Portugal residence permit and Golden Visa: what changed and which options remain

Updated: 30 October 2026 · RE/MAX Extra

For ten years Portugal's Golden Visa was the best-known way to get a residence permit by buying a flat or a house. In October 2023 that route closed. The investment residence programme itself hasn't gone away, but the list of eligible investments has changed. Below we set out exactly what changed, what happened to permits already issued and which options remain. It's all based on the text of the Foreigners Act as it stood at the end of October 2026 (last amended by Law No. 62/2026 of 10 September) and on the pages of the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA).

What the Golden Visa is

The official name is the residence permit for investment activity (Autorização de Residência para Investimento, ARI). The scheme has been in place since 8 October 2012 and is set out in Article 90-A of the Foreigners Act, Law No. 23/2007. It lets a non-EU citizen obtain a temporary residence permit through investment, without first getting a residence visa.

According to AIMA, an ARI holder can:

• enter Portugal without a residence visa;
• live and work in the country;
• travel around the Schengen Area without a visa;
• bring their family through family reunification;
• in time, apply for permanent residence and citizenship on the conditions set by law.

What changed in October 2023

Law No. 56/2023 of 6 October 2023 (the Mais Habitação programme) came into force the day after publication, on 7 October 2023. Among its aims, the law expressly names ending the residence permit for property investment.

Article 42 of this law bars new applications on three grounds from the old version of the Foreigners Act: points i), iii) and iv) of Article 3(1)(d). In the current text of the law these points are marked as repealed.

The same law added a rule to Article 3 of the Foreigners Act: investments under the remaining options can't go into property, directly or indirectly. So buying a flat, a house or a share in a property no longer gets you a residence permit, whether directly or through an investment fund.

Foreigners are still free to buy property: the changes only concern the residence permit. For how a purchase works, see How to buy property in Portugal as a foreigner.

What happened to Golden Visas already issued

Article 42 of Law No. 56/2023 preserves the rights of people who obtained an ARI before 7 October 2023:

• permits issued under the previous rules can be renewed;
• the same goes for family members' permits obtained through reunification;
• ARI holders and relatives who meet the conditions for permanent residence can obtain a permanent residence permit for investment activity.

On renewal, the permit becomes a residence permit for immigrant entrepreneurs (Article 89(4) of the Foreigners Act). The holder must spend at least 7 days in Portugal in the first year and at least 14 days in each subsequent two-year period, consecutive or not.

Applications for grant and renewal that were pending on 7 October 2023 remain valid (Article 43). The same applies to projects that were at the prior-review stage with a municipality on that date. In these cases, the investment is checked against a business project. The check is done by the relevant state agencies, including AICEP and IAPMEI.

Which investments qualify now

The current version of Article 3 of the Foreigners Act leaves five options. You can invest personally or through a company, and the investment has to be held for at least five years.

If the investment goes into low-density areas, the threshold for jobs, science and culture can be 20% lower: 8 jobs instead of 10, €400,000 instead of €500,000 and €200,000 instead of €250,000. The law defines these as areas with fewer than 100 people per km² or with GDP per capita below 75% of the national average; the list is set by Portaria No. 208/2017. The reduction doesn't apply to funds or to setting up a company. For the culture option, AIMA's page currently states €220,000, although 20% off €250,000 under the text of the law gives €200,000, so check the amount with AIMA before applying.

Every two years, investments under the options in the table are assessed for their impact on science, culture, foreign direct investment and employment.

Conditions for getting and renewing the permit

Under Article 90-A of the Foreigners Act, an ARI is granted to a non-EU citizen who at the same time:

• meets the general requirements for a residence permit in Article 77, except the one about a residence visa;
• holds a valid Schengen visa;
• regularises their stay within 90 days of first entering Portugal;
• has met one of the investment conditions in the table above.

