CCE: CJEU ruling confirms that the granting of so-called honorary citizenships through the Economic Citizenship Program is harmful

The Centre for Civic Education (CCE) announced that today's ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), in the case Commission v. Malta, which found that the economic or investment citizenship scheme is incompatible with European Union (EU) law, confirmed their position that the granting of so-called honorary citizenships through the Economic Citizenship Programme is harmful.

"For years, CCE has been warning about the harmfulness of granting so-called honorary citizenships through the Economic Citizenship Program. Confirmation of our position is today's ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), in the case Commission v. Malta, which found that the economic or investment citizenship scheme is incompatible with European Union law," the CCE statement, signed by Aleksa Janković, project assistant, emphasizes.

The statement adds that CCE recalls that the Special Investment Program of particular importance for the economic and commercial interests of Montenegro, which enables foreign citizens to acquire Montenegrin citizenship by investing in priority projects in Montenegro, was established in 2019.

"The program was the subject of continuous criticism from European Union institutions and was officially ended on December 31, 2022, but this did not end all application procedures. CCE data show that in the period from the beginning of the implementation of this program on January 1, 2019 to September 22, 2024, 2.074 economic citizenships were granted, most of which during the time of the Dritan Abazović government," the statement reads.

CCE stated that it was also statement regarding the verdict, the Court pointed out that defining the conditions for the grant and loss of citizenship of a Member State is a competence of the national law of the Member States, which must be exercised in accordance with EU law.

"The 2020 amendments to the Maltese Citizenship Act established a mechanism that creates conditions for acquiring citizenship by 'naturalisation for exceptional merit through direct investment'. The conditions set by this mechanism were primarily of a financial nature, namely predetermined payments or investments that lack a real connection to Malta. The European Commission pointed out that granting citizenship on this basis violates the rules governing citizenship of the Union, and in particular Article 20 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU," the CCE statement reads.

The NGO said that the court also pointed out that acquiring citizenship of a member state automatically grants EU citizenship, which guarantees rights and freedoms within the EU, and in particular free movement within the area of ​​freedom, security and justice.

"In order for this area to function, mutual trust and mutual recognition of national decisions are necessary. Granting citizenship solely on the basis of predefined financial contributions undermines these foundations and violates the principle of loyal cooperation between member states. The ruling of the Court of Justice of the EU clearly confirms the obligation of all member states, and consequently candidate countries for membership, to fully align their legislation and practices with the fundamental values ​​of the Union. Montenegro, as a candidate country, must unequivocally distance itself from all initiatives that could lead to the renewal of this or similar programs, as they are not in line with the EU acquis, nor with the values ​​that promote solidarity, integrity and trust within the European Union," the CCE statement reads.