New update on the golden visa 2023

The Portugal Golden Visa program is still active and accepting applications. However, there were changes proposed to the program that would affect the eligibility criteria and investment options. These changes were expected to come into effect in case the President of the Republic signs a bill that is currently to be analyzed by the house of deputies. In case they sign it, the republic president will analyse it and eventually pass the law. This could lead to the end of the golden visa in 2023. Anyhow there are many concearns that can cause the presilent not to pass the bill and allow the law to continue active.

The Portuguese Government announced on 16 February 2023 that it would end its golden visa program. On 30 March, the Council of Ministers met to present the final proposal. The update can be seen below.

The new amendment proposes the following:

On 14 April, following the various announcements and public discussion of the future of the Golden Visa regime, the final proposal of the Government was revealed, which will now be subject to discussion in Parliament.

Put simply, the final proposal states the following:

• The new law will not apply retroactively to people who have already been granted a Golden Visa.
• The stay requirement rule of 7-day-per-year will remain in place.
• People who have applied for a Golden Visa but have not yet received it are protected.
• The renewed visas will have the same flexibility as the ARI, even though they will be reframed under the D2 Visa.
• The law will go into effect when published in the official journal.
• Considering the various stages of the legislative process, we expected that this approval process would take at least 35 days, assuming everything progresses smoothly.

The main news is that in its final version, the Government overturns any possibility of retroactivity of this law, guaranteeing that all requests submitted until the entry into force of the new law will be met in accordance with the rules still in force. Alongside this, it guarantees that application renewals are obtained under the law that is still in force today. While they provide for the reframing of this visa into a different type of visa, the stay requirement, of an average of 7 days a year, will remain the same.

The final proposal also guarantees that family reunification requests associated with Golden Visa are also duly protected.

The proposal indicates that the future law will come into force the day after its publication, with no grace period foreseen for the revocation of the Golden Visa in Portugal. This is a subject that may still be debated and changed, but for now, it is reasonable to assume that this is the last call for a Golden Visa.

What next?

To proceed further, the proposed law must complete the approval process in Parliament. Based on the current Parliamentary schedule and considering the various stages involved in the legislative process, the approval process will likely take at least 35 days, assuming everything progresses smoothly.

We are delighted to see that the outcome stated in the final proposal is aligned with our assessments that legal protections would prevail and that the law could not have retroactive effects on existing Golden Visa applications.

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It's possible that there have been further updates since then, as government policies can change over time. I recommend checking with official sources such as the Portuguese Embassy or a reputable immigration lawyer for the latest information on the program.

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