Amendments to the ARI – Residence Permits for Investment Activity programme, entitled Golden Visas, were approved this Tuesday, 22 December 2020, but will only enter into force on 1 July 2021.

This means that Golden Visas will still be possible to obtain in the metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto, and along the country’s coastline, until the end of June 2021. Afterwards, Gold Visas will only be possible in the inland regions, and in the autonomous regions of the Azores and Madeira.

Although the above-mentioned amendments to the ARI – Golden Visas Programme come into force on 1 July 2021, there will be a transitional period until 2022 to allow a gradual implementation of such measures. It has not yet been specified exactly how long into 2022 this period will remain.

The aim of this amendment is to promote investment by foreigners in low-density regions, particularly in urban regeneration, cultural heritage, activities of high environmental or social value, productive investment, and job creation.

Nonetheless, we believe that the Portuguese Golden Visas offer will continue to be strong, as there will be other, less expensive, investment options. Inland property prices are considerably cheaper and fund investment options are becoming increasingly attractive.

The possibilities will be endless. We just need to be creative!

If you wish to know further about the subject, please contact:

Patricia Coriel – patricia.coriel@valadascoriel.com