2013-01-30, Worldway latest news: The Portuguese government has made significant favorable adjustments to the Golden Residence Permit Program. Most notably, the residency requirement has been reduced from 30 days per year to 7 days, making it indisputably the Western European immigration country with the lowest residency requirements.
2012-08-09, Portugal passed the Golden Residence Program, which officially took effect on October 8. The act stipulates that investors can quickly obtain immigration status by purchasing property valued at no less than 500,000 Euros. The act also stipulated that investors must reside in Portugal for at least 30 days in the first year after obtaining the investment visa, and at least 60 days in each subsequent two-year period, with permanent residency obtainable after 5 years. Following this policy adjustment, the residency requirement has been relaxed to 7 days in the first year and 14 days for every two-year period thereafter.
In this way, the Portugal investment immigration program has almost eliminated the "residency requirement." Entering from Portugal, one can travel visa-free to other Schengen countries in Europe and finally exit from Portugal to return home; the entire period is considered as residing in Portugal. By arranging just one week of travel to Europe each year, one can easily meet the residency requirements.
In addition to relaxing residency requirements, this policy adjustment includes the following favorable terms:
1.Clients can apply for the permit as long as they pay the 500,000 Euro property price and sign the pre-sale agreement required for the residence permit application;
2.Clients can take out a mortgage on the portion of the property price exceeding 500,000 Euros (if purchasing an 800,000 Euro property, 300,000 Euros of the excess can be mortgaged);
3.If multiple people jointly own a property, and the average property value per person exceeds 500,000 Euros, they also meet the requirements and can apply separately (this was previously indicated in the provisions but not explicitly stated).
This policy adjustment to the Portugal Golden Residence Program has greatly relaxed the residency requirements for immigrants and clarified the requirements for property investment, further increasing its appeal to investors, especially Chinese investors. If you have any questions, please call Worldway for consultation: 400-138-2929.
