You have to take a calculated risk - the backlog will eventually be cleared, but at this rate, it could take an unknown number of years to get to applicants who have applied within the last two years. How much patience do you have?
When I was discussing the timing of my lawsuit with my lawyer, one of the points we discussed was, say as a March 2023 applicant and the year is 2028, and there is no progress for 5 years, with no residence card in hand (and remember if you don’t have at least one GV card in hand, you will not be able to apply for citizenship after 5 years of having applied), I then decide: hey, I want to take AIMA to court…what reasoning do I provide in my appeal to the court: why should my application be processed now - the judge could rule - if I was happy to sit back for 5+ years doing nothing, what’s the urgency now? Where does that leave you as a GV investor, if at that point, the delays haven’t improved AND the court refuses to entertain your lawsuit?
It helps in a forum with this style of thread if you quote or at least cross-reference in your message that you’re replying to D_L Deborah Liao about kindly clarifying to which thing she refers.
The source is the multiple posts on this forum from people who are further ahead and either applied or already received the citizenship.
Besides, if you are looking for official source, check the IRN requirements for citizenship - it does not say nothing about checking your 7 day per year GV stay because the citizenship process does not care about the type of residence permit you had. As long as you completed your 5 years legal residence, you are fine, but that part is evidenced by AIMA in a document called Contagem do tempo.
The only time you are checked for your 7 days of stay is at your GV renewal appointment with AIMA.
If your lawyer insists that IRN will check your boarding passes for the 7 days of annual stay then either you have a confused lawyer or there was some misunderstanding.
I’ve held a Golden Visa since 2019 and recently received my Time Count Certificate (Contagem de Tempo). The start date is 5 days after paying the examining application fee (the 532,70 euro fee) , roughly a week post-application and months before my first TRC card.
@Sonny thanks for sharing - this is definitive proof that the clock starts ticking from the date of application. Could you please share your GV timeline, when did you lodge your application, when you received pre-approval, when you did your first biometrics and received your first card?
It’s excellent to hear about cases like this from people in the community. I’ve heard lawyers claim this for a while, but it seems the memo hasn’t reached all the AIMA offices yet (given that others reported the count starting from first card quite recently).
I guess it could currently matter which AIMA office you apply to the Contagem de Tempo from. Mind sharing which one issued it in your case?
Thanks @va.trade23, that is a very valid and material point. I have no urgent need to move to PT at present, and having applied in Jun2023 have just over 3.5 years to the 5 year mark. Perhaps an argument for the court could be that circumstances have changed for the main applicant - i.e. university course completed etc. but this certainly should be discussed with legal advice.
Clearance of the existing backlog in the next 4 years? Based on current evidence, I am not prepared to hazard a guess whether this is possible, or what the probability could be.
Another consideration could be the possibility of another change in the immigration legislation - for better or for worse!
The current situation where the only processing of applications for pre-approval is being done as the result of lawsuits is clearly untenable. To not be pushed down the queue, all applicants are being forced to consider filing lawsuits. Next scenario - the court system gets overwhelmed and a backlog forms there.
It’s excellent news… but it’s one data point in the complete randomness/madness of AIMA bureaucracy (and the PT legal system, and the Tax office…). So hope for the best, plan for the worst.
That is excellent news. Thank you for sharing. As @tkrunning has already asked, could you share which AIMA office provided your Contagem de Tempo please.
Thank you for sharing. I am a bit interested in the small detail: when in 2024 did you receive your Contagem de Tempo? If it is in October 2024, than technically you have been a “resident” for five years since the first card as you mentioned above.
Congratulations and best of luck on the rest of your Citizenship/PR process!
Contagem de tempo does not have any end date. It states the current situation for the date of issue. The text differs from AIMA to AIMA, but in general it says the following:
“For the purpose of citizenship, XXXXX is the resident of Portugal since XXXX (date), he/she also is a holder of residence card number XXXXX with the expiry date XXXXXX”.
Apparently, if the card mentioned in the Contagem de tempo expires, the document does not have any value anymore, because both IRN and AIMA treat the law in a way that the applicant should continue be resident/have residence card until receive citizenship. Card expiration does not affect the application after you passed the check point, but before all requirements were checked it is advisable to maintain yr residence permit.
So if my current card is valid until 2027, and my initial application was 2021, there is no harm requesting a Contagem de Tempo now to hopefully apply for citizenship in 2026 (1 year before my current card expiry)?