Real estate investment is no longer an option to obtain a golden visa for Portugal under the newly revamped residency-by-investment scheme, Reuters reported on Tuesday, anticipating that investment funds will be used instead.
This comes after the Portuguese government tightened rules following its initial announcement to scrap the golden visa scheme in February 2023, which has been blamed for the worsening housing crisis. The scheme, at the time, already sought to redirect investments in property from major cities to depopulated areas across the country.
The scheme offers wealthy non-EU nationals the right to live in Portugal so long as they invest in the country. Since its launch in 2012, it has attracted around $8 billion in investment from foreigners, most of whom were Chinese, American, or Brazilian.
Portugal’s real estate sector account for around 90 percent of these inflows, sparking complaints that it was driving house prices up. Meanwhile, the European Commission has called for an end to such programmes due to alleged security risks.
Investing in investment funds has been one option for Portugal golden visa seekers since 2015. However, funds are now expected to become the primary investment channel following a law which was passed last year that phased out the previous focus on real estate. Other options include donating to cultural or research projects.
Vanessa Lima, a lawyer at Prime Legal which assists foreigners with golden visa applications, told Reuters that real estate had overshadowed other options.
Applicants must transfer a minimum of 500,000 euros to one or more eligible funds certified by Portugal’s stock market regulator, CMVM. While CMVM does not publicly list qualifying funds, Lima estimates there are about 40 options, though some may no longer be open to new investments.
While no official data is available yet, three golden visa lawyers told Reuters investment funds could represent 80-90 percent of future qualifying deals. However, without the real estate option, some say less money may ultimately flow to Portugal. Funds will also need to invest only 60 percent in-country.
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