Portugal citizenship and residence guide

Which Portugal route should you check first?

Start with your family records. If a parent or grandparent was Portuguese, check the citizenship route before you choose a visa or move funds, since a family claim could change the kind of move you need to plan. The rules differ for children and grandchildren. MMT’s citizenship by descent hub can help you plan that first search for records. ¹

Already an EU, European Economic Area, Swiss or Andorran citizen? You use a separate system. For stays beyond three months, register with your local Câmara Municipal, or town council, within the next 30 days. AIMA lists the proof needed for work, study, family ties or sufficient funds and health cover. ⁶

Use the citizenship and residency map to compare Portugal with other places. Choose the legal status you need before searching for funds or advisers.

Portuguese citizenship through family or residence

The filing date now matters. New citizenship rules took effect on 19 May 2026. The standard route through legal residence, called naturalisation, now requires at least seven years for EU citizens and citizens of countries with Portuguese as an official language. For other nationals, the minimum is ten years. These are periods before you can apply. ^{1, 9}

You must also be an adult and able to support yourself. The law requires language, culture and civic knowledge, plus a pledge to democratic principles. Criminal-history, security and sanctions checks apply. Ask the Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (IRN), Portugal’s registry body, which tests or certificates it accepts. An old language-only checklist leaves out new rules. ^{1, 9}

A child born abroad to a Portuguese parent can gain original nationality through birth registration or a declaration. In this context, original nationality means citizenship from birth. Check the parent’s status and the legal parent-child link. Where the parent gained citizenship after the child was born, a different rule may apply. ¹

A grandchild needs a grandparent who held original Portuguese nationality and kept it. The applicant must declare their wish to be Portuguese and show real ties to the country. Article 6(1)(c)-(h) now adds language, culture, civic, declaration and security rules. Start with the ancestor’s record, then build the full file. ¹

Great-grandchildren have a distinct route after at least five years of legal residence. The government has discretion to grant citizenship; other rules still apply. Marriage to a Portuguese citizen for more than three years also creates a route. A de facto union, meaning a couple living together as partners, needs court recognition. Both routes require a separate request and further checks. ¹

Adoption and restoration use their own rules. If you once held Portuguese citizenship, find out why it was lost before choosing a form. The special Sephardic ancestry route has closed to new cases. Citizenship cases already pending when the new law took effect keep the old rules. A pending ARI residence file alone gives no such protection. ^{1, 9}

Residence for work, business, study or retirement

Match the route to your income. For a job in Portugal, start with the work-visa route. A contract or firm job offer is one basis. The law also allows a route based on recognised skills and a named employer’s interest. Business owners and people working for themselves need different proof. Compare the options in the residency hub. ¹⁰

For the remote-work visa, show average monthly earnings from work over the last three months that reach at least four times the guaranteed monthly minimum wage. The 2026 national wage of EUR 920 gives a floor of EUR 3,680 per month. This is an income test. Budget separately for fees and the costs of moving your family. ^{7, 11}

For a business, show the investment you have made. Alternatively, show funds available in Portugal and your plan to invest them. To work for yourself, provide a service contract or written proposal. You also need any required proof that you can practise your profession. A company record is only one part of that file. ¹⁰

For retirement, ask your consulate for its current own-income checklist. The government page confirms this route but leaves the full income and family calculation to be checked. Ask which income counts and how to prove it. For study, check the rules for your course and any exemptions before paying for documents or health cover. ^{5, 10}

What still qualifies for Portugal’s golden visa?

