TON Staking for a UAE Golden Visa

UAE Golden Visa for TON Staking A New Path to Immigration or Just Noise?

On July 6, the TON Foundation (the organization developing the TON blockchain) announced a unique opportunity for Toncoin (TON) holders to obtain a UAE Golden Visa. According to their statement, any major TON holder can receive a 10-year UAE “Golden Visa” by staking $100,000 in TON for 3 years and paying a one-time fee of $35,000. The visa application is said to take about 7 weeks to process from the time of document submission. Once approved, it grants the right to legally live, work, and study in the UAE.

Key benefits of the TON Golden Visa program include

• Low entry barrier. Traditional routes require ≈$540,000 (2 million AED) in real estate or business investments. With TON, only $100,000 in tokens + $35,000 fee is needed.
• Family eligibility. The visa is issued for 10 years and extends to the applicant’s spouse, children, and parents.
• Capital efficiency. Your $100,000 in tokens remains yours: after 3 years of staking, it is unlocked, having earned ~3–4% annual yield during the lock-up.

Thus, TON staking offers an alternative to the traditional UAE Golden Visa: “No property purchase or income verification” and at an entry cost 5 times lower than standard investment programs.

Conflicting Statements from UAE Regulators and TON Foundation

However, after some time, several official sources associated with the UAE government refuted this information, stating that the details provided by the TON Foundation are false and do not reflect reality.

“The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP), the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), and the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) issued a joint statement denying the information circulated on certain websites and social media that digital asset investors in the UAE are allegedly being granted Golden Visas.”

“It is also specifically clarified that TON is not a VARA-licensed or regulated entity.”

On July 7, the TON Foundation also denied rumors about the UAE Golden Visa program. The foundation clarified that it involves an independent collaboration with a licensed partner in blockchain infrastructure, which is still in the early development stage.

Mistake or Calculated Move?

The UAE “Golden Visa” is a long-term residency status (5–10 years) for investors and distinguished professionals in various fields. Previously, this visa could only be obtained through major investments: for example, purchasing real estate worth at least 2 million AED (≈$545,000) grants a 5-year visa, while investing in a fund or business from 2 million AED qualifies for 10 years. Entrepreneurs need projects of at least 500,000 AED, while scientists and creative professionals must present special recognitions and awards.

The new option proposed by the TON Foundation would significantly simplify this complex process. The Emirates have long aimed to become the crypto hub of the Middle East: Dubai regulators have already approved digital assets (e.g., Ripple’s stablecoin) and real estate tokenization frameworks. TON’s initiative fits this strategy: a “residency-by-blockchain” program would signal a strategic push to attract major digital asset investors.

Still, the official response from government agencies prevents us from confidently stating that the UAE has implemented such an innovative visa process. However, the TON Foundation announcement can’t be written off as empty noise either. After all, why would a major player in crypto risk its reputation with such bold and—so far—false claims?

Some users recall a similar situation involving Elon Musk’s Grok AI and its supposed integration into Telegram. Pavel Durov prematurely announced the news before the deal was officially signed, which triggered backlash from both Elon Musk and Telegram users, as well as TON token holders.

In attempts to unravel the “Golden Visa via TON” situation, some speculate that the TON Foundation may have found a workaround through UAE visa agencies. In other words, the visa would not be issued directly, but via an authorized intermediary. Unfortunately, nothing has been officially confirmed at this time.

Comparison with Traditional Visa Routes

Assuming the TON Foundation has indeed provided a working visa pathway, here’s how it compares to other options:

The table shows that the TON route wins in many aspects: the entry threshold is 5–6 times lower than traditional investment routes and comparable to project-based requirements (≳500–2000K AED). The process is simpler (no need to search for assets or undergo multilayered bureaucracy), and the processing time (≈7 weeks) is on par with or faster than conventional methods. Moreover, TON staking allows holders to retain the asset and earn yield during the lock-up period—something real estate investment does not offer. The only drawback is that it’s a relatively new, crypto-oriented scheme that still needs to prove itself over time.

CZ and Plans for BNB

The initial reaction from the crypto community to this program was generally positive. Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) commented on the TON initiative with cautious optimism. He noted that there are currently no mentions of such a visa route on official UAE government sites and urged people to “trust but verify.” Nevertheless, CZ added: “If true—we'll try to do the same for $BNB!” Media also confirmed CZ is exploring a potential Golden Visa program for Binance Coin stakers but clarified that he has yet to verify the TON program’s terms independently.

TON Staking Process

You can stake TON (Toncoin) on several popular platforms and wallets that support staking for this cryptocurrency.

To start staking, you need to:

• Buy TON on an exchange (e.g., Kraken, OKX, Bybit, etc.).

• Transfer TON to a wallet that supports staking (we will use Tonkeeper).

• Open your wallet and go to the Stake tab.

• Choose a staking pool you like.

• Enter the amount of TON you want to stake.

• Confirm the transaction.

Conclusion

The new TON initiative removes many of the traditional barriers to obtaining long-term UAE residency. A $100,000 entry point (versus half a million in standard routes) and an online process make it attractive to crypto investors. However, the surrounding information is highly contradictory, and for now, no definitive conclusions can be drawn.

Still, this precedent opens up the possibility of formally introducing this kind of pathway not only in the UAE but potentially in the US as well. Donald Trump has repeatedly voiced his desire to make the United States the global crypto capital. So why not grant Green Cards to large stakers of World Liberty Financial? All that remains is to watch how the situation develops and hope that cryptocurrency will soon find an entirely new and unique application on a global scale.