# Golden Visas



## elmongol

Anybody has experience in getting Golden Visa?


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## MrBife

The criteria are clearly laid out and there are now lawyers who specialise in this kind of work. It's really quite straight forwards in terms of procedure and many have done it. What are your specific doubts or problems ?


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## elmongol

is it 500,000 investment in real estate?


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## canoeman

As Mr Bife says very straightforward the 3 options for investment to qualify for Golden Residence 
I) Capital transfer with a value equal to or above 1 million Euros;
II) Creation of, at least, 10 job positions;
III) Acquisition of real estate with a value equal to or above 500 thousand Euros.

All must be for a min of 5 years
See here for all conditions http://www.sef.pt/documentos/56/ARIEN2.pdf


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## travelling-man

Is (I) linked to (II) or can (II) be sufficient on it's own?


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## canoeman

*Any 1* of the three *not* a combination *unless you* want just little things but it's very important to apply within the 90 day window and for non EU citizens to have health insurance and supply permission for Portuguese Criminal check and supply same from home country or any country lived in +1year plus declaration from Financas & Social Security in Portugal applicant has no debt, sounds more onerous than it actually is


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## travelling-man

OK... thanks. 

Option II could well be considerably easier for many people I'd guess.


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## canoeman

Probably most difficult and costly of 3 as to create 10 jobs would reguire investment in a business that could make enough money to pay 10 wages and ancillary costs and survive 5 years cheaper to buy a 1/2 million euro property


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## travelling-man

I wonder if it would have to be personal money of if the owner of a company elsewhere in the world could open and maintain an office here with that number of staff and then get the visa that way?


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## canoeman

Golden Visa says this
"Who may apply?
Third State citizens involved in an investment activity, either individually or through a company 
conducting, at least, one of the following operations in national territory for a minimum period of five years:"
So yes but I believe the jobs must be for Portuguese


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## travelling-man

canoeman said:


> Golden Visa says this
> "Who may apply?
> Third State citizens involved in an investment activity, either individually or through a company
> conducting, at least, one of the following operations in national territory for a minimum period of five years:"
> *So yes but I believe the jobs must be for Portuguese*


That sounds fair to me and I can think of several scenarios where this option might well suit people from Africa for example. 

Good to have the 3 options though.


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## MensAgitatMolem

According to newspapers, almost all visas were issued based on the purchase of a property.

*General information on the visa Investment Visas & Tax - Portugal | Lugna*


Foreign citizens and investors may apply for a Golden Visa if they engage in one the following investment activities (individually or through a company):


Capital transfer with a value equal to or above 1.000.000 Euros;
 Creation of, at least, 10 job positions;
 Acquisition of real estate with a market value exceeding 500.000 Euros.

Golden Visa holders, for the purposes of an investment activity in Portugal, shall be, inter alia, entitled to:


a permanent residence permit and unrestricted access to the European countries, markets and investment opportunities;
 the right to family regrouping;
 access to Portuguese citizenship (further conditions must be met).


Here's another article on the golden visa. I have copied part of it. - Golden Visa and Tax Opportunities - Portugal | Lugna

Eligibility & Requirements

The Portuguese Border & Immigration Authority – Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras or SEF – carries out an extensive procedural check in order to assess the eligibility of applicants. Visas are issued following a case by case analysis.


Legal provisions grant the possibility to apply for the Golden Visa when an investment activity is pursued in Portugal.


The concept of investment encompasses three types of inbound transactions:


Golden Visa Requirements


The transfer of capital in the amount equal to or exceeding Euro 1,000,000;
 The creation of at least 10 jobs;
 The acquisition of real estate valued at Euro 500,000 (minimum).


Foreign citizens can conduct the said investment activities either individually or through a company. According to the reporter’s experience, for the time being, most of the Visas are granted following the purchasing of real estate in Portugal.


For each type of investment, evidence of the investment value must be provided by the applicant.


