Hearts could bring in as many as EIGHT summer signings.
Andrew McKinlay has revealed the plan is to increase the current squad depth from 21 to 24.
John Souttar has departed for Rangers on a pre-contract while loanees Alex Cochrane, Ellis Simms, Taylor Moore and Ben Woodburn all return to parent clubs in England
Sign up to Edinburgh Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox
READ MORE: Hearts starlet Ewan Simpson 'set to join' Steven Gerrard's Aston Villa for six-figure fee
That means Robbie Neilson is looking at a minimum of eight new players with the scope for even more should the Tynecastle side have any further departures.
Hearts are set for a European adventure next season with the guarantee of at minimum Europa Conference League group stage football heading for the capital.
That comes with financial rewards that will allow the Jambos to bring in bodies 'good enough for the team' and to do other works around the stadium.
Speaking to Edinburgh Evening News, Hearts chief McKinlay said: "We will need to invest in a bigger squad. It won’t just be jersey-fillers, it has to be guys good enough for the team.
"Robbie has talked about a net increase of three, taking the squad up to 24.
"We will be able to do that based on the money coming in. Other things around the stadium can also get done.
"We hope to have this money every year but you need to be careful not to overspend, whilst also realising this is our opportunity to really kick on as Scotland’s third-biggest club.
"We want to stamp our authority on that and we would also like to close the gap on the two teams above us.
“I’m not trying to get rid of any of our players but Europe is a different marketplace.
"It puts a different value on players once they reach that level and clubs start to appreciate them more. We’re on that hamster-wheel, now we want to stay on it.”
