Christina Hippisley, director of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in the UK, said Britons were creating false information to buy a house and apply for residency in Portugal as ‘golden’ visas were announced to have ended.
“We have had to correct a lot of misinformation because people think that the end of ‘gold’ visas means the end of visas in general. Of course, this is not true,” the official told Agência Lusa.
Hippisley recalls, “‘Golden’ visas were one of the many options people had” and “there were always visa options. [de residência] Easy”.
Visas for digital nomads, visas for entrepreneurs and visas for fixing residence for retirees or those living on income, apart from the Residence Permit for Investment (ARI), also known as the ‘golden’ visa. Work, study or family reunification.
Applicants must meet the requirements for each of these visas, which grant residency in Portugal for different periods of time.
“All wishes refer to living or being there [em Portugal] Most of the year, or at least they have a global base in Portugal, even if they don’t have much time. What they can’t do is stay in England,” Hippisley explained.
Director of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in the United Kingdom [Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in the UK] I was talking to Luza about Wednesday’s “Moving to Portugal Show & Seminars” event in London, which he’s been promoting since 2016.
The event brings together property developers and agents and other service providers who provide information on conditions such as visas, residence, investment, taxes, employment, education and health care in Portugal.
For this edition, 442 people registered, 28% more than last year, with the majority between the ages of 50 and 60, according to the Chamber of Commerce.
More than half (52%) said they were interested in investing in real estate, but the rest wanted to know about visas, tax systems and retirement pensions.
Since 2016, when the ‘Brexit’ referendum decided Britain’s exit from the European Union, ending the free movement of people, ‘golden’ visas have started attracting interest from Britons.
The Portuguese government announced in February that it had decided to end investment residence permits, known as ‘golden’ visas, as part of a move to combat real estate speculation.
The ‘golden’ visas were created in 2012 during the government led by Pedro Passos Coelho with the aim of attracting resources and foreign investors to the country.
According to data from the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF), Portugal issued 11,628 ‘golden’ visas over 10 years, followed by China (5,258), Brazil (1,178), the United States (558), Turkey (547) and South Africa (508).
During this period, almost six billion euros were invested in the acquisition of real estate, which allowed 10,668 foreigners, by purchasing a house, to obtain a residence permit for investment.
From October 2012 to January this year, 938 foreigners received ‘golden’ visas in Portugal through cash transfers and 22 through job creation.
With around 45,000 residents, the British community currently has the largest presence in Portugal, after more than 200,000 Brazilians.
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