As a part of EU sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Transparency Worldwide (TI) Portugal agreed on a government decision about suspension of granting golden visas to Russians. It also showed agreement on the announcement of Augusto Santos Silva, the Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, on the suspension of the applications of Portugal visas by investment applications for the Russians.

The minister stated in an interview with CNN Portugal that Foreigners and Borders Service, SEF, will consider the suspension for all the Russians’ residence permits applications.
Susana Coroado, the TI Portugal president predicted this situation because of the nature of the permits to people that will be permanently granted. The association also mentioned that the risks involved in granting permanent permits by issuing golden visas, has been considered risky for several years and they hope that this event leads to new measurements to take effect on golden visas procedure.

SEF statistics show issuance of 431 golden visas to Russians funding about 278,000,000 EUR through investment in Portugal.