Golden Visa for Portugal is a residency by investment program that has been in effect since 2012. In this period, over 10,000 applicants have received Portuguese residency.
Many reasons appear to attract foreign investors while applying for the program. The low residence requirement and inclusion of family members are a few of these attractions. In addition, the investment options are various.
About Golden Visa For Portugal
Portugal Golden Visa is a program aimed at non-EU and non-EEA citizens. The program is known as ARI (residence permit for investment activity) in Portugal. It has raised more than €6 billion since 2012.
The program enables you to live, work and study in Portugal like a local. In addition, you can become a citizen or a permanent resident once you meet the requirements for this right.
Let’s delve more into the advantages of holding a Golden Visa to Portugal.
Benefits of Portugal Golden Visa Program
Besides the right to live and work in Portugal, the program also enables you the freedom of mobility. This means that it doesn’t require you to stay in Portugal to keep your residence permit. It’s sufficient for you to stay in Portugal for only seven days each year. You can spend the rest of the year anywhere you want.
Another benefit is that Portugal citizenship can be available for you after five years of qualified residency. Compared to other similar programs, Portugal’s program provides a very quick process to get this right. In addition to this, you can travel around 190 countries visa-free when you get citizenship.
Once you obtain your Portugal Golden Visa, you can have visa-free travel right in the Schengen area.
When you become a full-time worker via your Golden Visa, you must have medical insurance. In this way, you can have access to all types of public services such as education and healthcare. You can work in Portugal anywhere you want via your work permit. Also, you can establish your own business here as well.
Dependent family members can benefit from many of the rights you have. They need to apply simultaneously while you’re applying for the program. Dependent family members include your:
- Spouse,
- Children under 18 years of age,
- Dependent children under the age of 26 if they are full-time students and they’re not married,
- Parents if they’re over the age of 65 years old.
Portugal Golden Visa is also an advantageous way to enjoy tax benefits. The NHR (Non-habitual residency) program provides tax exemptions in the first 10 years of residency. Tax exemptions are applied to your foreign income outside of Portugal. To benefit from NHR, you need to be a tax resident in Portugal. As of 2020, foreign pensioners are not exempt from taxes on their pension income though.
Are You Eligible for Golden Visa to Portugal?
Portugal Golden Visa program is available for any non-EU, non-EEA, and non-Swiss citizens.
There are also some other requirements such as being over the age of 18 and holding a clean criminal record. Also, the funds provided for the investment need to come from outside of Portugal.
Another eligibility criterion is to make a qualifying investment. There are minimum required limits for each investment type.
Note that the UK and American citizens can apply and become eligible to get a Golden Visa as well.
Different Investment Types
Investment options under the Golden Visa to Portugal are:
- Real estate purchase
- Fund subscription
- Donation
- Capital transfer, and
- Company creation.
Under the real estate category, you have four different investment options in terms of the minimum amount and type of property. It’s possible to buy a property at a value of at least €500,000. The amount drops to €400,000 when the property is in a low-density area. Another option is to buy a property at a minimum value of €350,000. In this case, the real estate must be older than 30 years old in an urban rehabilitation area. Also, you need to renovate it. Again, such property is in a low-density area, the minimum required investment amount drops to €280,000.
You can also choose to make a capital transfer that is equal to a minimum of €1,5 million to Portugal.
A fund subscription is another option through which you make a minimum of €500,000 subscription to a Portuguese fund.
Donation entails an investment of a minimum of €250,000 investment in the preservation of national heritage in Portugal. It’s also possible to invest at least €500,000 in a research and development activity in Portugal.
The creation of job opportunities is the last option on this list. You can create a minimum of 10 full-time jobs in a Portuguese business. You must, however, be the owner of this business.
So, Portugal Golden Visa 2022 keeps attracting more and more investors worldwide. Apply today and become a part of this journey!
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