Portugal Golden Visa Program is one of the most interesting investment programs in Europe. But over the past two years, it has experienced several crises that nearly brought the program to a standstill and prompted significant changes in its operation. Firstly, the option to purchase real estate, after long debates in the Portuguese Parliament, was abolished. The deputies argued that it was the participants in the Portugal Golden Visa Program who were to blame for rising property prices. Therefore, in 2024 it will no longer be possible to apply for a Golden Visa on the basis of purchasing a living real estate. Now the emphasis is shifting to the option of special funds requiring at least €500 000, which must have at least 60% of their assets in the form of investments in the local economy.
What are the prospects for such a solution?
As Nuri Katz, President and founder of Apex Capital Partners, said to Reuters, excluding real estate investments would make Portugal less attractive to investors, who would turn to other countries’ golden visa schemes. For example, neighboring Spain is among those that still allow property investments.
Moreover, the Portuguese Government has announced plans to abolish “tax breaks” for foreign residents, which the Portuguese consider unfair. Prime Minister Antonio Costa has promised to end the scheme in 2024, but it will remain in place for those already using it. Previously, the opportunity to take advantage of tax breaks in Portugal attracted a large number of nomads from the USA and beyond.
Portugal's residence permit program (Portugal Golden Visa Program) offers wealthy citizens of non-EU countries, in return for investment, the right to live in the country, without significant residency requirements. Since its launch in 2012, the program has injected €7.3 billion ($8 billion) into the economy. These are mainly investors from China, Brazil and the USA.
Portugal Golden Visa Program. Current investment options
The investor can choose the option of investing in an authorized venture fund (€500,000), investing in scientific and technological projects (from €400,000), supporting local cultural heritage (from €200,000), and can also provide at least 8-10 workers places by opening a business (invest at least €500,000 in the capital of the enterprise).
The first residence permit (Portugal Golden Visa) for an investor is issued for a period of 1 year, then extended for 2 years, then again for 2 years. After 5 years, you can apply for permanent residence; after 1 year, the investor has the right to apply for Portuguese citizenship.
Path to Portuguese citizenship. Naturalization process
In January 2024, the Portuguese government introduced amendments to the citizenship law. As was previously the case, to obtain the coveted passport investor must live in the country for at least 5 years. However, now the countdown of this period begins not from the moment of receiving a residence permit in Portugal, but from the moment of filing an application for this status. Such changes are associated with a large number of bureaucratic and immigration delays. In this country, from the moment of filing an application for a residence permit until the consideration of the application, it can take more than two years.
So, amendments to the law must be approved by the President in 2024. Further, with the entry into force of the new amendments, investors whose applications for the Portugal Golden Visa were submitted in 2019 will be able to start the naturalization process. But it’s worth waiting for clarification on the issue of accommodation. Still, exactly how many days must an investor spend in the country to be able to become a citizen? Follow our news.