ARI is a residence permit. Autorização de Residência para Investimento is commonly called the golden visa. It allows you to live and work in Portugal. Citizenship is a later, separate request. New investments must stay clear of real estate, both directly and indirectly. Compare these permits in the golden visa hub and their outcomes in the citizenship hub. ³

Before buying fund units, check what the fund owns and when you can sell. Its minimum term and share invested in Portuguese firms are legal tests for ARI. Returns and an easy exit are not assured. Cultural support is a different use of money, so read the terms to see what you give, what you retain and which proof you receive. ^{3, 10}

The minimum five-year investment-maintenance period runs from the residence grant. To renew ARI on that basis, you must still meet the rules for the investment. Before selling in year five, check the permit you hold and the basis for your next renewal. Get the exit terms in writing before committing funds. ^{8, 10}

Apply in the order your category requires

Separate the visa from the permit. A residence visa lets you enter to seek a residence permit. ARI uses its own process. Citizenship goes through the registry system. Track each stage: filing, payment, appointment and decision. Treat the file as approved only when the authority has issued its decision. ^{10, 8, 12}

1. 01

   Choose the exact category and authority

   Find the Portuguese consulate that serves the place where you live. Ask for the checklist for your exact visa. For citizenship, follow IRN’s guide for your family or residence route. Check whether you can file at a registry, through the consulate, by post or through a lawyer. ARI starts with electronic registration on its dedicated platform. ^{5, 12, 8}

2. 02

   Prepare evidence before filing

   Collect the civil records and proof of work, income, study or investment. Check names and dates across the file. Get short-lived records close to when you need them. Ask which records need an apostille, consular stamp or certified translation before paying for those services. ^{12, 8, 10}

3. 03

   Submit and pay the official charge

   File through the required channel and keep the case number. Follow the authority’s payment instructions and retain the receipt. Check the charge against the current tariff for that step before paying. Keep a separate record for each family member’s application.

4. 04

   Complete the decision and arrival stages

   Follow the authority’s instructions for appointments and identity checks. For ordinary visas, enter lawfully and complete the permit stage in Portugal. For ARI, electronic registration precedes the application and AIMA decides the request. For citizenship, follow the registry process through decision and registration, then seek identity documents. ^{10, 8, 1}

5. 05

   Keep a renewal file from day one

   Keep the permit, travel dates and proof that you still meet the route’s rules. Save current housing and income records. As the years pass, check when you can seek permanent residence or citizenship. Each has its own tests. Set reminders early enough to get fresh records for renewal. ^{8, 10, 2}

Before signing a lease around a hoped-for decision date, price the cost of changing your plans. Leave room in the budget for a later move.

The records worth organising first

Make the record chain easy to follow. Each record should link you to the next person in your family line. For the parent route, the checklist asks for a legalised birth certificate, meaning proof that the foreign record is authentic through an apostille or consular process. It also asks for a certified Portuguese translation where needed. ¹²

• Compare names, birth dates and parentage across civil records; resolve errors before paying to translate a record.
• For work or business, gather the contract, proof of skills or investment records needed for that route. ¹⁰
• For remote work, gather proof of the foreign work relationship, earnings and tax residence. ^{4, 7}
• For ARI, organise transfer and investment proof, criminal-history evidence and tax/social-security records. Ask AIMA for the current criminal-certificate validity rule immediately before filing, so you can order the record at the right time. ⁸
• For each family member, gather records of the relationship and any proof of dependency or custody needed. ¹⁰

Check translation rules for each type of record. The Civil Registration Code allows covered records in English, French or Spanish without translation when the competent official knows that language. Ask the office receiving your file whether that exception covers your document before paying for a translation. ¹³

For the parent’s Portuguese birth record, supplying the registry, year and record number can remove the need for the certificate itself. Keep copies of what you submit, plus any later versions. You can then answer a request for more proof without losing track of the file. ¹²

Before submitting, check record dates, proof of family dependency and the amount shown in investment evidence. Read each official notice when it arrives and answer by its stated deadline. If you cannot attend an appointment, contact AIMA promptly and keep the notice, your explanation and any reply together.

How much should you budget?

Keep capital and fees in separate columns. Money placed in a fund, income shown to a consulate and fees paid to the state serve different purposes. Once you have set aside the money for the route itself, add the costs of advice, records and travel for appointments, then price the move. A family budget needs more than the headline amount for one route.

