Portugal’s Golden Visa, officially the residence permit for investment activity (ARI), is open as of 20 October 2026, but buying a home no longer qualifies. The main routes are €500,000 in Portuguese non-real estate funds or €500,000 in a Portuguese company that creates jobs. The investment must, as a rule, be kept for five years, and holders need to spend only 7 days in Portugal in the first year.
The permit is a slow road to a passport: since 19 May 2026, naturalisation needs 10 years of legal residence for nationals outside the EU and the Portuguese-speaking countries, up from five. Below are answers from the law, the migration agency AIMA and the Tax and Customs Authority (AT).
What is the minimum investment for the Portugal Golden Visa?
€250,000, but only for the arts and heritage route. Article 3(1)(d) of Law 23/2007, the immigration law, in the version updated for Law 62/2026 of 10 September 2026, sets five routes:
- Funds: €500,000 in units of non-real estate investment funds set up under Portuguese law, with at least five years to maturity when you invest and at least 60% of their investments in companies based in Portugal.
- A company: €500,000 to set up a company based in Portugal with five permanent jobs, or to add capital to an existing one and create five permanent jobs or keep ten, five of them permanent, for at least three years.
- Research: €500,000 for research by institutions in the national scientific system.
- Arts and heritage: €250,000 for artistic production or national cultural heritage, through public bodies, public-interest foundations and similar entities.
- Jobs: creating at least ten jobs.
In low-density areas, the jobs, research and arts thresholds can be 20% lower (€200,000 for arts, our calculation). For the fund route, AIMA also asks for a letter from the fund manager confirming the maturity and the 60% rule, a criminal record certificate and proof of health cover.
Can I still buy property for a Golden Visa?
No. Law 56/2023 of 6 October 2023, a housing package, lists among its measures the “revocation” of residence permits for real estate investment. It repealed three routes, and the law now says qualifying investments may not go, directly or indirectly, into real estate, so real estate funds are out too. AIMA says applications and renewals under the repealed routes that were pending at the time remain valid.
How many days must I spend in Portugal?
Seven days in the first year and 14 days in each later two-year period, according to renewal guidance from SEF, which handled these permits before AIMA. Proof is asked for only when there is well-founded doubt.
Can my family join?
Yes. AIMA lists the spouse; children under 18; unmarried dependent children aged 18 to 25 who are studying; dependent parents of the holder or the spouse; and siblings under 18 in the holder’s legal guardianship. Their applications can be filed with the investor’s but depend on it being granted. Law 61/2025 of 22 October 2025 makes most residents wait two years before bringing family; Golden Visa families are exempt (article 98(3)(c)).
How long is the permit valid, and what does it cost?
The first permit is valid for two years. For renewals the sources differ. Article 75 of Law 23/2007 renews temporary residence permits for three-year periods as a general rule, but the Golden Visa’s own article, 90-A(2), in the 2017 wording we could open, renews it for two-year periods, and the law firm PLMJ wrote in 2022 that the three-year rule does not apply to it. Check the current period with AIMA before you plan.
AIMA’s fee table under Portaria 307/2023, last updated on 7 February 2024, lists €773.74 to examine an application or renewal, €7,730.11 to grant the permit and €3,865.79 to renew it, with the same grant and renewal amounts for each family member. AIMA updated its fees in March 2026, and Lusa, via Observador, reported the investment permit can cost up to €8,418; we could not open the revised table. AIMA’s FAQ mentions a legal decision period of 90 days, but we found no official figure for how long applications actually take.
Does it lead to permanent residence or citizenship?
Permanent residence is open after five years with a temporary permit (article 80), with no prison sentence over one year in that time, means of subsistence, housing and basic Portuguese. The 2024 fee table lists €10,822.14 to grant it to a Golden Visa holder or family member.
