Portugal for founders, investors and executives
Portugal spent a decade being sold as a lifestyle destination. That is not why our clients come.
A founder who has just exited can hold foreign dividends and capital gains at zero tax for ten years. A fund investor can hold EU residency without buying property. A chair or board member of a certified startup can qualify for a 20% flat rate that most tax advisers still do not know exists.
- Oct 2023Real estate removed from the Golden Visa, and it has not returned
- 19 May 2026Naturalisation moves to seven years, or ten
- 15 JanThe annual IFICI registration deadline, missed more often than met
Three changes that invalidate advice which was correct two years ago
Two are tax regimes and one is a residency permit. Most of the confusion in this market comes from treating them as one product.
NHR is closed. IFICI is the regime that matters.
A flat 20% on qualifying Portuguese employment and self employment income, and exemption for most foreign source income: dividends, interest, securities capital gains, rental income and royalties. Ten consecutive years, and you must not have been a Portuguese tax resident in the previous five. Pensions are excluded and taxed at progressive rates, which is the sharpest break from old NHR.
Autoridade Tributária, IFICI guidanceSeven or ten years, no longer five.
Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026 was published on 18 May 2026 and took effect the following day. Naturalisation now requires seven years of legal residence for EU and CPLP nationals, ten for everyone else. Applications already pending on 19 May 2026 are assessed under the old rules. Residency is unaffected. What moved is the passport timeline.
Diário da República, Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026The Golden Visa is now a funds programme.
Real estate and real estate linked funds were removed in October 2023 by Law 56/2023 and have not returned. What remains is capital: qualifying venture capital and private equity funds, research and development, share capital combined with job creation, job creation on its own, and donations to national artistic heritage.
Diário da República, Law 56/2023The three regimes, and which one is yours
We cover the investment and tax side. For relocation, schools and day to day life in Portugal, that is Expatico.
IFICI, the tax regime
Not a visa. It answers what you pay once you are a Portuguese tax resident, and for the right profile the answer is very little.
- IFICI (NHR 2.0) explained
- Also covers who qualifies across seven certified categories, the board seat route under Law 21/2023, the 15 January deadline, and which foreign income is exempt.
NHR, if you hold it or think it is still open
Closed to new applicants. It still matters if you hold it, because your ten years continue on the original terms, and as a comparison, because the two regimes treat pensions and foreign income differently.
- Where NHR stands in 2026
- Also covers what existing holders keep, and how NHR and IFICI compare side by side.
The Golden Visa, residency without relocation
The ARI gives residency to third country nationals who invest. The only route here that does not require you to live in Portugal, which is why it suits investors who want EU optionality rather than a move.
- Portugal Golden Visa in 2026
- Also covers the five remaining routes and their amounts, the stay requirement, and the 2026 nationality law.
Can you use the Golden Visa and IFICI together?
The question our highest intent clients ask, and the one almost nobody answers properly, because the two regimes sit with different authorities and most advisers know one side. They solve different problems, and the interaction turns on where you become tax resident, and when.
Start with your situation
Six profiles cover almost everyone who arrives on this page.
- A founder who has exited, or is about to
- IFICI, the tax regime
- A chair, board member or non executive director
- The board seat route, on the IFICI hub
- An investor who wants EU residency without moving
- The Golden Visa fund route
- Already holding NHR
- Where NHR stands in 2026
- Weighing when citizenship becomes possible
- What the 2026 nationality law changed
- Already resident and past the registration deadline
- The 15 January deadline, on the IFICI hub
Common questions
The five we answer on almost every call, and the ones the market most often gets wrong.
Is NHR still available?
No. NHR closed to new entrants and IFICI replaced it. If you hold NHR, your remaining years continue unchanged. If you are arriving now, IFICI is the regime to look at.
Does IFICI cover pensions?
No. Pension income is excluded from IFICI and taxed at progressive rates. Old NHR taxed foreign pensions at a flat 10%. For pensioners this is the change that matters most.
Does the Golden Visa give me a tax break?
No. It is a residency permit. Tax treatment depends on whether you become a Portuguese tax resident, which the Golden Visa does not require. Many holders never do.
I missed the 15 January registration. Have I lost IFICI?
No. Late registration means the regime takes effect from the year you register, and you keep the remaining years of the ten year window rather than the full ten. The tax authority’s own guidance confirms this, and it is the single most common piece of misinformation in this market.
Can I still buy property for a Golden Visa?
No. Real estate was removed as a qualifying investment in October 2023 and has not returned. Anyone still selling a property based Golden Visa is selling something that does not exist.
Talk to us
We advise founders, investors and executives on both sides of this: the tax position and the residency route, together rather than separately.
Book a call with Fernando
Fifteen or thirty minutes, by Microsoft Teams. Fernando Ferreira, General Partner at Ventures.eu.