The permit is renewed for two years if the applicant shows they still meet one of the investment conditions. The documents AIMA lists include:

• passport and proof of legal entry and stay;
• health insurance or proof of access to the public health system;
• a criminal record certificate from the country of origin or residence, issued no more than 3 months before applying, with a Portuguese translation;
• a tax number from the country of origin or residence;
• certificates of no debts to the tax authority and social security, issued no more than 45 days earlier;
• a written undertaking to hold the investment for at least 5 years;
• proof of the investment, such as a statement from a bank registered with the Bank of Portugal confirming the transfer of the required amount;
• a receipt for the application processing fee.

Prior registration on the ARI portal is compulsory before applying. A bank in Portugal confirms the investment transfer, and to open an account you need a Portuguese tax number; how to get one is covered in The NIF and a bank account in Portugal for foreigners.

Who you can bring with you

A family reunification application can be filed together with the investor's, but the decision on it depends on the main application being approved. On AIMA's list, family members are:

Law No. 61/2025, in force since 23 October 2025, tightened the general rule: the right to family reunification now arises only once the residence permit has been valid for at least two years (15 months for a spouse who lived with the applicant for at least 18 months before the move). This period doesn't apply to family members of an ARI holder: the exception is written into Article 98(3) of the Foreigners Act. Minor or legally incapacitated dependent children don't have to wait either.

• a spouse;
• children aged up to and including 17, including adopted children, and legally incapacitated dependent children;
• dependent children aged 18 to 25 who are unmarried and studying;
• dependent parents of the applicant or spouse;
• siblings aged up to 17, if the applicant is their guardian under a decision recognised in Portugal.

The ARI scheme doesn't apply to citizens of Portugal, the EU, the European Economic Area, Andorra or Switzerland.

Permanent residence

A permanent permit (Article 80 of the Foreigners Act) can be requested after five years on a temporary one. AIMA's list requires:

• proof of means of subsistence;
• proof of address: if you live in your own home, a land registry extract or the access code to it;
• proof of no debts to the tax authority and social security;
• proof of basic Portuguese, such as a certificate at A2 level or above.

There's one more condition: over the last five years you can't have prison sentences totalling more than a year. A permanent permit has no end date, but the card is replaced every five years. ARI holders receive a permanent permit for investment activity, and the rule on cancellation for long absences doesn't apply to it.

How long you can be away

Under the general rule (Article 85), a residence permit can be cancelled if a person is away from Portugal without good reason for:

A longer absence has to be agreed with AIMA in advance. The permit isn't cancelled if, while away, the person carried on professional, business, cultural or social activity and can prove it. ARI holders have their own minimum stays: according to AIMA, at least 7 days in the first year and at least 14 days in each subsequent two-year period.

Can I buy a home and live in Portugal?

Yes, but you need to get your residence permit on other grounds, because buying no longer gives you one. The Foreigners Act also provides permits for employment, self-employment, entrepreneurship, study and family reunification. The conditions depend on the grounds; AIMA keeps the full list.

If you become tax resident, the taxes on buying change too: a non-resident pays IMT (property transfer tax) at a flat 7.5%, except in cases set by law. For details see Property taxes in Portugal, and on borrowing, Mortgages in Portugal for non-residents.

Anyone who owns a home in Portugal should also work out the annual costs in advance (IMI property tax, condominium fees, insurance), which we go through in The running costs of property in Portugal. And if you later have to sell, see Capital gains tax on selling property in Portugal.

We describe the rules from the text of the law and AIMA's official pages. AIMA decides whether to grant a residence permit, and Portugal's immigration laws have changed several times in recent years. Before applying, check the current version and, if need be, consult a lawyer.

Where to start looking

Current listings are in the RE/MAX Extra catalogue: flats in Lisbon, flats in Porto and houses in Cascais. To compare prices by area, see Lisbon neighbourhoods and surroundings and Porto neighbourhoods and suburbs. If you'd like to live in the country for a while first and get to know it, there are flats to rent in Lisbon, and how renting works is explained in Renting a home in Portugal. For questions about a particular property, get in touch.

This article is for information only and is not legal or tax advice. Rates and rules change — always check official sources and a professional before a transaction.