Portugal is under pressure like every other EU country to shut down these GV programs from the EU (you have seen most of the others shut them down this month as well) - this housing bill is just what they slipped it into as it has some peripheral relevance to it - if it was really housing related, no reason to shut down other funding options with that. Maybe there was some discussion in the EU parliament about timelines for shutting these down.
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Yep, right onā¦ Auto da Fe !
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Great points, and I completely agree! However, the difference between straight immigration and GV programme is that most immigrants under AR 88 (2) do not purchase expensive real estate and do not price the locals out of the market. It is the combination of the two (property investment + immigration) that Portugal is trying to curb. It is undeniable that the prices or real estate in Lisbon, Cascais, Porto, and Algarve have gone beyond the reach of many Portuguese, and the pressure on the government is growing to do something. The GV is an easy target, hence it provides many good political points to score often needed to garner votes.
Now, from the perspective of the E.U., GV is perceived as āhighly suspiciousā as it allows potentially ādirtyā money to enter the territory and obtain a path to citizenship. Portugal is hardly a unique subject to the criticism from Brussels that only became louder after the Russian invasion. I am sure Portuguese government wants to show its commitment to the E.U. by at least ātweakingā, if not stopping, this programme.
At this point, I would still maintain that we need to see the final draft of the law. In the past, the government has often backed off on their seemingly agressive GV modernisation attempts. I would neither panic, nor alter any plans until the details of the law emerge.
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Roman, thanks for sharing. I agree that GV is an easy target and Portugal is indeed facing a housing crisis. Iām not sure about ātweakingā the program - the Portuguese government has made itself very clear by stating that the GV program is coming to an end. Itās just a matter of time.
You mentioned that you would maintain to see the final draft without altering the original plans. Just out of curiosity, if you were not in the program yet, would you take a chance and invest into a RE project and submit an application before March 16th (if it is at all feasible at this point)? We have been considering this program for a while and planned to move to Portugal after retiring. This seems to be our last chance to do so (if we can even make it at this point)ā¦
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It could be that some sort of investments or donations would still get you a visa to Portugal, even after the GV program comes to an official end (e.g. cultural donation or investment). Probably wouldnāt be branded āGolden Visaā though. May also not come with the same minimum stay requirement.
This depends on your personal risk tolerance and how important getting the GV is to you. Personally I would probably do my best to get all my ducks in a row (getting tax number, opening bank account, picking a lawyer, getting a criminal background check from my home country, etc) as well as finding an investment I am comfortable with and start the process with whoever is offering it, but not truly commit until we have more details about application deadline, how renewals would work for each investment type, etc.
If youāre planning on moving to Portugal full time after retiring thereās always the D7 visa.
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Do those immigrants not rent housing?
What a silly argument
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The reason why I said ātweakingā for now is because there were prior motions to stop the programme, and they died in the Parliament - the very PM did not fully support them despite prior rhetoric. Hence some skepticism on my part.
Eventually, this programme, as all similar programmes, will be terminated. It is the āeventuality dateā that is unknown, and the terms that will accompany it. My take is that prior commitments will be respected, though probably more bureaucratic onus of proving ties to Portugal will be placed on those seeking citizenship. Portugal has generally honoured its promises if not always on time to the letter of the law.
My wife and I have sold our U.S. possessions (at least primary real estate) and move to Lisbon about four month ago to start our retirement. It is an interesting experience, but we are happy with the change. We donāt yet have our cards, but so far nobody in Portugal seems to care about our status. The law also permits us to stay within national territory whilst awaiting our immigration application, and so we are fineā¦ for now. 
If you are seriously considering the programme, I would start immediately before any changes on the horizon become reality. I would advise to speak with Marina ahead to get her take on it. Generally, new laws have some āgrace periodā, and most likely it would give you the necessary cushion to complete the application process.
Also, if you are planning to move to Portugal, you might want to look into D7 visa which is specifically designed for people like retirees. It does require you to stay more 183+ days in the country, but then you can buy any real estate anywhere rather than being constrained to low density areas, or stuff money into some fund. It is also much cheaper (no up-front investment and lower processing fees), more streamlined, and does not appear to be in the cross-hairs of the government. We opted for GV because we were unsure where in Europe we ultimately wanted to live, but by now Portugal looks rather good. Just food for thoughtā¦
Best of luck on your endeavour!
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They do, often five-six per room, in some semi-rundown buildings, for 500 ā¬ per monthā¦ Thatās not what is driving the prices through the roof. However, a Californian (i.e. me) can walk in an pay cash for a flat in Lisbon or a suburban house in Cascais and outbid the locals who often need loans and/or simply canāt afford the high prices. Thatās what triggers most anger amongst the locals even though it is Portuguese developers and sellers who also benefit from the sale. This is a classic battle, hardly unique to Portugal.
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Even assuming 10 people per housing unit (and 1 person for GV buyers) there are three times the number of non GV immigrants to portugal in terms of housing pressure.
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I am not disputing the statistics. However, it is the public perception that matters here. The sentiment is that GV applicants drive up the prices (I heard it first hand in casino in Funchal, Madeira from local staff, completely unsolicited).
Trust me, after four months in Lisbon, looking at the large number of Alojamento Local signs, it is clear that GV are hardly to be the main culprit: there are plenty of Portuguese landlords ready to cash in on this lucrative income model. There is also plenty of local frustration with āover-tourismā which incentivises the conversion of properties for short-term rentals thus reducing the availability of āaffordable housingā. Equally, many resent the fact that GVās buy properties and keep them empty whilst the perceived the number of residential units dwindles. The reality often takes the back seat to popular perceptionā¦
You are welcome to convince the locals the GV is not to blame, but you might have a rather interesting task on your handā¦
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You specifically said they did
Exactly. Perception <> reality.
