Lebanon residence permit based on bank funds or income

General Security offers foreigners who do not work in Lebanon two financial routes. The annual residence based on a bank statement or monthly income suits people settling in Lebanon for a longer period. The six-month multiple-entry residence based on a Lebanese bank statement is aimed at Arab and foreign nationals who come and go during the year.

Holders of any work residence, including the work permit grace period and temporary residence based on a work undertaking, and people who have been ordered to leave the country cannot use the six-month route. Only the account holders named on the bank statement can rely on it.

The annual residence requires a completed and signed application form, a passport valid for at least one year with two copies, three 4.5 x 3.5 cm photos, a notarised undertaking not to work, the bank statement or income proof and the deed or lease. Applicants over 64 do not need the non-work attestation.

The six-month residence requires a valid identity document with two colour copies, which the head of the centre certifies after comparison, a notarised declaration that you will not do paid work, and the bank statement with the three-month certified account history. The request is addressed to the Director General.

For the annual residence, the account must have been blocked for three months with at least LBP 1,000,000,000, or LBP 2,000,000,000 for a joint blocked account, or you show a monthly income of LBP 50,000,000; the equivalent in foreign currency is accepted. You also need a title deed or a lease.

For the six-month multiple-entry residence, the bank statement must show a minimum balance of LBP 1.5 billion, or the equivalent in foreign currency at the Sayrafa platform rate, together with a bank-certified statement for the last three months of the account.

The General Security fee table lists LBP 18,000,000 for annual residence in categories not listed separately, which includes residence based on funds or income. Residence for minors is free. The six-month residence is processed as a paid service at the regional centre secretariats. Urgent handling of a residence permit costs an extra LBP 4,900,000.

Residence can be renewed at General Security before it expires. If you are renewing your passport through your embassy, apply at least 15 days before your residence expires with the embassy receipt; General Security will then issue the residence on the new passport without late fees, provided the gap does not exceed three months.

With the annual residence, the holder's family members receive residence automatically on the holder's behalf, except adult males, whose applications are reviewed before a decision. They must also sign a notarised undertaking not to work. The six-month route covers only the account holders themselves.