 18+ years of standing and service as Adviser to two Latvian Cabinet Ministers. His Bar listing is publicly verifiable at advokatura.lv. Every application we file is prepared and filed by him — not by a paralegal or an offshore processing team.

Dr. Mohamed Taha Ghobashy, Gulf partner. Based in the UAE, founder of Troy Consultancies since 2014. For Bangladeshi families in Dubai and the wider Gulf, Mohamed is often the most convenient first point of contact.

SIA "Las Palmas", the host company. A nine-year operating Latvian company with roughly 20 employees, registered in Liepāja and independently verifiable at the Latvian Lursoft business registry. It is not a shell created for residence purposes.

Check any of this before you call us — we prefer clients who do. Then book the call.

Where do Bangladeshi applicants file?

The filing route for a Bangladeshi family depends on where you are resident, where you bank, and how your documents are legalised. Direct filing at OCMA in Riga — the Latvian Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs — is also possible for families who prefer to travel, and in many cases it is the faster option. Rather than publish a one-size-fits-all answer here, we confirm the correct filing location for your specific case during the initial consultation, before you commit to anything.

This is one of the questions we answer in the first ten minutes of the call, together with the banking pathway for your funds. Ask us on WhatsApp — you will get a straight answer, not a sales script.

The application process — 2.5 to 4 months, step by step

1. Step 1 — first call. A free 30-minute video call with Jānis, in English, at hours that work for Dhaka, Dubai, Singapore, or Kuala Lumpur. We confirm your eligibility at a high level, walk through the full cost, and answer every question about your family's situation.
2. Step 2 — document review. You send passports, family documents, and your source-of-funds file. Mārtiņš reviews everything personally before any payment. If we see a problem, we tell you now — not after you have paid.
3. Step 3 — contract, share-capital subscription, and shareholder registration. You sign the shareholder agreement and wire the €50,000 subscription to SIA "Las Palmas"; within 48 hours you are entered in the Latvian Company Register as a shareholder. The agreement contains a refusal-triggered buyback clause: if OCMA refuses your application, SIA "Las Palmas" repurchases your shares for the original €50,000. The €10,000 state contribution and the €3,000 legal fee are paid only after a positive OCMA decision.
4. Step 4 — filing. Mārtiņš files the complete application through the filing route confirmed for your case at the consultation — via a Latvian diplomatic mission or directly at OCMA in Riga.
5. Step 5 — processing. OCMA reviews the application: standard 30 days, accelerated 10 business days, urgent 5 business days, plus document transit and the multi-agency security and financial-source screening that every file undergoes. This is why we quote a realistic overall timeline rather than the statutory decision window alone.
6. Step 6 — card collection in Riga. After the positive decision, your family has three months to collect the residence cards in person at OCMA in Riga. One day in Riga is sufficient. From that point, the only mandatory presence is the annual eID card renewal — approximately 3 to 5 days per year.

End to end, most Bangladeshi families should plan on 2.5 to 4 months from first call to residence cards in hand. We give you a realistic schedule for your specific case — filing route, banking pathway, and processing speed — during the consultation, in writing.

Frequently asked questions — Bangladeshi families

Do I need to give up my Bangladeshi citizenship or passport?

No. The Latvian residence permit is residence, not citizenship. It does not change your citizenship status, your passport, or your national identity documents. You hold Latvian residence alongside your Bangladeshi citizenship.

I live in Dubai, Singapore, or Kuala Lumpur — not in Bangladesh. Can I still apply?

Yes. Bangladeshi citizens apply from their country of residence, using the banking and residency documentation of the country where they actually live. Funds already held in well-regulated international banking systems tend to move through source-of-funds review smoothly. We confirm the right pathway for your situation on the first call.

Do I need to live in Latvia to keep the permit?

No. There is no continuous physical-presence requirement to keep the five-year permit valid. The only mandatory presence is approximately 5 days per year in Riga for the annual eID residence-card renewal. You keep your home, business, and life in Dhaka, Chattogram, Dubai, or wherever you are today.

Who in my family is covered by one application?

One application covers the principal investor, the legally married spouse, all children under 18, and persons under legal guardianship or trusteeship. The €50,000 subscription and the €10,000 state contribution are paid once per investor, not per family member; each family member pays their own small OCMA state fee.

Where do Bangladeshi applicants file the application?

The filing route depends on your country of residence and your documents. Direct filing at OCMA in Riga is also possible for families who prefer to travel. We confirm the correct filing location for your specific case during the initial consultation — before you commit to anything.

What happens if the application is refused?

The shareholder agreement contains a refusal-triggered buyback clause: if OCMA refuses the application, SIA "Las Palmas" repurchases your shares at the original €50,000 subscription price. The €10,000 state contribution and the €3,000 legal fee are paid only after a positive decision. The only non-refundable cost in a refusal scenario is the OCMA examination fee paid at filing.

Is the €50,000 an investment I get back at the end?

No — and we say this plainly. At the end of the engagement, typically at year five, the company repurchases your shares for €1 nominal consideration. In economic substance the €50,000 is the price of the residence, not a refundable investment. This is disclosed in the shareholder agreement before you pay anything.

How long does the whole process take?

Most families should plan on 2.5 to 4 months from the first call to residence cards in hand. Document review, the banking transfer, filing, OCMA processing, and security screening account for the timeline. We give you a realistic schedule for your specific case during the consultation.