Did Portugal Just Kill Its Golden Visa Program?

On October 28, 2025, Portugal’s Parliament dropped a bombshell that sent shockwaves through the global investment migration community. In a single vote, they approved legislation that would double the residency requirement for citizenship from five to ten years—affecting not just Golden Visa holders, but every foreign resident hoping to become Portuguese.

The change isn’t law yet. It still awaits the President’s signature, and there’s a real possibility it could be sent to the Constitutional Court for review. But the message is already clear: Portugal, once the darling of the residency-by-investment world, has fundamentally shifted its stance on immigration.

For thousands of Americans, Canadians, Brits, Brazilians, and investors from around the world who chose Portugal for its promised fast-track to EU citizenship, this feels like a betrayal. Many are asking: Is the Portuguese Golden Visa dead? And if not, is it still worth pursuing?

Let’s break down exactly what changed, what it means, and how Portugal now stacks up against other EU residency programs.

What Changed — and Why It Matters

On October 28, 2025, Portugal’s Parliament approved amendments extending the citizenship requirement from 5 to 10 years for most foreign nationals (7 years for EU and CPLP citizens). Crucially, this is not yet law—it still awaits Presidential review, where the President can promulgate it, veto it, or refer it to the Constitutional Court.

Here’s what the new law would change:

• The 10-Year Rule: Instead of applying for citizenship after 5 years of legal residency, most foreign nationals would now need to wait 10 years. Citizens of CPLP countries (Portuguese-speaking nations like Brazil, Angola, and Mozambique) and EU citizens get a slightly shorter 7-year track.
• When the Clock Starts: The residency period now begins from residence card issuance, not application submission. With processing delays of 2-3 years, this effectively means closer to 12-13 years from arrival to citizenship eligibility.
• New Requirements: Applicants will need A2-level Portuguese language proficiency and must pass a civic knowledge test.
• Who’s Affected: This applies to everyone—Golden Visa investors, D7 retirees, digital nomads, D2 entrepreneurs, and anyone else pursuing Portuguese residency.

But Here’s the Thing…

Despite this massive change, the Golden Visa isn’t technically “dead.” In fact, for certain use cases, it’s still competitive.

Why? Because Portugal still requires minimal physical presence—an average of 7 days per year. Compare this to Greece, which requires 183 days per year for seven years if you want citizenship, or most other countries that demand substantial physical presence.

This doesn’t work for most Golden Visa investors. Most want to continue living in the US, China, Brazil, South Africa, UEA—wherever. They may have a high paying job there or want to avoid tax residency in somewhere like Portugal but still qualify for citizenship. If they had been willing to live somewhere full-time, Portugal D7 or Digital Nomad Visa would have been options, as well as plenty of other residency visas in other EU countries.

So, Portugal may remain an option simply by virtue of a lack of great competition. However, the real issue may be what this sudden rug pull says about Portugal’s reliability as an investment destination.

Who the Golden Visa Still Works For

• The “Plan B” Crowd: If you’re a wealthy American, Canadian, or British citizen who wants European residency as a backup option—somewhere to go if things get politically unstable at home—Portugal still works. You get immediate residency rights, Schengen mobility, and the option to live there if needed. Citizenship is always important, but residency is the primary goal.
• The “Live There Eventually” Investors: If you’re 40-50 years old and thinking, “I might want to retire in Portugal in 10-15 years,” locking in residency now still makes sense. By the time you’re ready to move, you’ll qualify for citizenship. At that point, you can decide whether you want to live in Portugal or a different EU country.
• CPLP Citizens (Especially Brazilians): At 7 years instead of 10, Brazilians and other Portuguese-speaking nationals still have a relatively attractive deal—especially compared to other programs.

Who Should Look Elsewhere

• Citizenship Seekers: If your primary goal is getting an EU passport quickly, Portugal is no longer your best option. You’re better off looking at naturalization through work permits in countries with shorter timelines, or considering other programs entirely. However (and we’ll get to this), there aren’t a huge number of other options out there.
• Impatient Investors: If 12+ years feels like an eternity, Portugal probably isn’t for you anymore.

The Trust Factor: The Biggest Problem

The biggest issue isn’t the change from 5 to 10 years. It’s that Portugal changed the rules mid-game without warning, without grandfathering existing applicants, and without apparent concern for the thousands of people who made life decisions based on the previous framework.

The approved version of the law offers no transitional or grandfathering protections for current residence permit holders or Golden Visa investors. This is the part that has sparked outrage across the investment migration community.

