Hungary Golden Visa Renewal: What Changes for Holders and Families
Hungary Golden Visa Renewal: What Changes for Holders and Families
If you already hold Hungary’s golden visa, formally the guest investor residence permit, your permit would stay valid for its term under the government’s draft bill, unless withdrawn. What would change is the end of that term. Under the draft, no guest investor permit could be extended, including permits already issued, and no replacement status would be created. Your family’s permits would be capped at the same horizon. The time to plan the next step is now, while the bill is still a draft.
Status as of 9 November 2026: government draft in public consultation until 12 November 2026. Not yet submitted to Parliament. The text can still change.
Last updated: 9 November 2026.
This guide is general information about the Hungarian guest investor rules in force today and a draft bill that would change them. It is not legal, tax or immigration advice. Several points in the draft are not settled, and individual circumstances differ. Obtain independent professional advice, including from a Hungarian lawyer, before selling an investment or making any residence decision.
Key facts at a glance
| Question | Answer under the draft |
|---|---|
| Does my permit stay valid? | Yes, for its term (draft s.290/A(3)) |
| Can I extend it? | No. No guest investor permit could be extended (290/A(3)(a), (5)) |
| What about my family’s permits? | Up to 10 years, no extension beyond that, never past the investor’s permit (290/A(3)(b), (6); s.73(2)) |
| Can we keep working? | Yes, as employees, for the life of the permit (290/A(13)) |
| Can I sell my fund units after five years? | Not settled. Get advice before selling |
| What happens when the permit ends? | No replacement status. You would need another status under the general rules |
| When would this take effect? | 1 January 2027 (draft s.211(2)) |
Does my permit stay valid?
Yes. Under the draft, visas and permits issued before 1 January 2027 stay valid for their term (290/A(3)). The explanatory notes say the aim is to remove the guest investor visa and permit from Hungarian law while protecting rights already acquired. Until a law is passed and takes effect, the current rules apply in full. For scale, OIF recorded 228 approved guest investor residence permit decisions between 1 July 2024 and 30 September 2026 (official figures). That is a count of decisions, not people, it covers investors’ permits only, not family permits, and it does not include decisions made after 30 September 2026.
Validity is not unconditional. Under the draft, the permit must be withdrawn if the available facts show that the committed investment no longer exists, and on general grounds such as false information, a security risk, or failing the accommodation, means or health insurance conditions (290/A(11); s.226(1)(a) to (c)). The wording is “must”, not “may”.
Can I extend or renew my Hungary golden visa?
Under current law the permit is valid for up to 10 years and can be extended by up to 10 more years for the same purpose (s.22(6)). The draft would remove the extension. No guest investor permit could be extended, including permits issued before 2027 and permits issued under the transition rules (290/A(3)(a), (5)).
If you have an extension application in progress, note this open point. An extension filed in 2026 is decided under the current rules, but the draft does not make clear whether it can still be granted. Do not rely on it.
What happens to my family’s permits?
Family members who can join a guest investor are the spouse and minor children, including adopted and foster children and the spouse’s minor children (s.22(14), s.71(2)). They hold linked family permits and may work.
Under the draft, a family permit linked to a guest investor permit could run for up to 10 years and could not be extended beyond that. Family members could still apply for or extend a family permit after 1 January 2027, up to the end of the investor’s permit (290/A(3)(b), (6); s.73(2); explanatory notes). The 31 December 2026 filing date in the draft names investor applications only, so the draft does not require a spouse or child joining later to file this year.
Can we keep working in Hungary?
Under the draft, permit holders and their family members keep the right to work in Hungary for the life of the permit (290/A(13), applying s.22(2)).
The draft expressly keeps the right to work as an employee. It does not expressly address self-employment or serving as a company director, which today’s section 22(1) covers and which the draft would repeal. If you run a business in Hungary on this permit, take advice on this point.
Do I need to spend time in Hungary?
Under current law the investor and family have no minimum stay. Act XC sets no minimum number of days in Hungary to keep the guest investor permit, and it exempts this permit from the general rule that an extension requires more than 90 days’ stay in any 180 days (s.18(2), s.19(3)).
The draft would remove those exemptions (draft s.182(b), (c)), so family members extending a permit after 2026 may need to show regular stays in Hungary. This point is not settled. Long-term residence on residence-based grounds, and citizenship, need real residence in any case, whatever the permit rule says.
