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Pathway

Moldova Temporary Residence by Investment

Moldova Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

This is temporary residence for a foreign owner of a Moldovan company who meets the legal equity or job-creation test. It is not passive residence or citizenship by investment.

Applicant
A foreign shareholder or partner who has already invested in a Moldovan company
Investment or jobs
Your company share is normally worth at least 30 forecast average monthly salaries, or the company creates a qualifying full-time job
Important detail
Permit length is 2–8 years, depending on the capital or jobs tier

Summary

Foreign owners of Moldovan companies may qualify for residence through investment or job creation. In 2026, the starting point is MDL 522,000 in qualifying company equity or one qualifying job paying at least MDL 17,400 per month.

Permits last two to eight years, depending on the investment or jobs. Buying a home or making a personal bank deposit does not meet this route's company requirements.

Show your company ownership and qualifying investment
  1. Choose equity or job creation Confirm the filing year’s salary-linked threshold and the applicant’s ownership in a Moldovan company.
  2. Document the actual activity Use the required audit for capital, or payroll and employment evidence for qualifying jobs.
  3. Investor residence If approved Apply with the company and personal records for the appropriate permit tier.

The permit term depends on the verified investment or jobs. A personal property purchase, bank balance or promise of future investment does not establish this company-based route.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

The applicant must be a foreign investor who has actually made an investment under Moldova's investment law and is a partner or shareholder of a Moldovan legal entity. A plan to invest later, property held personally, or money sitting in an account is not enough for this particular route.

For the investment option, officials count the value of your direct or indirect ownership in Moldovan companies. Your qualifying share must be worth at least 30 times the forecast average salary.

A limited exception can apply when several foreign investors own the same company. Your individual investment may be below the threshold if their combined investment exceeds it and none of the other foreign owners applies, or has applied, for investor residence. Confirm that this exception covers your arrangement before relying on it.

The job branch requires the Moldovan legal entity in which the applicant is a partner or shareholder to create at least one job with normal working hours and salary at least equal to the forecast average salary. The employer's tax, health-insurance, and social-security filings are used to prove job creation.

The application evidence includes:

The law refers to the general immigration entry requirements rules for foreign residents and allows refusal or later loss of the permit if the investor ceases to meet the investor conditions or is finally convicted of an economic offense.

Policy watch 1 development we’re tracking
Investment residence will be covered by the replacement law
Enacted — not yet in effect

Investment residence will be covered by the replacement law

Current official stage: Law 66 of April 30, 2026 enacted; main framework starts June 1, 2027

The new framework expressly includes investment activity. This watch tracks the later application rules; it does not make a proposed investment sufficient for approval under the current route.

Timing: The main residence framework begins June 1, 2027. A June 2026 consultation concerned implementing procedures; that consultation is not itself the start of the new residence system.

Last checked
References
Read the full briefing

What This Route Allows

This route provides temporary residence in Moldova. The length is tied to the amount invested or number of qualifying jobs created:

Where two or more partners or shareholders seek residence, the authority assesses each applicant separately and increases the investment value or job count according to the number of applicants. Do not assume that one company's threshold automatically supports every foreign owner.

The official Invest Moldova guide says the migration authority decides the grant or extension within 15 calendar days after filing. Electronic filing through Moldova's e-Filing system is available for legal entities with foreign investment and people in management positions, subject to the platform's current access and electronic-signature rules.

Investor residence can contribute to the legal-residence history relevant to a later permanent-residence application. Permanent residence is separate, generally requires five years of legal and continuous temporary residence for “other categories,” and adds income, housing, Romanian-language, entry-admissibility, and criminal-history tests.

What This Route Is Not

This is not the discontinued Moldovan Citizenship by Investment program. Paying money or buying company shares does not grant a passport.

It is not residence merely for registering a low-capital company, acting as a director, buying real estate, or promising future employment. The applicant must be a partner or shareholder and prove the Article 36¹ capital or employment facts. A management-position residence basis exists separately and should not be confused with investor status.

The capital is not simply a personal savings threshold. The law measures qualifying ownership in Moldovan legal entities. For that reason, the amount someone has in liquid savings is not an accurate pathway gate, and the source documents focus on the corporate register and an accredited auditor's confirmation.

The permit is not unconditional for its entire printed term. The migration authority can refuse an extension or cancel or revoke the status if the investment/job conditions or general residence conditions are no longer met. Company compliance, payroll records, ownership records, housing, and the applicant's legal status must remain current.

Next Steps

  1. Decide whether the file will rely on the equity-value branch or the job-creation branch. Recalculate the applicable MDL amount using the official forecast salary for the filing year.
  2. Form or review the Moldovan legal entity and confirm that the applicant is recorded as a partner or shareholder. A Moldovan corporate lawyer or accountant should check the ownership and investment characterization before funds move.
  3. If using capital, arrange for an accredited Moldovan auditor to confirm the qualifying investment. If using jobs, verify normal working hours, salary, payroll, tax, medical-insurance, and social-security reporting.
  4. If more than one foreign owner wants residence, calculate the increased requirements for every applicant rather than reusing one threshold.
  5. Obtain the current company-register extract, housing evidence, criminal-record documents, translations, apostilles or legalizations, passport copies, and application form.
  6. Confirm whether the file will be submitted through e-Filing or at the General Inspectorate for Migration and verify the current fee and electronic-signature requirements.
  7. Keep the qualifying ownership or jobs in place and retain audit, tax, payroll, and corporate records for extension and any later permanent-residence application.

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