Portugal: New Golden Visa Applications Might Be Accepted Until End of May

The program, which is now expected to be debated at the parliament, can end only on the day the new housing legislation comes into effect, which is expected to happen around 45 days away from now, sometime at the end of May, AtoZSerwisPlus.pt reports.

Commenting on the law, the editor of the online newspaper Imidaily, Christian Henrik Nesheim, has noted that under the new wording, the golden visa program “would still be terminated, but the blow would be softened” in other ways.

According to him, the first new way will be continuing to accept applications for Golden Visas until the day when the law becomes effective, instead of from February 16, when the termination of the Golden Visa program was announced.

Previously, in mid-March, the government has said that the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) would continue to accept Golden visa applications until the law becomes effective, still noting that there is no guarantee that those submitted after February 16 would not be cancelled once the law becomes effective.

Second, the requirement of being in Portugal for at least 183 days per year in order to hold a D2 visa has been scraped for golden visa investors, who, due to the termination of the Residence-by-Investment scheme, will have to convert their current permits to a D2.

Golden visa holders that will obtain a D2 visa next, will continue to be required to remain present in Portugal for only seven days, which has been a requirement for those obtaining residence through this program so far.

And finally, investment-based residence permits for those wishing to invest in the support of “artistic production and the recovery or maintenance of cultural heritage” will still be eligible to obtain visas, as soon as they receive a confirmation for investment from at least one of the following:

• the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade
• the Development Bank
• the Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation
• the National Innovation Agency
• the Office of Cultural Strategy, Planning and Assessment
• other authorities deemed appropriate

February 16, Portugal announced the termination of its Golden Visa scheme in a bid to tackle the problem of housing shortage that has hit the country in the recent years. The decision was revealed only one day after Ireland also revealed it would put to an end its Golden visa program, without giving any reasons for the decision.

The move has been criticised by many, and even a petition has been initiated to reverse it.

Since October 2012, when the scheme started operating, Portugal has issued Golden visas to a total of total of 11,758 investors. Taking into account family members that these investors obtained residence permits as well, the number of those that gained Portuguese residency through this scheme is around 31,000.