Travel is unchanged. A Hungarian residence permit, with a valid passport, allows short stays in other Schengen countries of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. It does not give the right to live or work in another EU country.
What happens to my fund units?
Today the fund route requires the units to be held continuously for at least five years, in a securities sub-account blocked for at least five years (s.22(9); Decree 35/2024 s.13/A(5)). Today’s withdrawal rule ties loss of the permit to not holding the investment “for the period set in this Act”, that is, five years (s.227(3)(b)).
The draft would repeal section 227 and replace the trigger with a test of whether the committed investment “no longer exists”, with no period stated (290/A(11)(b)). The draft does not say clearly whether a holder may sell the fund units after five years without losing the permit. Get advice before selling. See our guide to approved funds for how the fund route works.
What happens when my permit ends?
When a guest investor permit ends, it cannot be extended under the draft, and the draft would create no replacement status. A holder who wants to stay would need to qualify for another status under the general rules.
The draft leaves the long-term residence rules untouched.
- National permanent residence card: normally requires three years of lawful, continuous stay in Hungary immediately before applying, with no absence over four months and no more than 270 days in total, plus a cultural knowledge exam (kulturális ismereti vizsga), a clean record and consistency with Hungary’s interests (s.83, s.84, s.253/A).
- EU long-term residence card: requires five years (s.87).
Neither is automatic. The residence-based grounds depend on genuine residence, which matters if you have spent little time in Hungary so far. Our guide to Hungary permanent residency covers the current conditions.
Hungary has no citizenship-by-investment route. Ordinary naturalisation requires eight years of continuous residence in Hungary before applying, a clean record, secure livelihood and housing, no risk to public or national security, and a passed exam in Hungarian on basic constitutional knowledge (Act LV of 1993 s.4(1)). Holding a permit does not by itself count as residence. See Hungarian citizenship requirements.
What should holders do now?
- Note your permit’s expiry date and your family members’ dates. Under the draft, those dates become the end of the guest investor route for your household.
- Check whether your time in Hungary could support long-term status before your permit runs out.
- Do not sell fund units without advice until the final text settles the withdrawal test.
- If you work through your own company in Hungary, take advice on the self-employment point.
- Watch the bill. The consultation closes on 12 November 2026, and the text can still change. We track each step on our Hungary golden visa news page.
If your plans depend on residence beyond your current permit, compare the alternatives to the Hungary golden visa. For the bill itself, see Hungary golden visa ending in 2027?, and for new applicants, the 31 December 2026 deadline guide.
Frequently asked questions
Will my Hungarian guest investor permit be cancelled in 2027?
No. Under the draft, permits issued before 1 January 2027 stay valid for their term. The usual withdrawal grounds still apply, and withdrawal is mandatory if the committed investment no longer exists.
Can I renew my Hungary golden visa after it expires?
Under the draft, no. No guest investor permit could be extended, including permits issued before 2027. A holder who wants to stay would need another status under the general rules.
Can my spouse and children still get or extend family permits?
Yes, under the draft, up to the end of the investor’s permit, and for no more than 10 years. Family means the spouse and minor children only.
Can I sell my fund units after five years?
The draft does not say clearly whether a holder may sell after five years without losing the permit. Get advice before selling.
Will I get permanent residence automatically?
No. A national permanent residence card normally requires three years of lawful, continuous stay plus an exam and other conditions. The EU long-term card requires five years. Neither is automatic.
Does the Hungarian permit let me live elsewhere in the EU?
No. It allows short stays in other Schengen countries of up to 90 days in any 180-day period, with no right to live or work there.
Sources
- Government of Hungary, draft bill on law enforcement matters, public consultation from 4 November 2026 (draft text and explanatory notes): kormany.hu
- Act XC of 2023 on the general rules for the entry and residence of third-country nationals: njt.hu
- Government Decree 35/2024 (II. 29.): njt.hu
- Act LV of 1993 on Hungarian Citizenship: njt.hu
- OIF, guest investor permit factsheet: oif.gov.hu
- Schengen short-stay rule for residence permit holders: Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement art. 21, as amended by Regulation (EU) 610/2013: EUR-Lex
For the programme as it operates today, see our Hungarian Guest Investor Programme guide. To review your own permit, family and fund position, speak with an accredited adviser. Advisory fees are quoted per engagement.
Update log
- 9 November 2026: first published, based on the draft published on kormany.hu on 4 November 2026 and Act XC of 2023 as in force today.
