President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has said buyers from any single foreign country will be limited to 25 per cent of properties in the Rasmalé Waterfront and Marina project, while Maldivian citizens will face no such restriction.
Speaking in an episode of The Pulse, a programme produced by the President’s Office, Muizzu said the government was preparing legislation to regulate real estate ownership and ensure that buyers from any one country could not account for more than a quarter of the properties.
“We have decided that citizens of any one country can occupy a maximum of 25 per cent. A group from any single country cannot exceed that limit,” the President said.
Muizzu added that Maldivians would be free to purchase any number of properties in the development, with no limit imposed on their purchases.
The President cited an example of a 1,000-square-foot property priced at approximately US$600,000, saying many Maldivians in the middle and upper-middle-income groups had the financial capacity to purchase properties at that price.
He also reiterated that Israeli nationals would be prohibited from buying or acquiring any property in Rasmalé. Muizzu said legal mechanisms would be established to prevent Israeli citizens from purchasing, acquiring or otherwise obtaining property in the project or other developments in the area.
The Rasmalé Waterfront and Marina project is being developed by UAE-based Eagle Hills under a commercial terms agreement signed with the Maldivian government. The US$20 billion development is planned to include a marina, leisure facilities, commercial establishments and residential properties.
The proposed nationality-based ownership cap comes amid political debate over foreign ownership, land arrangements and safeguards surrounding the large-scale development.
