India’s high-net-worth individuals have a sleek new pathway to European stability and opportunity: Switzerland’s Golden Visa program for non-EU nationals. This residency-by-investment scheme offers two clear options. The first is the Lump-Sum Tax Agreement, where wealthy investors pay between CHF 200,000 and CHF 600,000 per year to their canton, securing residency without employment rights. 

The second is the Entrepreneurial Investor Scheme, calling for a minimum CHF 1 million investment in a new or existing Swiss business preferably with job-creation intent. In both cases, the visa grants full residency and Schengen freedom, allowing holders and their families (spouse and children under 18) to live in one of the world’s safest and most stable countries. Applicants must be aged between 18 and 55, maintain a clean criminal record, good health, and have secured a residence (either leased or owned) in Switzerland.

The process application to approval takes up to five months, after which temporary residency begins. After 10 years, holders become eligible for permanent residency, and after 12 years, for Swiss citizenship. For ultra-rich Indian families, it’s less a migration plan and more of a strategic roots-in-Europe move merging safety, exceptional public services, and enviable mobility into one calculated investment.