In recent years, Portugal gained great attention from global investors. There are many reasons behind these eyeballs, none of them unpredictable or surprising for anyone who knows the country well. In addition to the usual suspects like the climate, cuisine, people, and sceneries, the residence by investment program Portugal Golden Visa and the tax residence program Non-Habitual Residence (NHR) both played a significant role.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic related decline in the first half of 2020, investment in Portugal started to rise again in the second half of 2020, entering strongly into 2021. Portugal’s Golden Visa program generated close to € 6 billion as of 2021.
Portugal Golden Visa Is Still Strong
As of 2021, almost 9,500 families received their Golden Visas in Portugal. China, Brazil, Turkey, South Africa, and Russia are the five countries that sent the most number of applicants in descending order according to statistics. To this day, roughly half of the applications belong to Chinese citizens. The total number of applicants including the main applicants, as well as the family members surpass 25,000 in total.
Preferred Investment Type: Real Estate
Portugal Golden Visa program offers investors a permanent residence permit and the possibility to obtain Portuguese citizenship in five years. Although there are eight different investment methods that are accepted by the Portuguese government for the program, the most popular investment type by far is real estate acquisition.
The Portuguese real estate market initially took a big hit pursuant to the 2008 crisis. However, it recovered very well and continues to grow since 2013. The high-income districts of Lisbon offer opportunities that bring a significant amount of appreciation. Another attractive feature of the Golden Visa program is the fact that it leads to citizenship in only five years of obtaining temporary residence status.
How Does the Program Work
As stated above, the Portugal Golden Visa program provides a number of different investment options for prospective investors. The most popular investment type is the real estate option which requires a minimum of € 500.000 investment for any real estate property. If you invest in a property that is older than 30 years of construction age or in any project within the urban rehabilitation areas, the investment requirement goes down to € 350,000.
Apart from the real estate investment option, there are many other options, such as investing € 1 million in direct capital or providing 10 job positions that will last at least 5 years. Once you receive the residence permit, you have to spend an average of 7 days each year in Portugal. At the end of the 5th year, you obtain the right to apply for citizenship.
Portugal Golden Visa program is one of the best residency by investment programs in the market, and it appears that it will continue to gain attention. There is a chance that the Portuguese Golden Visa program may go through some changes in 2021. Nevertheless, the Portuguese real estate market is expected to perform well in 2021. Investors are recommended to make their research on the property options before applying to Golden Program. It is highly recommended that you work with a professional investment advisory company in making your investment decision and pursuing your Golden Visa.
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