If the target investment is structured through a company, its value is determined in proportion to the company’s share capital. The company must have its registered office in Portugal or in another EU Member State. In such case, additional requirements must be met, such as having a permanent establishment in Portugal.


The chosen investment must be sustained and not be withdrawn for a minimum five year period as of the date the residence permit is issued.


Visa applicants must produce before SEF a statement issued by a Portuguese financial institution stating the ownership of capital.


Alternatively, if the investment is conducted through a corporate entity, the applicant must produce an up-to-date commercial registration certificate attesting the shareholding in the said company, valued at the amount of the investment required for the purposes of obtaining the visa.


Where an applicant has chosen to invest in Portugal and create at least 10 jobs, the applicant must produce evidence that he or she is an employer and all employees are registered for Social Security purposes in Portugal.


At last, real estate investment is verified through the filing of a proof of ownership of a property fee of burdens or encumbrances, such as a land registry certificate(s). In specific cases, and contingent on the fulfillment of additional requirements, the filing of a promissory contract may suffice.


It is possible to acquire co-ownership of a property, provided each holding has a value of at least Euro 500,000.


Finally, general requirements applicable to all residence permits must also be fulfilled:



Absence of conviction for a crime punishable in Portugal with prison for period exceeding one year;
 Absence of an entry ban in Portugal;
 Applicants must not be blacklisted in the Schengen Information System or in the SEF system;
 Hold a temporary ordinary visa.


All relevant documents must be filed with SEF and the applicant must undertake a mandatory interview held at the SEF’s office.


As mentioned above, visa holders have a minimum period of permanence in Portugal of:



Seven days during the first year; and
 14 days in the following two-year period.


The residence permit is valid for a one year term and may be renewed for two year periods, so as long the requirements for its issue are met.


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## Scott Williams

*The Future of Golden Visas*

Given the recent "detentions" for abuses of the GV system and the various negative comments from the Socialist Party, does anyone have a view on the likely future of the program if there is a change of government later in the year?

I read that the current government wants to keep the program and not hand a free kick to competing programs in other EU countries.

If a new government decided to ditch the program, would there be a "grandfathering" of existing Visas, especially in regard to the ability to gain citizenship after 6 years?

Hope some-one can provide any opinion on these 2 questions.


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## Pablo91

As I understand it's hard to see what will happen, but there have been new data and the supervisory less transparent things, for example I believe that if the investment is made in areas of low density may be the investment of "only" 400 k euros.

I do not think that even if the socialist win this to change, as both are moderated and we can not forget that Portugal percisa of tax revenue and this measure came animate the economy.


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## danibracara

Hi Elmongol!

Have you found all your answers? Please tell me if you need some help!

Best Regards

Daniel Lopes


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## In 2 bikes

I heard of an interesting article on the BBC radio which had a / the Portuguese finance minister as a guest. He didn't do very well explaining away the darker side of this scheme, and when asked 'how many jobs' it had created in Portugal, it transpired the answer was TWO, both of whom are of Chinese origin and are here to facilitate the program.

He further mentioned any country is financially measured on its housing sales and growth performance. I think it was put to him that properties in the 400k region and above would be boosted to the magic 500k due to the growing interest of individuals who are from a country, or countries, that may otherwise be denied entry. 

It was then alluded to that such house purchases are just a ticket to Great Britain as EU 'residency' status is granted to the house buyer. Some such buyers, who have this kind of capital, (let's say from organised criminality to be clear here ) can then bring their family to the U.K. and after 5 years the PT house is sold - no loss there then !

The result is Great Britain has just inherited more serious and organised criminality courtesy of Portugal trying to falsely boost its financial status in the E.U. market place.

I may be wrong !


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## siobhanwf

New gold visa conditions set out
IN NEWS · 26-02-2015 13:51:00 · 1 COMMENTS
Portugal’s fast track gold visa system for those buying premium properties is to get both greater inspection and supervision said Deputy Prime Minister Paulo Portas announcing the new plans on Monday.


