Currency investments are unrelated to golden visa eligibility, say UAE authorities.

The UAE government has poured cold water on claims made by The Open Network (TON) that users can earn a 10-year golden visa by staking $TON coin.

TON made the eyebrow-raising claim in a blog post explaining how a golden visa could be secured in just seven weeks provided users had staked $100k in TON for 3 years and paid a one-time processing fee.

Recent data indicates that over 30% of people in the UAE own cryptocurrency and related services like crypto betting sites are popular, so the existence of a crypto-related visa program is not so farfetched in and of itself.

However, a joint statement was quickly issued by The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP), the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), and the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) to deny the scheme’s existence.

The statement clarified that “golden visas are issued according to clear and officially approved frameworks and criteria, which do not include digital currency investors,” per Emirates News Agency-WAM.

Similarly, the digital SCA said that “currency investments are governed by specific regulations and are unrelated to golden visa eligibility.”

VARA “strongly urged investors and consumers to deal exclusively with fully licensed and regulated companies when engaging in services and investments related to virtual assets.”

TON is neither licensed nor regulated to operate within the UAE by VARA. It is also not commonly accepted as a payment method by UAE online casinos and betting sites available to UAE players.

UAE golden visa holders enjoy benefits such as a long-term renewable residence visa valid for 5 or 10 years and do not need a visa sponsor.

It is targeted towards investors, entrepreneurs, scientists, outstanding students and graduates, humanitarian pioneers and frontline heroes.