By the middle of October 2024, the Egyptian government had already received more than 1,000 applications for participation in the Egyptian Citizenship by Investment program from candidates from around the world. The number of people wishing to become the owner of an Egyptian passport is constantly growing. And on October 14, 2024, new changes to the program were officially announced. The amendments aim to make processing more transparent for all parties and receive even more applications for Egyptian citizenship.
Key changes overview for Egyptian CIP
- The applicants were allowed to jointly invest in one property, provided that the value of each participant’s share exceeds $300,000. Because Egyptian authorities want to increase luxury housing sales statistics.
- Applicants who purchase property from private (non-government) developers to participate in the Egyptian Citizenship by Investment program must open a personal account* in Egypt and transfer the entire investment amount there in US dollars, before converting into Egyptian pounds.
- The amendment does not apply to the category of investors purchasing real estate from state developers: they can still carry out a transaction from abroad directly to the developer’s account.
- All real estate projects mentioned in the applications for the Egyptian Citizenship must have a building permit. The requirement applies to both public and private facilities of any category — residential and commercial.
*Last August The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has issued directives that will allow local banks to simplify the account opening process for non-resident foreign customers. The authorities want to encourage banks to open accounts for such clients.

Note that purchasing real estate worth USD $300,000 or more is not the only way to obtain an Egyptian passport. The program offers investors several more options:
Refundable Investment. Bank deposit of $500,000 minimum. Refundable after 3 years in the local Egyptian currency without interest.
Non-refundable Investment. Donation of $250,000. Contribution (donation) to the treasury of the Central Bank of Egypt.
OR
Investment in Companies $250,000 + $100,000 donation to the government of Egypt. There is no minimum or maximum stake that the investor must hold in the company.
How to apply? As a first step for obtaining Egyptian Citizenship by investment, applicant need to pay a fixed government fee of $10,000 (USD). Already in the process, investor may decide which option to choose. The starting fee does not depend on the number of family members in the application. At the moment, applications for citizenship are accepted from candidates from all countries without restrictions.
What’s happening in the Egyptian real estate market?
Egypt has begun construction of the Ras El-Hekma metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea, 350 km from Cairo. After completion of construction, the total area of the city will be 170 square km., and the total length of green spaces will be more than 40 kilometers. This will make Ras Al Hekma the greenest city in the region. The project is being implemented with the support of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ, which has appointed the UAE company Modon as the general developer of the metropolis.