Only until July 1st, 2021, Portugal’s Golden Visa can be obtained for investing in real estate in Lisbon and Porto. Last year government officially postponed the start of the new rules from January 1 to July 1. But from July 1st, Portugal’s Golden Visa can be issued only for investment in regional real estate. Preferential rules for the choice of real estate in sparsely populated areas from July 1st will replace the wording “Inland Areas” (internal regions). In fact, this will reduce the list of locations where an investor can purchase real estate for €280 000. For example, this list does not include the Algarve. It is known that the new conditions will be valid from July 1, 2021 to December 31, 2022. According to some rumors, the investment threshold can rise to 1 million euros.
What can be purchased for a minimum investment in the range of € 280 000-350 000?
Rooms or shares with profitability in various hotel projects (returnable investments). For example, at the Marriott Renaissance Porto Hotel (€350 000 investment). This is a development project in Porto on the 163 of the room near the park, at a distance of 15 minutes from the international airport and 15 minutes on foot from the city center. Another example of such a development project is Hilton Garden Inn Evora (from €280 000) on 140 rooms. This hotel is being built in the city of Evora, the center of the eponymous district and municipality, the center of the historical province of Alto Alentejo, in the northeast of Lisbon. From this point, the distance to the international airport is an hour and a half drive, and exactly the same to the border with Spain.
Passport of Portugal for investor’s children
Starting from November 11, 2020, a child can become a Portuguese citizen if at least one of the parents lived legally in the territory of this country for a year before his birth. Such an amendment was announced in the state newspaper the Diário da República. It should be noted that children born in Portugal to foreign nationals residing in the country were previously entitled to citizenship by birth. The conditions were this: at least one of their parents must live in the country for two or more years. The new law reduces this period to one year. How does this work in relation to the children of investors with Portugal’s Golden Visa?
Let us consider what, in fact, such a change in the rules of naturalization means for children of those who have Portugal’s Golden Visa. According to the requirements of Portugal’s Golden Visa program, you need to be present in the country for at least 7 days in the first year after obtaining status. And at least 14 days every 2 years after. Thus, if the investor received Portugal’s Golden Visa, spent 7 days, then he fulfilled his standard of residence. So, the child of such a parent can, according to the new amendment, obtain Portuguese citizenship. Consequently, Portugal’s Golden Visa is the only such option in Europe that allows jus soli to be used. This is the principle of acquisition of citizenship, according to which citizenship is determined by the place of birth and is not related to the nationality of parents.
If you are more interested in the option of directly obtaining European citizenship, please pay attention to the program of Montenegrin citizenship.