Universities warn taxpayer funding needed to plug gap left by ‘golden visa’ scheme
Trinity College Dublin has taken in at least €17 million from wealthy overseas investors since 2018 to fund capital projects
Ireland’s universities have warned the government they will need more state funding to pay for capital projects now that the controversial ‘golden visa’ scheme for millionaire immigrants has been scrapped.
The Business Post can confirm that Trinity and Dublin City University have received millions through the Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) in recent years, from wealthy overseas citizens who have ploughed money into projects at the universities in return for an Irish visa.
University College Dublin (UCD) has also pursued investment through the scheme, which allows people “of good character” from outside the European Economic Area who have a minimum net worth of €2 million, and with at least €1 million available for investment for three years, to get residency status in Ireland.
