Portugal is working to expedite its Golden Visa program – designed to allow foreign investors a path to residency through specific investments – after significant delays had negatively impacted its reputation. Officially known as the Residence Authorisation for Investment Activity (ARI) regime, the Golden Visa has become one of Europe’s most sought-after residency-by-investment opportunities.
Facing a backlog of 45,000 to 50,000 applications, the Agency for Integration, Migrations, and Asylum (AIMA) is moving from a paper-based to a digital application system, a move welcomed by potential investors. Individuals can now transfer their applications to this new online platform.
Immigration lawyer Bettino Zanini of FiO Legal in Lisbon, after participating in discussions with AIMA, sees this as positive news, as the digital system aims to alleviate the existing delays. Many investors have even pursued legal action to push AIMA to process their applications faster, some waiting years for required biometric appointments.
Zanini anticipates the new system will lead to biometric appointments being scheduled within 30 to 90 days of online application completion, accepting documents in languages beyond English, Spanish, or French..
While generating over €7 billion since its 2012 inception, the Golden Visa programme, requiring just seven days annually spent in Portugal, hasn’t been without controversy. A 2023 government announcement ended new Golden Visas based on real estate in prime areas, focusing instead on venture capital and urban renewal. While some investment avenues have been curtailed, others remain open.
Spain is planning to dissolve their own Golden Visa programme.
