(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JANUARY 4 - Montenegro has officially launched a new program offering citizenship to up to 2,000 foreigners in return for investments in the country, the government announced.

The initiative provides "the possibility for persons to acquire Montenegrin citizenship on the basis of investments in the following three years, based on a maximum of 2,000 applications," the government clarified in a statement.

Under the program, foreign investors may acquire Montenegrin citizenship by granting 100,000 euros "for development of under-developed local self-government units" or by investing 450,000 euros in Podgorica or on the coast or 250,000 euros in a development project in the northern or central region of Montenegro.

The program aims at accelerating the "economic development of Montenegro by creating new tourist, agricultural and processing capacities and opening new jobs," the government added.

Applications can be submitted through an intermediary agent and checks on candidates will be performed by audit firms and legal advisers. Controls on "the origin of the money" to be invested are also foreseen.

Montenegro has already joined NATO and is on track to enter the European Union. A Montenegrin passport already allows free-visa access to more than 120 foreign countries, according to the latest Henley Passport Index.

Several other European countries have already adopted similar citizenship-by-investment programs in the past. (ANSA).