Citizenship. Organic Law 1/2026 of 18 May 2026, in force the next day, requires 7 years of legal residence for nationals of EU and Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) countries and 10 years for everyone else, counted as the sum of all periods of legal residence within 9 or 12 years. It also requires knowledge of Portuguese language and culture, a declaration of adherence to democratic principles and means of support.
When does the clock start? The law repeals article 15(4) of the Nationality Law and treats as legal residence the time spent with a regularised status under a permit or visa; it does not say whether time waiting for a permit counts. According to Observador, Golden Visa holders could previously count five years from filing their residence application, and more than 500 holders were preparing a collective action against the state in May. Nationality applications pending on 19 May 2026 follow the old law (article 7(2)).
How are new residents taxed in Portugal?
In our reading, holding a Golden Visa does not by itself make someone resident for tax. Residents pay income tax (IRS) in 2026 at 12.5% to 48%, the top rate applying above €86,634, plus a solidarity surcharge of 2.5% from €80,000 to €250,000 and 5% above that. The AT’s 2025 rate guide lists a 28% special rate on capital income.
The non-habitual resident (NHR) regime was revoked from 1 January 2024, the AT says, with transitional rules. Its successor, IFICI, is for people not resident in the previous five years who work in qualifying roles, such as research, highly qualified professions or certified start-ups. It taxes income from that work at 20% for 10 years and exempts most foreign income except pensions.
Three limits matter for investors. Income paid from listed low-tax jurisdictions pays 35%: the AT’s own example is dividends from a Dubai company. Shareholders do not qualify merely as shareholders. And former NHR beneficiaries are excluded. Applications are due by 15 January of the year after becoming resident. Compare personal income tax in 37 places.
Is there inheritance tax in Portugal?
Not as a separate tax. Gifts and inheritances pay 10% stamp duty, according to the AT. The spouse or de facto partner, descendants and ascendants are exempt but must still report the transfer (article 6(1)(e) of the Stamp Duty Code and AT FAQ 0377); siblings and other heirs are not. See inheritance tax in 37 family office locations.
What changed between 2023 and 2026?
- 6 October 2023: Law 56/2023 removes the real estate routes.
- 1 January 2024: NHR is revoked.
- 22 October 2025: Law 61/2025 adds a two-year wait for family reunification, with Golden Visa families exempt.
- March 2026: AIMA raises its fees, according to Lusa.
- 19 May 2026: Organic Law 1/2026 lengthens the road to citizenship.
What does this mean for a family or a family office?
The Golden Visa is now a five-year commitment to Portuguese funds or businesses, not a home, so the questions are about a fund’s fees and exit terms, or running a real company. Our Portugal guide covers the wider picture for a family office, our residence routes for investors table compares other countries, and our Greece Golden Visa guide answers the same questions for Greece.
A fair caveat
This guide reflects official pages as of 20 October 2026. We could not confirm AIMA’s fees after March 2026, real processing times, or how the nationality law counts time spent waiting for a permit. We read Law 23/2007 in a consolidated text from the Lisbon public prosecutor’s office, not the official gazette. The rules may change again.
Five lessons to take away
- Property is out. Since October 2023, no Golden Visa investment may go into real estate.
- The money is locked in. The investment must, as a rule, be kept for five years.
- Residence is light, citizenship is slow. Seven days keeps the permit in year one, but nationals outside the EU and CPLP now need ten years to naturalise.
- Fees add up per person. AIMA charges thousands of euros for each grant and renewal, for each family member too.
- The permit and tax residence are separate. Living in Portugal brings rates up to 48% plus a surcharge, and IFICI’s 20% covers only qualifying work.
Questions to bring to your advisors
Which route fits our assets, and who will check a fund’s maturity, 60% rule and exit terms? Do we intend to live in Portugal, and would anyone qualify for IFICI? How would the new nationality law count our years? What would our heirs pay, and how do Portugal’s succession rules fit with our home country’s? These are questions to bring to your lawyers and tax advisors, not advice.
