It is correct that the residential property option in the Hungarian Golden Visa Program will only be valid from the 1st of January 2025. According to the law, ownership can only be acquired from the 1st of January 2025, and ownership acquired before this date cannot be recognized in the Golden Visa Program. To sum up: The date of the purchase agreement shall take place after the 31st of December 2024. You can make a deposit to the seller based on a separate agreement earlier, but the purchase agreement shall be signed starting on the 1st of January 2025. The essence of the deposit is that the seller does not sell the property to anyone else. There is no requirement, but typically 10% of the purchase price is the amount of the deposit. If the transaction fails because of the buyer, the buyer loses the deposit. If the sale does not take place because of the seller, they must repay double the amount of the deposit. Unlike a deposit, an advance does not constitute a security. In the case of the advance payment, an important rule is that if the contract is not concluded between the parties for some reason, the given advance payment will be refunded. The down payment is included in the purchase price and can be handed over to the seller at any time. The amount of the purchase price advance is not limited compared to the purchase price, i.e. it can be any amount. In the case of the guest investor program, an important condition regarding the property is that it must be a residential property (commercial or industrial properties cannot be taken into account), and the property must be free of lawsuits, encumbrances, and claims. According to the current text of the applicable law, the investor shall acquire the ownership of the residential property. This means that off-plan property cannot qualify for this purpose; the investor shall purchase a completed property. Another requirement for the guest investor is that, upon acquiring the ownership of the residential property, a prohibition on alienation and encumbrance must be registered in the real estate register for a period of up to five years from the date of the conclusion of the sales contract. The closing of the purchase process is the signing of the contract, which requires the involvement of a lawyer (or notary public) due to the countersignature. I highly suggest to work with a lawyer who is fully aware of the Hungarian Golden Visa rules because a general real estate lawyer might commit a mistake.
