The Portuguese government will retain its Golden Visa programme for qualifying investment funds.
The scheme, which allow non-EU citizens to obtain residency rights and unlimited travel within the Schengen area, has totally discontinued the option of obtaining the Authorisation for Residency by Investment (ARI) through the purchase of real estate. Responding to criticisms that this option was fuelling house price speculation in Portugal, the government now directs investors to invest in any one of 40 qualifying investment funds.
Portugal’s Golden Visa was introduced in 2012 and has since attracted around €7.3Bn in funds from citizens from China, Brazil and the United States, among many other countries with 90% of these investments channelled into real estate.
In February 2023 the government announced the end of the Golden Visa scheme because it had served its purpose to kick-start Portugal’s stagnant property sector following the Great Recession which lasted from 2008 to 2014 in Portugal and resulted in the intervention of the EC/IMF/ECB led ‘troika’ with a €78Bn bailout loan.
However, that decision led an immediate backlash from developer and property associations nationwide that accused the government of damaging the real estate market and frightening away investors.
While the investment fund option has been available since 2015, it will now be the main vehicle for the revamped Golden Visa scheme with a €500,000 transfer to one of more qualifying funds.
However, Reuters reports that Portugal’s securities market regulator CMVM has yet to draw up a comprehensive list of eligible funds from around 40 possible Portuguese funds of which not all may be open to Golden Visa investment.
It is estimated that between 80% to 90% of Golden Visa investments will now be via this investment fund route according to the news agency.