The Portuguese Prime Minister has announced that Portugal is looking into the possibility of ending its 10-year-old Golden Visa or Residency by Investment Program (RBI) in response to the country’s Housing Problem.

Even after the recent changes such as increasing the minimum investment amount and restricting the areas of the country in which investments can be made, the issue of high real-estate prices and lack of rental properties has not been resolved.

Data shows that rents in Lisbon have risen by 36.9 per cent at the end of 2022. This has led to the consideration of terminating the Golden Visa program.

In Portugal, the golden visa program has had a major impact on the real-estate market, with over 9,000 of the 11,000 visas granted coming from investment in this area.

Despite the positive economic effects, the European Commission has raised concerns about the possible involvement of illegal activities such as money laundering.

For this reason, the Portuguese government has been discussing the reevaluation of the golden visa program for the past three years and is now preparing to send a proposal to the Parliament for discussion in mid-March.

Once approved, it will be sent to the President of the Republic for the final decision and potential amendments.

Nevertheless, the current law will remain in place for the next 45 days.

Portugal generally does not take sudden steps, as the alterations to the golden visa are set to be implemented in 2022, after a two-year period.

If you have already decided to invest in Portugal’s golden visa, it is recommended that you submit your documents sooner rather than later, so you can take advantage of the current law.

At MICS Global, we can help you pick the perfect house for your investment and get your Permanent Residency as soon as possible.

To learn more, please visit our webpage about Portugal golden visa: https://mics.global/portugal/.