Latest / IMI Podcasts / “High-Profile Move”: Novak Djokovic Obtains Greek Golden Visa
Transcript
- 0:00SPEAKER_00: After five years of living in Marbella, southern Spain, Novak Djokovic has shifted east, officially making a move to Greece as a high visibility recipient of the Greek Golden Visa.
- 0:11SPEAKER_00: Alexander Rizvas of Rizvas and Associates Law Firm confirms that the tennis star has received a golden visa after purchasing a residence in the southern coastal suburbs of Athens for over 800,000 euros, though likely multiple times that amount, meeting the minimum investment threshold under the updated Greek residence legislation.
- 0:31SPEAKER_00: Last week, Djokovic, 38, won his 101st career title at the newly christened Hellenic Championship in Athens.
- 0:40SPEAKER_00: During the event, he spoke warmly about Greece and its ties to Serbia.
- 0:45SPEAKER_00: Quote, I feel really at home playing in Athens, end quote.
- 0:50SPEAKER_00: Quote.
- 0:51SPEAKER_00: A few months ago, when I came here with my family, I was very excited because I have always loved Greece, end quote, end quote, confirming reports of his move to Athens last summer.
- 1:01SPEAKER_00: Media reports suggest that his children's education may have influenced his decision to move to Greece.
- 1:07SPEAKER_00: Stefan, 11, and Tara, 8, have been enrolled at St.
- 1:11SPEAKER_00: Lawrence College, a 20-acre British school in Athens with on-campus outdoor tennis courts, according to the Telegraph.
- 1:19SPEAKER_00: Also, the Belgrade Open, a tournament owned and managed by Djokovic's brother, was canceled in 2025, relocated from Serbia to Greece, and reintroduced as the aforementioned Hellenic Championship, further indicating that his center of gravity is shifting to Athens Risvas, noted the significance of the move for Greece's Golden Visa program, saying that such a high-profile move underscores the appeal of the Greek Golden Visa Program, adding that this is a testament to Greece's attractiveness for its excellent quality of life and education opportunities, not only for fiscal considerations.
- 1:54SPEAKER_00: Yet it wouldn't be surprising if fiscal considerations also played a role, as Djokovic would likely qualify for Greece's non-DOM flat tax regime, which allows newcomers to pay a fixed 100,000 euros per year on worldwide income, plus 20,000 euros per family member for up to 15 years.
- 2:12SPEAKER_00: Participants are not required to declare foreign income, and the flat levy replaces progressive rates that would otherwise reach 44%.
- 2:21SPEAKER_00: Djokovic is among the world's highest paid tennis players, making nearly 30 million US dollars last year, according to Forbes.
- 2:28SPEAKER_00: He is also men's tennis's most decorated champion, holding a record 24 major singles titles, 40 Masters Crowns, 7 year end championships, and 101 ATP singles trophies.
- 2:40SPEAKER_00: Djokovic spent a record 428 weeks at number one and finished year end number one.
- 2:47SPEAKER_00: Won a record eight times.
- 2:49SPEAKER_00: Numbers that may explain why changes in his base of operations draw attention.
- 2:54SPEAKER_00: Greece does not mark Djokovic's first long-term residency outside Serbia.
- 2:59SPEAKER_00: In 2020, after winning the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, the Marbia-based star confirmed he had received the UAE's 10-year golden card visa.
- 3:09SPEAKER_00: At the time, he called it an honor.
- 3:12SPEAKER_00: Noting his long-standing relationship with Dubai's leadership and the city's role in his training routine, describing it as his second home, Dubai has served as a seasonal base for his preseason training and an arena where he has collected multiple titles.
- 3:26SPEAKER_00: But his principal place of residence remained in Marbella, Spain, where he had relocated in 2020, shortly before the pandemic.
- 3:35SPEAKER_00: This was after he spent roughly 15 years based in Monte Carlo, where he purchased a home soon after turning pro in the mid-2000s.
- 3:43SPEAKER_00: He continues to keep his Monaco property, which the Architectural Digest 2024 profile of his real estate portfolio described as an ultra-private hillside residence overlooking the Mediterranean.
- 3:55SPEAKER_00: He has also acquired other luxury real estate over the years, including apartments in New York Soho and a penthouse in Belgrade.
- 4:03SPEAKER_00: In 2020, he purchased a 10 million euro Moroccan-style mansion in Marbella, where his family has resided ever since, before their recent move to Greece.
- 4:13SPEAKER_00: This episode first appeared as an article by Mustafa Daily on imidaly.com.
- 4:20SPEAKER_00: Subscribe for free to the IMI newsletter for breaking news and updates from the investment migration industry, and upgrade your membership to IMI Pro to get access to our exclusive professional community, citizenship catalog, investment migration company, Rolodex, private briefings, and more members only content.