With its great quality of life, laid-back feel and tax incentives, Portugal is one of our top three countries for buying a property or moving abroad.
Since Brexit, one of the most popular ways of spending more than 90 days in Portugal is the Golden Visa – a fast-track scheme to get a residency permit with a property investment above a certain value.
Originally there was a threshold of €500,000 for properties in the high-demand areas - Lisbon, Porto and coastal regions. When property prices started to escalate in Lisbon, adding to the problem of homes becoming unaffordable for locals, the scheme was stopped in these areas in 2022. An exception remains for tourist-classified projects that typically come with a rental obligation, and it should be noted that you can invest in a property fund.
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The good news is that it remains possible to buy a property (or properties) in Portugal worth at least €280,000 in low-density areas, despite the announcement earlier this year that the golden visa real estate scheme will end – subject to consultation.
It has now been confirmed that no further decisions will be taken on the future of the golden visa scheme until at least September, when the Portuguese parliament resumes after its summer break.
This will be welcomed by both British and American buyers who have been enthusiastic applicants for the scheme of late and have added to the marked increase in the number of homes in Portugal by foreigners during 2022, according to the country’s National Statistics Institute (INE).
An alternative way to spend longer periods in Portugal is the D7 Visa.