AIMA’s new fee schedule took effect on 1 March 2026. It lists separate ARI charges for review, grant, renewal and family cases. Check the official AIMA fee schedule against the way you file and the payment notice. Ask for each line of an adviser’s quote to be named. Keep state fees apart from the adviser’s own charges. ^{15, 16}

Plan each family member’s route

Check each family member’s right to join. Family reunification means bringing eligible relatives to live with a resident. It can cover a spouse, dependent children and dependent parents. Adult children must meet the dependency, unmarried-status and study rules. Usually they must study in Portugal. For ARI, the law allows study elsewhere. Student sponsors can bring a spouse and the specified minor, incapacitated or adopted children. ¹⁰

The usual sponsor must have held a valid permit for at least two years. A spouse or equivalent partner can use a 15-month period if the couple lived together for at least 18 months just before the sponsor entered Portugal. The rule concerns when you can seek to bring family, not how fast the case is decided. ¹⁸

Exceptions cover dependent minors or incapacitated relatives and a spouse or partner who is their other parent. Families of certain highly skilled, ARI and EU Blue Card holders are also exempt. A special waiver can apply. There is also a visa route for family members who apply together. Ask the consulate which basis fits each person. ^{18, 10}

Ordinary sponsorship requires suitable housing and enough funds for the family without social support; refugees have an exception. Family residence usually allows paid work or self-employment, subject to special rules. Each relative still needs their own decision. ¹⁰

For family proceedings started from 23 October 2025, the law also sets duties after approval: Portuguese-language training, training in Portugal’s constitutional principles and values, and compulsory schooling for minors. The details are governed by implementing regulation. Ask AIMA which courses and school records your family needs, then keep the attendance evidence for renewal. ¹⁸

Renewal requires proof of compliance with the housing, resources and integration rules, including language and constitutional knowledge. The law allows an exception where failure is not the family member’s fault, and a ministerial waiver of integration duties on humanitarian grounds. Ask AIMA what evidence it accepts for compliance or an exception before renewal is due. ¹⁸

Time abroad, renewal and permanent residence

Choose a route you can keep. An ordinary temporary permit can be cancelled for unjustified time abroad: six months in a row, or eight months in total during its term. Exceptions exist. For a longer absence, usually send AIMA a request explaining your reasons before leaving; in exceptional cases, you can do so later. D7 and D8 holders follow these rules, not ARI’s lighter stay test. ^{10, 8}

The regulation sets the ARI stay rule at seven days in the first year. After that, it is fourteen days in each two-year period. Keep proof of your visits and check the dates on your card. Remote-work permits run for two years, then renew for three-year terms if you still meet the rules. ^{8, 4}

You can seek permanent residence after at least five years holding temporary residence. You need basic Portuguese, funds and housing. Tax, social-security and criminal-history checks also apply. The status has no fixed end date. Renew the card every five years or when identity details change. ARI holders should check which permanent title they can obtain. ^{2, 10}

For new citizenship cases, the old Article 15(4) waiting-time credit has been repealed. For EU and Portuguese-official-language nationals, legal stays add up within a nine-year window; for other nationals, within twelve years. Ask AIMA and IRN to confirm the record that counts for you. Use that record to set a filing date, rather than the day you bought an investment. ¹

Residence permission and tax residence are different

Check tax before choosing your moving date. More than 183 days in a relevant twelve-month period can make you tax resident. Even if your stay is shorter, the law also looks at whether you have a home that shows an intent to keep it and use it as your usual home. The day count alone leaves part of the test unanswered. ¹⁹

Your permit and your tax status answer different questions. Take a list of your income sources, homes and planned travel dates to a tax adviser. Ask how the rules in each country fit your facts and which dates affect your filing duties. ¹⁹

Your next step: choose the strongest route and get its current checklist. Put the missing proof beside each person’s name. Use the Portugal travel guide to plan a visit to places you might live. Bring the questions you need answered about the move, as well as the places you want to see.