Also, consider. We here can draw a distinction between GV and D7, and say ālook, thereās only 10k GV total, how many houses can we have possibly bought? What about all those Americans coming on D7 doing the same thing?ā Thatās a fairly fine distinction for the average person who knows jack-all about the immigration programs to know. (How much do you know about your own countryās immigration programmes?) What they see are Americans (and others, yes, but Americans tend to stick out like sore thumbs, just as much as the Chinese or Russians) coming in and throwing down (what seems to them like) huge cash without blinking and buying all the property. Many D7 holders look - sometimes are - just as rich as the GV people. Even the person coming on Social Security can look pretty damn rich, comparatively. Howās Joao or Joana supposed to know the difference? So what gets blamed? And is it a surprise?
The actual numbers when viewed in total donāt matter. āTruthā as some see it here doesnāt matter. Trying to win that battleā¦ futile.
Frankly, I imagine even the politicians know the truth. They can do math and see 9000 houses one way or the other just donāt matter. They can also see what a pain itās turned out to be and which way the winds are blowing.
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My lawyer reports a sudden rush of clients since Thursday 
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Whatās ironic is that some of these fellow D7 folks have long been teasing and now ācelebratingā about the GV ones, despite both are from the same boat as you said. They donāt realize they have more direct effects on helping Americans ādiscoverā PT the past 10 years (i.e., the expontential growth of tourist interest) as well as all the cons. So GVs become the scapegoat for now.
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They arenāt offering citizenship. Theyāre offering residency. Nowhere in any of these visas is citizenship being offered, except in marketing literature from third parties.
A GV, anyone can get by showing up and handing over a bunch of cash, and thatās it. You donāt have to do anything or in most cases even take any meaningful risk. (Funds represent a bit of risk, but itās professionally managed monetary risk thatās little different than buying shares in the stock market - hell, what is IMGA Acoes, and thatās ok. Completely and utterly passive risk.)
The difference between HQA and GV is that HQA is active. To my understanding, there is a corporation founded, in your name, that is funded, hires people, has to actually do something, pays significant taxes as a result, and puts capital at risk. (Ok sure thereās a requirement that you be highly qualified, but resume inflation can probably take care of that.)
Now sure, you can use one of these specialty firms to do all the setup work for you and put it all on auto-pilot. Of course then your business will most likely bleed money and die, all the while paying a ton of taxes. Your little business has to play by Portuguese law, which means you better care a bit about that. If youāre not careful your little company will find itself in a ton of debt, even - that you might well be on the hook for. There is genuine risk here and it really behooves you to give a damn and learn at least something about doing business in Portugal, or at least hire a professional manager and keep an eye on them. I suspect the specialty companies in this space provide the support services to let you not have to care THAT much (they say āas much or as little involvement as you wantā) but itās definitely non-zero.
This will winnow out a ton of people who really want a low-risk investment and an easy residence-to-passport, because it means your visa could potentially cost you multiple 6 figures and will cost you some attention.
Most importantly - this visa looks a LOT like the German investment visa program other than the magnitude of the investment involved. So Portugal can quite easily say āwell you let Germany get away with this, why canāt we?ā All arguments die there.
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Yes, it HQA looks a lot like the German program, indeed! Does anyone know what the actual residency requirement is for HQA? Iāve seen some sources state that itās the same as e.g. D7, others saying no minimum. Itās not a program Iāve dug deep into myself yet (although should probably do so), so Iām not quite sure about the details.
By the way, Iāve started hearing from various companies how they are scrambling to get those interested in before the new law would come into effect (or otherwise helping those potentially impacted by the changes). I figure it makes sense to include those in this thread. If you know of others, let me know or share!
Commercial real-estate investments
Mercan Group
- The upfront IAS legal fee is just ā¬500 (which will let the lawyers start opening bank accounts, get tax number etc ASAP), with the rest due when application is submitted (which can also be reduced if contacting them here)
- For those who are willing to fly in and open the bank account (which is much faster than doing it remotely + you can apply for several at once and then use the one that activates first) they will provide free hotel accommodation for two nights
- Deed can be issued in three days or less from the transfer of investment funds, application submitted and ālockedā within 24-48 hours after that
- Criminal records from home country is needed for the application, however the apostilled version can be submitted later
- If the law changes after the issuing of the deed and before the valid submission of the application, the investor will be refunded by the developer
- This program runs for a limited time (I believe until April 1, so they have capacity to help everyone thatās interested)
Rossio Palace
- If the law changes before application they will refund the investment
Fund investments
If you want to go the fund route, itās important to choose a fund that has already raised enough capital and are now āactiveā. This includes many of the most popular funds, such as Lince Innovation Fund II, Pela Terra Farmland, and Prima Europe. Listed/open-ended funds like Optimize Portugal, IMGA AƧƵes Portugal, and Sixty Degrees AƧƵes Portugal would also make good candidates.
Residential real estate
This is more for those who already have purchased residential real estate that they are not using themselves that want to make sure they qualify for renewals: Property Finder Portugal has a long-term rental program that may come in handy.
Art/cultural donation or investment
If you feel more comfortable with this path, I think the best law firm to reach out to is Edge as they are the ones most experienced with this path. I believe @ohbee used them, for example.
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First they came for the Jews, and I supported them. Then they came for the Muslims, and I did nothing. Thenā¦
familiar songs.
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