Bukele to grant Salvadoran citizenship to foreign investors
El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele speaks during a ceremony to inaugurate the expansion of the San Oscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdamez International Airport, in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador, Feb. 8, 2022. (Reuters Photo)


El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele will send Congress a proposal to grant Salvadoran citizenship to foreigners who invest in the country as well as other initiatives to reduce government hurdles in order to attract investment projects, he announced Sunday.

Bukele did not specify whether the bills would be aimed exclusively at bitcoin-linked entrepreneurs, but during the week he referred to El Salvador as "the land of #Bitcoin freedom."

"I'm sending 52 legal reforms to congress to remove red tape, reduce bureaucracy, create tax incentives, citizenship, in exchange for investments, new securities laws, stability contracts, etc," Bukele said on Twitter.

El Salvador in September became the first country in the world to establish bitcoin as legal tender, in parallel to the United States dollar, a decision that has triggered criticism from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the volatility and risks involved in the country's finances.

Bukele plans to launch 1 billion in bitcoin bonds in March with the aim of raising funds to finance the construction of a "Bitcoin City" project and buy more cryptocurrencies.