Portugal and Spain both operate popular Golden Visa schemes allowing wealthy investors to obtain residency (and potentially citizenship) through investment. But which programme best suits your needs? Let's break down the key differences.
Investment Requirements
The Portuguese Golden Visa has a lower minimum investment threshold of €250,000 for contribution to national, art, or cultural heritage preservation or restoration. As of October 2023, the programme no longer accepts real estate purchases as a qualifying investment option. The other routes now include at least €500,000 into a qualifying fund, scientific research, and business projects (from €350,000 or €500,000, depending on the number of jobs created).
In contrast, Spain's Golden Visa still permits real estate investments of at least €500,000 as the lowest threshold. For business development and capital transfer, the minimum is €1 million.
Application Process
Portugal's application process is more protracted, taking around 12-18 months for initial approval. Spain's golden visa application is faster in just 2-3 months. Application fees are also higher for the Spanish Golden Visa at around €6,000 versus roughly €5,800 for Portugal.
Residency Requirements
One key advantage of both golden visas is the lack of strict residency requirements. You only need to spend 7 days annually in the first year, then 14 days every 2 years to maintain your Portugal residency permit by investment status.
Spain's golden visa is even more lenient. You need to visit the country at least once per year to qualify for permanent residency and citizenship later on.
Tax Implications
New tax residents in Portugal can apply for beneficial Non-Habitual Resident (NHR) status. This grants exemptions on foreign income sources and a flat 20% rate on Portuguese-sourced earnings for 10 years. You become a tax resident if you spend 183 days or longer a year in the country.
Spain offers a similar scheme for new residents, though the flat rate is higher at 24% and lasts just 6 years initially. Both countries impose transfer taxes of around 6-10% on property purchases by non-residents.
Path to Citizenship
In Portugal, you can apply for citizenship after just 5 years of temporary residency through the Golden Visa. Spain requires 10 full years of permanent legal residence before considering citizenship applications from non-former colony nationals.
Family Eligibility
Both schemes cater for the main applicant's spouse and dependent children below age 18, with Portugal also covering children in education over 18 and parents over 66.
All things considered, Portuguese Golden Visa is slightly better for its lower investment floor, reduced residency obligations and swifter EU citizenship pathway.
This could suit investors prioritising eventual naturalisation. It doesn’t help that Spain is on the verge of scrapping its golden visa programme.