New gold visa conditions set out - The Portugal News


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## In 2 bikes

To quote the above mentioned article :- " Gold visas came in for some heavy duty publicity when a total of 11 arrests were made last November of senior figures in the Portuguese administration, including the national heads of the customs service and registry offices, within the framework of a corruption investigation into their allocation."

As someone whose career relied on healthy doses of cynicism, it comes as no surprise that the entire process has a the cancerous web of corruption spreading through the entire upper echelons of the PT Government and beyond.


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## stuffedbear

Hi there

Does the golden visa apply to outlying islands like Madeira and the Azores, ie: could my American friend buy property in the islands for a lot less than 500,000, and enjoy Europe?


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## MrBife

stuffedbear said:


> Hi there
> 
> Does the golden visa apply to outlying islands like Madeira and the Azores, ie: could my American friend buy property in the islands for a lot less than 500,000, and enjoy Europe?



No because the *minimum* investment is €500,000, anywhere within Portuguese territory.

A site that looks helpful... Euro Gold Visa | European Golden Visa - Passport to the EU


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## TonyJ1

Can have a combination - e.g. a residence for say €250,000 and apartments and shops for rental for €250,000 - as long as the total is €500,000.


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## TonyJ1

Scott Williams said:


> Given the recent "detentions" for abuses of the GV system and the various negative comments from the Socialist Party, does anyone have a view on the likely future of the program if there is a change of government later in the year?
> 
> I read that the current government wants to keep the program and not hand a free kick to competing programs in other EU countries.
> 
> If a new government decided to ditch the program, would there be a "grandfathering" of existing Visas, especially in regard to the ability to gain citizenship after 6 years?
> 
> Hope some-one can provide any opinion on these 2 questions.


If a new government decided to ditch the program, it would have to still fulfill it's obligation under the current law - otherwise it would have constitutional problems. Off course, to take matters ultimately to the constitutional court, should that problem arise, is very costly and time consuming.

As to citizenship after 6 years - there is a language requirement as a hurdle, For '7days' a year resident, may prove difficult to fulfill.


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## Juca

You can also invest in more than one property as long as the total sum exceeds 500,000 euros.


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## financeguy

Question about the golden visa program, regarding real estate : is there a specific time frame for the purchase(s) to occur?

Say a person has $200k euros now to purchase a property, then buys another $300k within 1 year.. would that qualify? would he/she need to apply for the visa upon the initial purchase and only conclude the process when the other 300k are purchased?


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## TonyJ1

financeguy said:


> Question about the golden visa program, regarding real estate : is there a specific time frame for the purchase(s) to occur?
> 
> Say a person has $200k euros now to purchase a property, then buys another $300k within 1 year.. would that qualify? would he/she need to apply for the visa upon the initial purchase and only conclude the process when the other 300k are purchased?


Firstly the investment values are in Euros not US$, therefore the relevant values will be slightly higher, depending on exchange rates.
Secondly, the 'golden visa' will not be granted until all the conditions are met, as the authorities will require proof that the relevant money has been transferred and the investment made.

Just as aside, there are alternative investments that require a lot less than the €500K investment e.g. buildings older than 30 years or subject to urban renewal (€350k), investment in cultural investments (€250K) required, etc - probably financing a Portuguese movie or theater production would qualify - but I think this type of route has still to be tested, though it is in the law. If you can read Portuguese, you can look at the legislation on this on the 'SEF' web site - search on the left hand side for 'legislação' - it is all there, including some other special areas of 'investment', which I doubt that there has been any takers up to now.


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## grizwald

Does the 350 euro investment in building older than 30 years apply to any area or just the areas designated for urban renewal? or just 30 year old buildings within the area of urban renewal?

The million euro investment? Is that money that has to sit in a Portuguese bank or once transferred in could it be used to invest in a broad range of stock just using the bank as the broker?


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## TonyJ1

grizwald said:


> Does the 350 euro investment in building older than 30 years apply to any area or just the areas designated for urban renewal? or just 30 year old buildings within the area of urban renewal?
> 
> The million euro investment? Is that money that has to sit in a Portuguese bank or once transferred in could it be used to invest in a broad range of stock just using the bank as the broker?


