The government of Portugal is planning to apply new changes to its Golden Visa Program, in a bid to attract a larger number of wealthy foreign investors, emphasising that the scheme will not be terminated.
The decision has been confirmed by the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, Schengen.News reports.
The main purpose is to strengthen the country’s image as an investment destination, based on a report from Bloomberg.
He ensured that ending the scheme is not part of any new plan.
The government is now studying how to organise golden visas in a more effective and economically efficient way, ensuring that any change is economically and socially fair. What is out of the question is ending this program. There is no plan to end it. It is not on the agenda.
The Golden Visa Program of Portugal offers wealthy foreigners the opportunity to obtain residency in exchange for financial investments and meeting the required criteria.
Portugal Issued Nearly 5,000 Golden Visas in 2024
According to a report from the Portugal News, the number of golden visas issued in 2024 reached nearly 5,000, accounting for a new record. However, there is still a large number of pending applications registered.
Portugal’s Golden Visa Program is among Europe’s most famous ones. The most sought-after route of this scheme was the real estate investment one. However, due to the housing crisis with which the country has been struggling, it ended this option back in 2023. It means that investors are no longer eligible to purchase properties through the real estate investment option to obtain residency in Portugal.
Attorney Tatiana Kazan told Publico that before this decision took effect, many investors believed that the residency permits would be issued quickly.
The problem is that, before this ban, many people believed the government’s promises that residency permits would be issued quickly, which did not happen. The money came into the country, but there was no counterpart.
Portugal Resumes Golden Visa Application Processing
Earlier this month, the President of Portugal’s Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA), Pedro Portugal Gaspar, said the agency resumed processing golden visa applications at a slow pace.
Based on a previous report from Publico, the resumption of the processing of applications is still not at the pace desired by those interested.
Some of these processes are being conducted. They are not at a standstill. Now, naturally, there is a capacity to respond, given the various process flows.
In spite of terminating its real estate investment option, other routes permitting wealthy internationals to benefit from this scheme continue to remain effective.
