Recent News

One of the most important changes is the establishment of the beginning of the five-year period required to apply for citizenship. Now this period will begin from the moment of filing an application for a residence permit, and not from the moment of approval. It is believed that this amendment will save several years of waiting for those wishing to obtain citizenship. If the changes are approved by the president, they will come into force one month after publication in the official...

Brazilian digital banking giant Nubank is expanding its presence in Colombia after receiving government approval to operate a financial services company in the country. Source:https://international.nubank.com.br/company/nu-colombia-has-received-formal-approval-to-operate-a-financing-company-in-the-country/ "The company aims to become a leader in digital financial services in Colombia. "Obtaining this license is the result of months of hard team work and represents a fundamental step in our journey in Colombia, as it provides the right regulatory framework for the launch of Cuenta Nu and the further expansion of our product portfolio ." says Marcela Torres, CEO of Nu Colombia. Nubank, which has tens of millions of customers in its home market of Brazil and more than 4 million in Mexico, is betting big on Colombia, recently committing $150 million to the country over the next two...

Today we are looking at how different EU member countries are introducing language proficiency requirements into their rules for obtaining citizenship. In Hungary, it has long been necessary to know the language in order to restore citizenship by roots. Latvia has already begun to use the criterion of language proficiency even for a radical measure - deportation from the country. Bulgaria has developed a bill under which applicants will soon be able to face such a requirement. Cyprus has introduced changes to the law that requires a written language proficiency test to be passed for naturalization, extending the requirement even to previous applicants. Italy has also introduced a bill that will require those wishing to obtain citizenship to know the language at level B1 and above. Until last year, Portugal did not impose language requirements only for the repatriation of Sephardic Jews. The program is now completely closed. But in Romania, for now you only need to take an oath in the state...

In March 2023, a bill was published that provided for obtaining Serbian citizenship after one year of residence in the country on the basis of a residence permit. But the European Commission, in response to the bill, said that in this case there is a high probability of suspending the visa-free regime with Serbia. They did this “with the aim of preventing and mitigating possible risks to the security of the EU.” Thus, the European Commission was asked to refuse or refrain from adopting citizenship by investment schemes. And it was decided to abandon the bill. Thus, according to current legislation, in order to obtain a Serbian passport, you need to live in the country for three years and renounce your original...

In October 2023, the bank had more than 35 million customers in 37 countries. This rapid growth has attracted the attention of regulators. In December, the European Central Bank decided to add Revolut to its supervisory list. Now two Lithuanian companies are subject to monitoring – Revolut Holdings Europe UAB and Revolut Bank UAB. It is worth noting that the introduction of supervisory measures does not mean that Revolut has any financial or regulatory difficulties. This suggests that the bank is ripe for direct control by the ECB. In the same list you can see Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas and other large...

On December 27, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted the National Revenue Strategy for 2024-2030. These are certain changes that should take place in the tax and customs sphere and ensure revenue to the state budget. If this document is adopted, the changes will be implemented gradually, starting in 2025. What changes does the strategy envisage? The status of an individual entrepreneur will be acquired by an individual automatically, after opening an account in a bank with the status "for conducting business activities", and it will be possible to close the FOP automatically when the bank account is closed. The list of types of activities will be revised for FOPs of the I group, and the tax will be paid from the received income, instead of a fixed one. FOPs of II and III groups will be combined into one (II group). In addition, rates will vary from 3% for trade to 17% for some services. And the use of PRO will be...

Fintech company Paysera from Lithuania started its activities in Georgia. Paysera received a license for digital banking from the Central Bank of Georgia. One of the key advantages of the company is instant SEPA transfers, which is especially important and beneficial for Georgia, which is not a member of SEPA. Also, the Central Bank of Georgia has extended Paysera Georgia's banking license, so the institution will be able to provide loans in the future. Paysera offers various payment services for individuals and legal entities, including more than 100 payment methods for European online stores, international transfers, currency exchange, gold trading and much more. Currently, the system is present in nine countries: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Albania, Kosovo, and now in...

The new electronic portal is designed to search for information about registered companies and submit documents using a single integrated online platform. The previous site no longer works. In addition, a new unique business identification code (Unique Business Identifier, UBI) was introduced for all companies, instead of a registration number. The companies' UBI will be the first eight digits in the business license. Before the introduction of UBI, the Registrar of Companies updated 117 official forms for filing applications and submitting information to the registry. The new forms are applied from December 27, while the Registrar of Companies undertakes to accept the previous registration forms NNC1, NNC1G, NNC5, NN1 for the period until January 25, 2024, as well as other forms of documents provided for by the Ordinance “On Companies” - within six months from the beginning of the use of new forms of...

The agreement between the countries provides for joint access to markets for banks and insurance companies that manage exchange markets. The agreement is designed to increase trade turnover, mutual recognition of rules and supervisory authorities. The so-called Berne Agreement is still awaiting parliamentary approval. Once all the rules come into force, financial companies from both countries will be able to operate in each other's markets with simplified licensing and supervision procedures. The agreement applies to investment services, asset management, banks, and corporate insurance. And the rules for servicing clients from the “partner country” are...