On the €350K the legislation has the word 'ou' in other words, 'or' so it gives to understand that these are alternatives.

On the €1M investment, I would have to study the legislation in detail, but it does mention the 'Bolsa de Valores ..etc', so in short, these investments, if it were in shares, in companies listed on the Portuguese Stock Exchange - it would not make sense if the investment if it was invested abroad through a Portuguese broker.


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## financeguy

TonyJ1 said:


> Firstly the investment values are in Euros not US$, therefore the relevant values will be slightly higher, depending on exchange rates.
> Secondly, the 'golden visa' will not be granted until all the conditions are met, as the authorities will require proof that the relevant money has been transferred and the investment made.


Thanks. Yes - Im aware those figures are in EUR$. The point Im trying to clarify is if I would have to start the visa process now, upon the purchase of a single property (let's say, price at $200k euros) and the process would be stalled until I completed the total $500k, OR if I can purchase something worth $200k now, then another $100k in 6 months, then another $200k next year, and at that time apply for the visa demonstrating then the total purchase of $500k.

Does that make sense?


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## TonyJ1

financeguy said:


> Thanks. Yes - Im aware those figures are in EUR$. The point Im trying to clarify is if I would have to start the visa process now, upon the purchase of a single property (let's say, price at $200k euros) and the process would be stalled until I completed the total $500k, OR if I can purchase something worth $200k now, then another $100k in 6 months, then another $200k next year, and at that time apply for the visa demonstrating then the total purchase of $500k.
> 
> Does that make sense?


I get you / I-ll have to read the legislation properly to confirm. In principle it should be ok, but would have to check


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## grizwald

TonyJ1,
I agree it wouldn't make any sense but the Canadian government has a similar scheme which allows the investors to put their money into any stock traded on the TSE including all the multinationals and mutual funds. 
Do you know if the system allows for any mechanism to hedge risk particularly with regards to currency fluctuations. Think about what happened to the pound.
regards,
Griz


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## grizwald

Re: GoldenVisa.com They are an organization based out of London that is active in procuring Golden Visas in any of the EU countries. They are not specific to Portugal. I have had cursory contact with them but nothing more so I cannot vouch for or decry them.


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## TonyJ1

grizwald said:


> Re: GoldenVisa.com They are an organization based out of London that is active in procuring Golden Visas in any of the EU countries. They are not specific to Portugal. I have had cursory contact with them but nothing more so I cannot vouch for or decry them.


This type of organisation would not know the specifics unless they employed a Portuguese qualified lawyer, which they may very well do - what typically happens to these organisations is that they send out these enquiries to legal / accounting and similar firms, and if they get decent feedback they do post it on their sites, etc - I have contributed this type of information in a 'previous life'


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## TonyJ1

grizwald said:


> TonyJ1,
> I agree it wouldn't make any sense but the Canadian government has a similar scheme which allows the investors to put their money into any stock traded on the TSE including all the multinationals and mutual funds.
> Do you know if the system allows for any mechanism to hedge risk particularly with regards to currency fluctuations. Think about what happened to the pound.
> regards,
> Griz


There are different issues involved here - as I see it, as long as your investment in Portugal qualifies with the rules as defined, you would get the golden visa. If you have hedged your investment by paying a premium to some other organisation who is prepared to hedge your investment, it does not affect the investment in Portugal as such. The issue which may have some consequence in some circumstances, is possibly the tax effect of such hedging - but this would only come into play, if you effectively became a full time resident. If you are only after the golden visa as such, you would not be subject to tax in Portugal on a worldwide basis as your home would be elsewhere - depends whether your permanent home was in Portugal or more than 182 days residence in the tax year


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## FLT

Hi,

I would like to know if there is anyone on this forum who has actually obtained a Golden Visa through property purchase ? 

I am a Non EU citizen and thinking of living in Portugal.

Thanks


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