Consider this scenario: You’re an investor who applied for a Golden Visa in 2022, expecting to be able to apply for citizenship after 2027. You’ve paid €500,000 into a Portuguese fund, tied up your capital for 5 or more years, spent money on legal fees, learned basic Portuguese, and visited the country regularly to maintain your permit. You’ve done everything right.

Now, suddenly, you’re told: “Actually, it’s going to be 2032 or later. Thanks for playing.”

No warning. No protection for existing investors. No apology.

This Breaks from Precedent

Portugal has made significant changes before:

• October 2023: Ended the real estate investment route from the Golden Visa
• 2023: Phased out the NHR tax regime

But in both cases, there was advance notice. The real estate route, for example, gave clear cutoff dates, and people who’d already purchased property kept their rights.

This time? Nothing. While there was discussion about grandfathering back in June, the October version includes no such protections.

The Constitutional Question

Many legal experts expect the President may refer the law to the Constitutional Court before promulgation, as the lack of transitional protections raises constitutional concerns.

There’s a real chance this law gets struck down or sent back for revision with grandfathering provisions added. But even if that happens—even if existing investors are protected—the damage is largely done. The Portuguese government tried to pass this without protections.

Who Speaks for the 15%?

Foreigners now make up around 15% of Portugal’s population. That’s a huge proportion—one in seven people.

Yet when citizenship rules changed, there was no apparent consideration for how this would affect people who’d made irreversible life decisions based on existing law. No representation. No real voice at the table.

Portugal is absolutely within its rights to tighten immigration rules. Countries can and should control their borders and set integration standards. But there’s a difference between making it harder for new people to come and changing the rules for people already in the system.

The former is policy. The latter feels like a bait-and-switch.

A Sudden Shift in Processing Priorities

Here’s where things get interesting—and frustrating.

For years, Golden Visa applicants faced agonizing delays. Application processing that should take months stretched into years. AIMA was overwhelmed, they said. No immigration lawyer was able to give a reasonable answer on why the Golden Visa was so backlogged when other processes (like the D7 or Digital Nomad Visa) moved along at reasonable speed (well, comparably).

Then, suddenly, after this citizenship law was announced, processing times improved dramatically. The Portuguese government announced it was prioritizing applications for the Golden Residence Permit and family reunifications, anticipating faster processing times.

Wait—so you could process applications faster all along?

The Priority Explanation

The official explanation was that Portugal prioritized “more vulnerable” applicants—refugees, family reunification cases, people fleeing conflict. That’s a morally defensible position that most people would support.

But here’s the problem: It has been revealed that Portugal intentionally didn’t process GV applications in a timely manner, with priority given to more vulnerable groups. However, the fact that there wasn’t even a slow trickle of GV applications being processed suggested this approach wasn’t fair at all and even discriminatory.

It wasn’t that Golden Visa applications were processed slowly while other applications moved quickly. It’s that Golden Visa applications were essentially parked. Month after month, virtually nothing moved forward.

If you’re going to deprioritize one group to help another, fine—but be transparent about it. Don’t string people along with vague promises about “processing times” when the reality is that you’ve decided not to process these applications at all. And while priority for refugees is understandable, priority for D7 or Digital Nomad Visa applicants over Golden Visa applicants is harder to explain.

The Sudden Speed-Up

Now, conveniently, as outrage builds about the citizenship changes and investors threaten to pull out, processing mysteriously accelerates.

The cynical interpretation? Portugal realized that angry investors might demand their money back or stop new applications, tanking the program’s revenue stream.

Again, there’s a huge amount of damage done. While António Leitão Amaro is confident AIMA will process the backlog next year and generate €85 million in revenue, what happens in 2027 and 2028 when fewer investors invest in the Golden Visa due to negative PR.

How Portugal’s New Rules Compare to Other EU Golden Visas

Portugal remains a viable option for citizenship precisely because of what hasn’t changed: the minimal stay requirements. For passive investors seeking a “Plan B” who can’t or won’t commit to living in Europe full-time, Portugal’s 7-days-per-year requirement means you can maintain residency without triggering tax residency—a significant advantage that Italy matches but Greece, Latvia, and Malta don’t.

However, if you’re planning to actually move to the EU immediately and don’t qualify for work-based visas, cheaper alternatives with tangible real estate ownership (Greece at €250,000, Latvia at €50,000, Malta at €169,000) become more attractive.

Many investors may still choose Portugal’s 10-year timeline over Hungary’s faster 8-year path simply because betting on a country actively at odds with the EU seems unwise when your goal is an EU passport.

