The Portugal Golden Visa program was introduced and launched in October 2012. After the 2008 economic crisis, the government aimed to draw the attention of foreign investors. According to the statistics, it can be inferred that Portugal has reached its aim with the Golden Visa program, as it has received approximately €7.3 billion in total.
At this point, you might ask yourself this question: Why has the Portugal Golden Visa program become a matter of interest for investors? Well, it brings lots of benefits for investors, including EU citizenship. Now, let’s delve deeper with our comprehensive guide.
Portugal Golden Visa grants residency for 5 years with an opportunity to apply for Portuguese citizenship. Before the Mais Habitação Law in 2023, it used to offer real estate investment too. However, the new regulation removed this option from Portugal Golden Visa. Thereby, the minimum investment amount is €500,000, and the donation amount is €250,000, considering the remaining options.
Among the available investment options, the most strategic ones are fund subscription and company creation. In a fund subscription, you have to invest €500,000 in the Private Equity or Venture Capital funds regulated by CMVM. On the other hand, company creation requires the creation of 10 full-time jobs in Portugal and €500,000 investment. However, you can create 8 full-time jobs in low-density areas or invest in an already established company by creating 5 full-time jobs.
The donation options include investing in a national heritage in Portugal, at least €250,000. Similarly, you can also invest in a research and development activity by making a minimum €500,000 contribution.
Now that you have learned Portugal Golden Visa investment options, it is time to move to this question: Who is eligible for the Golden Visa in Portugal? Well, basically, you have to be at least 18 years old and a non-EU/EEA/Swiss national. Then, you have to provide a clean criminal record and make a qualifying investment in the available options.
Family inclusion is also possible as long as they follow the criteria. Within this concept, you can include your spouse, your children under the age of 18, and parents of the main applicant over 65. Note that you can add your children over 18 as long as they are not married and financially dependent on you.
Although there are some hesitations related to the removal of real estate options, according to Get Golden Visa, the funds outlook 2024-2025 report highlights that Portugal’s Golden Visa landscape is going to remain strong. It states that it is just a transition from real estate-based investment to fund-based investment strategies, as the program still has the same benefits and requirements.
Golden Visa investors mostly look for minimum residency requirements. Considering this, Portugal's Golden Visa requires only 7 days of residency for the initial residency card (valid for one year), 14 days for the second residency card (valid for 2 years).
The second requirement that Portugal imposes on Golden Visa holders is that they have to keep their investment for 5 years. After 5 years, you can take your investment back if your fund allows you to do it.
Accordingly, you need to gather the necessary documents like your passport, a clean criminal record, and proof of your investment. However, they should be submitted in Portuguese, legalized, and certified. Besides, you need to open a bank account and get a tax number in Portugal.
To apply for the Portuguese Golden Visa program, you do not have to struggle with a complicated process. It is straightforward and takes only a few steps to complete the application successfully.
The first step is to decide on which investment route you will choose. Options are wide, but as a decision maker, you have to decide whether you want to take a risk and go for open-end funds or stay safe and go for closed-end funds. Subsequently, you can collect your documents and open a bank account, and get a tax number.
After you complete the steps we mentioned above, the next step is to make your investment. Then you have to submit your application to AIMA. AIMA will analyze your application and let you know the available biometrics appointment dates. At this step, you need to be in Portugal to give your biometric data. Then, you can receive your residence card. As long as you renew it and keep your investment, you can apply for Portuguese citizenship after 5 years.
Note that you have to pass an A2-level Portuguese language test to be a Portuguese citizen. Once you finalize the whole process, you can enjoy the benefits of being a global citizen and a high quality of life in Portugal.