The Last Chance For The Golden Visa Program In Portugal

Big news from Portugal.

You already know that, in February, our favorite European haven announced it would get rid of its popular Golden Visa program.

Since then, we’ve waited to see if there would be a window of time when you could still get the visa, before the program closes for good.

Good news…

The window to get your Portugal Golden Visa is still open.

More on the time you have left, below…

But you also need to know the other great Golden Visa news out of Portugal.

There had been rumors that current Golden Visa holders would have to convert their Golden Visas to standard residency permits, which would mean you’d have to spend six months per year in Portugal—rather than the week-per-year that Golden Visa holders currently enjoy…

That plan has been scrapped—because the government is worried about legal challenges.

So, in other words, existing Golden Visa holders can continue to enjoy all the benefits of the visa they signed up for—and there is still a window of time for new applicants to sign up for and receive these benefits.

Remember, this is how Portugal’s Golden Visa works…

• Purchase a property valued at 280,000 euros or more—and you can receive the right to live and work in Portugal.
• Your spouse and family members can also be included.
• You only have to spend an average of a week a year in Portugal in order to maintain the visa—in other words, spend just seven days per year in Portugal, and you keep the right to move there permanently whenever you like…

Why would you want to move to Portugal? So many reasons…

The lowest cost of living in Western Europe (a small pizza in the tourist town of Lagos costs as little as 3 euros, or US$3.30)…

English spoken in the big cities and tourist towns…

More sunshine than Southern California along the perfect-weather coasts…

A rich history and heritage, with so many sites of historical interest, from the days of the Roman Empire to the Age of Discovery (Portugal is the oldest country in Europe, with the same borders since 1139)…

Mediterranean food, excellent wine, and even some of the finest golfing in Europe—along the Algarve and the Silver Coast.

I can’t think of a better spot for European residency.

And, with the Golden Visa, after five years (just a week per year in-country), you can apply for citizenship and a Portuguese passport.

This would mean you hold European Union citizenship, opening up the whole continent of Europe to you: You can live, work, retire permanently in any of 27 European countries.

Portugal’s Golden Visa really is a fantastic opportunity…

Purchase a property in-country… spend a week a year there for five years… and then you can become a full EU citizen.

And this opportunity is about to be shut down forever. This is your very last chance to get a Portugal Golden Visa.

You only have weeks to get all your ducks in a row and apply for the visa before the deadline.

The time to act is now. Today.

The Portuguese government has put together the final version of the law it intends to bring through parliament, abolishing the Golden Visa program.

Until that law passes—and the program is officially eliminated—you can still apply and obtain the visa. The government will honor all applications received up to the day the law passes… which, according to the best sources, will be end of May or June.

Here’s what my man on the ground in Portugal, attorney João Gil Figueira, has to say…

He explains the confusion of the past few months and why there is now a last chance…

“The first bill proposal presented by the Portuguese government established that the program was to be cancelled entirely and that only investments made until Feb. 16 of 2023 would still be eligible for the Golden Visa.

“Also, the previous proposal terminated the unique stay criteria established for Golden Visa holders. It introduced further requirements, such as renting or living in the investment property…

“The proposal led to an immense argument outbreak in the legal and real estate sector because it would create several problems for past Golden Visa applicants and new ones that were not expecting such changes.

“Furthermore, in the legal sector, several opinions, ours included, highly disputed the legality of such a proposal, deeming it unconstitutional for breach of legitimate expectations and being retroactive. Passing such a bill would directly violate the rule of law and trigger a landslide of litigation against the Portuguese state.

“Following the public discussion of the bill proposal, the Portuguese government gained some sense and realized that they were opening themselves to several political and legal liabilities and have amended the past bill proposal.

“The new bill still cancels the Golden Visa Program. However, it provides that the program cancellation will only apply after the new bill enters into force.

“Therefore, there’s a last call.”

João adds:

“Under the new bill proposal, the new law expressly establishes that all Golden Visa renewals will be renewed under the previous Golden Visa rules, meaning that the investors will not have to comply with the general 183-day stay requirements to have their residence authorizations renewed…

“In short, this new proposal is aligned with the suggestions and warnings issued by the real estate and legal sectors.

“It thus will grant past Golden Visa holders and new applicants to be grandfathered under the legal certainty that their residence status (and the underlying usefulness of their Golden Visas) will not be endangered by future program cancellation.”

So, it’s as simple as that. This is your final opportunity… last call… for one of the best European residency programs of the past decade.

If you’ve been thinking about buying in Europe… If you thought the Golden Visa opportunity in Portugal was closed… It’s still open, but for a very short window of time.

And I have more good news…

I have negotiated the perfect “last call” Golden Visa property opportunity for my readers.

I have the inside track on an investment at 280,000 euros (US$307,000) that is Golden Visa eligible and still offers value to investors.

The investment is in a unit in a boutique spa hotel in the hills of the Algarve, in Serra de Monchique Natural Park.

Only a 20-minute drive from the beach, the development combines luxury and Old World living…

Averaging rental returns of 4% for five years and projecting 5% thereafter, the yields are right in the expected range for a mature European market…

You also get 15 days in residence per year, including the use of the spa facilities…

Two of our readers bought into an earlier phase of the Monchique development… Here’s what they had to say:

“What a delightful experience. It far surpassed our expectations and Dario, the manager, could not have been more informative and accommodating. We were pleasantly surprised with the variety and extent of the facilities offered and were particularly impressed with the ‘vision’ of the completed project in its entirety.

“When completed, this will be a special place for anyone seeking peace and comfort in a setting far removed from the comparative hectic pace of city life. We look forward to being frequent visitors.” – Larry and Carol B.

Only four units are still available…

Click here to inquire about this “last call” Portugal Golden Visa opportunity now.

Stay diversified,

Lief Simon
Editor, Offshore Living Letter