Permanent Residency The New Stepping Stone

Here’s something that hasn’t gotten enough attention: permanent residency might become the new target for many investors, rather than citizenship. At the very least, it’ll become much more of a significant stepping stone to citizenship.

Why Permanent Residency Matters Now

After five years of legal residence, Golden Visa holders can apply for Permanent Residency (PR) in Portugal. The PR card is valid for five years, renewable, and does not require full-time residence in Portugal (under the Golden Visa rules). A2-level Portuguese language proficiency is required, but there are no new investment or physical stay obligations.

Permanent residency gives you:

• The right to live and work in Portugal indefinitely
• Schengen mobility rights
• Continued access to healthcare and education
• The ability to renew indefinitely

What it doesn’t give you:

• An EU passport
• The right to vote in national elections
• Full mobility rights to live/work in other EU countries

Can You Move to Other EU Countries with PR?

Permanent residency in Portugal gives you residency rights in Portugal, not the full EU. However:

• Schengen Tourism: You can visit other EU/Schengen countries for up to 90 days in any 180-day period
• EU Mobility: EU law gives some mobility rights to long-term residents, but it’s not automatic, as straight-forward as citizenship, and it varies by country

Moving on a long-term Residence permit

This is a lesser-known strategy: Once you have permanent residency in one EU country, you might be able to leverage that to move to another EU country more easily, using your EU mobility rights (known as Article 116 in Portugal).

The idea:

1. Get Portuguese permanent residency after 5 years
2. Move to another EU country (France, Germany, etc.)
3. Pursue citizenship in the new country under their rules

The catch: This resets your citizenship clock. You’d be starting from scratch in the new country. But if you decide Portugal isn’t for you after 5 years, it gives you options.

When this makes sense: If you realize after getting Portuguese PR that you’d rather live in Germany, France, or another EU country long-term. You can use your Portuguese PR as a stepping stone, though you’re not saving time on citizenship. And you would have to learn the basics of two languages: A2 Portuguese to get permanent residency in Portugal and whatever the new country requires for permanent residency and/or citizenship.

However, whether people are even willing to consider Portugal as a stepping stone will, at least partly, depend on what happens next.

Portugal’s Next Move Matters

The law isn’t final yet. It must undergo Presidential review where the President may promulgate the law, issue a veto, or request a review by the Constitutional Court.

What happens next will determine whether Portugal can salvage its reputation:

Scenario 1: President Signs It As-Is

If President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa promulgates the law without changes:

• Existing investors get no protection
• Applications in progress face uncertainty
• Portugal’s reputation takes maximum damage
• Expect a significant drop in new applications

What investors should do: Consider alternatives seriously. If you’re already invested, talk to a lawyer about your options. If you haven’t applied yet, wait to see how this plays out.

Scenario 2: Constitutional Court Review

If referred to the Constitutional Court, a decision is expected within 25 days.

The Constitutional Court could:

• Uphold the law as constitutional
• Strike it down entirely
• Require amendments (likely: grandfathering provisions)

What investors should do: This is a likely outcome. Wait for the court’s decision before making major commitments.

Scenario 3: Grandfathering Provisions Added

If the law is amended to protect existing applicants:

• Many will remain on the 5-year track
• Those with residence permits already issued might be protected
• Trust is partially restored

What investors should do: If you’re already in the system, this is the best-case scenario. If you’re considering applying, understand you’d be on the 10-year track regardless.

Scenario 4: Full Veto

If the President vetoes the law:

• Back to square one
• 5-year timeline remains (for now)
• But the intention is clear: Portugal wants to extend the timeline eventually

What investors should do: Understand this is a temporary reprieve, not a permanent solution.

The Bottom Line

Portugal’s Golden Visa is experiencing an identity crisis. It was sold as a fast track to EU citizenship with minimal hassle. Now it’s a long-term residency program with significant capital requirements, modest presence obligations, and an eventual path to citizenship for those patient enough to wait over a decade.

That’s not necessarily a bad product—especially when few other EU alternatives exist—but it’s not what people signed up for.

The bigger issue isn’t the policy change itself (countries have every right to adjust immigration rules). It’s the how. The lack of warning, the absence of grandfathering, the apparent disregard for people who made irreversible life decisions based on the old framework—that’s what’s driving the backlash.

Trust, once lost, is difficult to rebuild. And in the world of investment migration—where wealthy, mobile individuals have options—reputation is everything.

The next few months will be crucial. How the Portuguese government handles the implementation of this law will determine whether Portugal remains a major player in the residency-by-investment space or becomes a cautionary tale about policy whiplash.