On 22 October 2020, Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice, attended a plenary session of the EP in Brussels, Belgium, on serious security threats through the sale of EU passports and visas to criminals.

The European Commission launched infringement procedures against Cyprus and Malta by issuing letters of formal notice regarding their investor citizenship schemes also referred to as “golden passport” schemes.

The Commission considers that the granting by these Member States of their nationality – and thereby EU citizenship – in exchange for a pre-determined payment or investment and without a genuine link with the Member States concerned, is not compatible with the principle of sincere cooperation enshrined in Article 4(3) of the Treaty on European Union. This also undermines the integrity of the status of EU citizenship provided for in Article 20 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

This video shows the opening statement given by Didier Reynders on this occasion.