It has a temperate climate, a great open, tolerant and liberal society. It is located between the Americas and the EMEA region and has great flight connections to the Americas, Africa, Europe and the East. Portugal has been mentioned as the best place to move to in the #postCOVIDworld by Forbes and is the 3rd most peaceful country in the world.
While the Forbes article mentions the Algarve coast specifically, many of the criteria it points to are Portugal-wide and Portugal has over 900km of coastline! Portugal is ranked the 3rd most peaceful country in the world and has been written about in the Condé Nast Traveler as the 3rd safest country to visit after Iceland and New Zealand!
The non-habitual residence programme (NHR) as well as the “Golden Visa” residence permit are more popular than ever.
Since the introduction of the Golden Visa Residence program by the Portuguese government in 2012, over 22,842 permits have been granted to investors and their family members representing over €5.1 billion of investment into Portugal till the end of 2019. The main nationalities of the foreign investors are: Chinese, Brazilian, Turkish, South African and Russian. Many of these families have decided to settle here – especially the Brazillian families. 3,437 of these permits were granted in 2019 alone.
In January 2020 – March 2020, despite the COVID conditions being faced with difficulties in travel from the Far East and other countries, 628 permits have been issued.
The non-habitual residence (NHR) scheme was also introduced in 2012 – this scheme confers tax benefits on foreigners spending more than 180 days a year in Portugal. This has also led to a high number of foreigners from within the EU, especially the French, to relocate to Portugal. In total, there are around 40,000 of these residents registered by the end of 2019.
Note from Martinhal Residences in October 2023:
The Golden Visa and NHR (Non-Habitual Residence) regimes have both changed in 2023, or are changing. While they both will still be in place, how one gets a Golden Visa (or Residence Permit) or an NHR status is changing completely. Please consult with EDGE International Lawyers, or another lawyer, to understand what has changed and how you can still avail of these regimes, or D2 or D7.
The Martinhal Team
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