If you’re dreaming of moving to Portugal, the D7 visa could be your ticket to a new life here. It’s known for being one of the more accessible residency visas in Europe, mainly because you only need to show you make enough money to live on—specifically, the equivalent of Portugal’s minimum wage, which is €820 per month for a single person in 2024. For a couple, add 50% and another 30% for each dependent child.
This is a lot less than what’s required for the D8 visa, or digital nomad visa, which asks for four times that amount, or €3,280 as of 2024.
What Exactly Is Passive Income?
Regular passive income is key to the D7 visa. It’s money that you earn without having to work day-to-day for it. Think of it as earning money while you sleep. For instance, if you’ve retired and are receiving a pension or social security, that’s passive income. You worked for it years ago, but now it pays out without you having to lift a finger.
Types of Passive Income That Qualify
For the D7 visa, Portugal looks at several sources of passive income:
- Pensions and Social Security: Regular payments you receive after retiring from your job.
- Dividends: Money you get from owning shares in a company.
- Royalties: Payments for the use of your creative works, like books or music.
- Interest: What you earn from keeping your money in investments or savings accounts.
- Rental Property Income: Earnings from letting out property you own.
Some landlords might argue that you still have to work for rental income, and that’s true, but it’s widely accepted regardless.
What Doesn’t Count?
It’s just as important to know what Portugal doesn’t consider passive income:
- Salary: Money from a job you’re currently working.
- Income from a Remote Job: Even if you can do it from anywhere, it’s still active work, not passive income.
- Freelancing income: Income from clients that you actively work for.
Even though freelancers and remote workers might have been able to apply for the D7 visa before, with the new D8 visa around, the D7 isn’t really meant for them anymore. If you have a remote job or freelancing income, you should apply for the D8 instead.
How About Savings?
Generally, savings don’t count because they don’t provide a regular income stream. The assumed fear is that if you have a few hundred thousand in the bank, this could technically sustain you for many years but there’s nothing to stop you buying a house or spending it in another way. Income like pensions are preferred because they’re paid regularly.
However, there have been exceptions, so it’s not entirely off the table.
“We only showed savings… no income. We are a family of two adults and one eight-year old. After setting up our Portuguese account we transferred 30,000 USD to that account for the three of us which converted to a little over 25,000 Euro. For US savings, we showed a savings account with an additional 39,000 USD along with a CD account where we have 100k USD. I am not sure it was necessary but we did not want to take the chance of getting rejected and having to appeal.” – Charli
And if you’re working with an immigration lawyer, they should know what it likely to be accepted by the particular consulate you’re applying at—and if they don’t, they should be able to contact them to discuss this.
What’s Next?
If you’re considering the D7 visa, make sure you have a steady flow of passive income. It’s all about showing you have enough money to support yourself and any dependents without becoming a burden on the Portuguese state.