Portugal’s famed Golden Visa – one of Europe’s most prestigious and accessible residency-by-investment pathway – is evolving. After over a decade of attracting foreign investors, the programme has entered a new phase, reshaped by housing pressures, EU scrutiny, and domestic reforms. As of 2026, the visa remains active, but its focus, eligibility, and objectives have changed significantly.

This article outlines what the Golden Visa looks like going forward – what has changed, what remains, and what investors can expect in 2026 and beyond.

The Programme Today: Not Gone, But Transformed

Despite predictions of its demise, Portugal’s Golden Visa continues to exist in 2026. It still offers residency rights to non-EU, non-EEA, and non-Swiss nationals who make qualified investments in the Portuguese economy. Successful applicants and their families receive a renewable residence permit granting:

• The right to live, study, and work in Portugal
• Visa-free travel within the Schengen Area
• Pathway to permanent residency and citizenship (after a qualifying period)

However, the form of the programme is markedly different. Gone are the days when buying a Lisbon apartment automatically secured residency. Instead, the new structure emphasizes productive, sustainable investment

Here are the key features that you can still expect in 2026:

• USA investors as one of the main drivers of demand for Portugal Golden Visa. 
• Residency rights: Once approved, you get a Portuguese residence permit via the investment route, which gives you rights of residence, ability to work/study (depending on the route) and access to the Schengen area. 
• Family inclusion: Typically the main applicant can include dependants (spouse/partner, children and parents) under the same application. 
• Reduced physical-presence requirements: The programme still offers relatively light stay requirements (on average just 7 days per year in Portugal). 
• Investment options have shifted away from residential real-estate (and are now more focused on investment funds).
• Huge improvement of the Immigration Agency (AIMA) levels of service, with the residency cards being delivered to customers in just a few months after the application is done.

Major changes and things to watch out for in 2026

Here are the key reforms and risks you need to factor in:

Changes to investment eligibility

• The residential real-estate investment route (the one many used) has been eliminated. The authorities removed the option of buying residential property in many locations to qualify. 
• The programme now emphasises investments in:
  • Investment funds and in particular in private equity funds.
  • Scientific research/innovation activities
  • Cultural/historical heritage projects
  • Business investment + job creation
    

Citizenship / nationality implications

• One important shift: the period required for applying for Portuguese citizenship may be increasing (from the previously standard 5 years) to perhaps 10 years for many applicants.
• The timeline for permanent residency will stay in 5 years. Since the permanent residency stay requirements are quite light (just 7 days stay per year), we expect a significant number of applicants to apply first for permanent residency and later for citizenship.

Administrative & procedural changes

• AIMA has cleaned in the 4Q 2025 the enormous backlog that existed in the applications for Golden Visa and is now pre-approving and calling for biometric exams applicants that have applied in Q3 and Q4 2025.
• Digitalisation: From 2026, new applications may be submitted through an online platform (reducing paperwork/visits) – a plus. 

Policy/Political risk

• According to Bloomberg, the Portugal´s Minister of Presidency of the current centre-right government, Leitão Amaro, gave an interview where he presented statistics showing a strong growth in the number of Golden Visa approvals, a supportive statement about the outlook of the program and highlighting that new measures to increase the appeal of the Portugal´s Golden Visa 2026 are being studied at governmental level.. 
• Leitão Amaro also indicated that there are no plans to end the Golden Visa program, a huge contrast with the previous Socialist Government and with countries like Ireland, Spain, Netherlands and UK that have all closed the respective residence by investment programs.
• Finally, the Minister also stated that they are considering enhancing the tax benefits for Portugal´s Golden Visa program in a more effectively and economically efficient way. However, he didn´t provide any details on this matter.

Citizenship Pathway: Longer and slightly stricter

For years, one of the main attractions of Portugal’s Golden Visa was the five-year pathway to citizenship. However, reforms under discussion (and partly implemented in late 2025) suggest that the naturalisation period may be increase to seven to ten years.

Applicants will need to demonstrate:

• Deeper integration in Portugal (e.g., language proficiency, community ties)
• Continuous compliance with tax and legal obligations
• Maintenance of the qualifying investment for the required period

While this change aligns with broader EU concerns about “citizenship for sale,” it could dampen some investor enthusiasm and lengthen the payoff horizon for those seeking EU passports.

Investment Climate and Political Outlook

Portugal’s 2026 Golden Visa landscape reflects a balancing act between maintaining international capital inflows and addressing domestic social concerns.

• Political stability: Portugal remains one of the EU’s safest investment environments, though debates around immigration and housing continue.
• EU alignment: The European Commission has encouraged tighter scrutiny of residency-by-investment programmes. Portugal’s reforms align it more closely with EU expectations.
• Opportunity: For sophisticated investors – particularly those in venture capital, green energy, or R&D – the revised programme presents unique access to Portugal’s growing innovation ecosystem.

What Investors Should Expect in 2026

Aspect	Old System (pre-2023)	New System (2026)
Main route	Real-estate purchase	Investment funds
Min. investment	€280K–€500K	Typically €500K+
Physical presence	7 days/year	Likely unchanged
Processing bodyPermanent residency	SEF5 years	AIMA (digital)5 years
Citizenship timeline	5 years	7/10 years (expected)
Goal	Attract capital	Foster innovation & sustainable growth

Key things you should ask or check if you apply in 2026

If you’re considering applying under the Golden Visa route in Portugal in 2026, you should check:

• Which investment-route you are going to use (funds, business creation, research, etc). Residential real-estate likely no longer qualifies in the old form.
• The investment minimum required for that route (this may vary across categories).
• The investment must be maintained for a certain period (typically 5 years for permanent residency eligibility and eventually 7/10 years for citizenship if the recently approved nationality law comes into effect).
• Stay/physical-presence requirements: what are the actual days you must spend in Portugal each year.
• How the counting of residence years for citizenship is done under the new rules (especially given proposed changes to nationality law).
• The processing times and backlog status of AIMA for investment-residence applications.
• What happens if you invest under one regime and the law changes: are there grandfathering protections / transitional provisions?
• Your exit strategy: Can you sell the investment, what are the conditions? If it’s a fund or business, what are the rules?
• Tax and legal implications: Even if the visa gives residence, your tax position (in Portugal or your home country) may still require planning.

Conclusion: “What to expect” in 2026

Putting it together, in 2026 you can expect:

• The Golden Visa Program to continue to exist, but in focused mainly on the investment funds path.
• Stronger emphasis on impactful investments (innovation, business, research) rather than purely passive property acquisitions.
• Possibly higher thresholds, more rigorous eligibility and due diligence.
• Continuation of the permanent residency requirements (5 years after visa issuance and 7 days stay per year) but changes to citizenship pathway (longer residency required) meaning that converting the visa into citizenship might take more time or require stricter criteria.
• Much better digital processing, with much faster approval and card issuance than before.
• A more supportive political landscape for the Golden Visa program.

The Blue Portugal is a leading immigration company in Portugal and has an enviable track-record and reputation in serving our customers. 

Our strength is finding the appropriate solution according to your need and providing detailed analysis on the different investment options for you to make an informed decision.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.