Developed countries typically impose strict residency requirements on immigrants, with Western European nations being even more stringent; this is often referred to as the "immigration jail." However, the Golden Residence Permit Program launched by Portugal in 2012 broke this status quo. By purchasing property worth 500,000 euros, an entire family of three generations can quickly obtain Portuguese immigration status. Furthermore, the residency requirements for new immigrants are quite lenient: one only needs to stay for 7 days in the first year and 14 days every two years thereafter. Permanent residency can be applied for after 5 years, and citizenship can be applied for after 6 years, granting access to an EU passport.
Experts from Worldway Immigration Agency state that since Schengen countries have abolished border controls, as long as investors enter and exit through Portugal, their time spent in any of the 26 Schengen countries can be counted as residency time in Portugal. This means that one only needs to take a vacation in Europe annually to meet the residency requirements.
For investors who wish to obtain citizenship in an EU country, it is usually required to reside in that country as a permanent resident for at least 5, 10, or even more years to be eligible for naturalization. However, the latest Portuguese legislation stipulates that one can apply for citizenship after 6 years of legal residency. In other words, 6 years * 7 days/year = 42 days; staying for just 42 days is sufficient to meet the requirements for naturalization. In terms of naturalization, Portugal is currently the EU member state with the lowest residency time requirements.
Portugal is an EU member state. Upon naturalization, a Portuguese citizen becomes an EU citizen, with the freedom to settle, work, conduct business, study, and live in any of the 31 countries, including the UK, France, Germany, other EU and European Economic Area countries, and Switzerland. It is equivalent to turning 31 countries into 31 provinces; figuratively speaking, 1=31. After naturalization, children will have the freedom to develop throughout the entire EU and European Economic Area in the future!
