Portugal tops the 2022 Global Residency Index! Why do people choose Portugal?
Portugal’s Golden Visa Program is ranked one of the best on the Global Residence Programs Index (GRPI), according to a report on Investment Migration Programs.
What are the Top 10 countries in the Global Residency Program for 2022?
- Portugal
- Austria, Italy
- Switzerland
- Greece
- Malta
- Jersey, Singapore
- Australia
- New Zealand, Spain
- Canada, Cyprus, Ireland
- Dubai (UAE), Latvia, USA
The index is based on ten categories: reputation, taxation, quality of life, visa-free/visa-on-arrival, processing time, investment requirements, compliance, time to naturalization, total cost and naturalization requirements, to arrive at the index and ranking.
In this ranking, the Portugal Gold Residency Program (Portugal Golden Visa Program) once again topped other residency programs around the world with a total score of 75 points.
Why Portugal?
Residency-by-investment visas are fast gaining traction across the globe, as investors reap the reward of securing their wealth in stronger economies, as well as gaining residency to that particular country, for themselves and their family.
Portugal Golden Visa Program is ranked one of the best on the Global Residence Programs Index (GRPI), according to a report on Investment Migration Programs 2021.
Portugal launched the program in October 2012. The main objective was to attract international capital into the country, as it was much in need after the 2008 economic crisis. The program proved to be a great success, raising over €6 billion since then.
Stability is a key objective for those investing in a residency-by-investment programs, and therefore finding the right fit for financial gain and lifestyle access is top priority.
Portugal Golden Visa and the D7 visa are two popular schemes that help foreigners to move to Portugal and live there.
What are the advantages of immigrating to Portugal?
- Relaxed residency conditions.
The Portuguese Golden Visa is renewed every two years, but the residence period must not be less than 14 days every two years.
- EU citizenship after five years
After five years of residency in Portugal, you can apply for naturalization if you live in Portugal and master the basic Portuguese language (A2 level, equivalent to elementary school), which is one of the best ways to obtain European citizenship with low cost and low residency requirements.
- Easy and simple application requirements.
The application for the Portuguese Golden Visa does not require academic qualifications, language, work experience, business background or financial resources.
- Advanced medical benefits.
Portugal is ranked 12th in the world’s health care systems and 27th in the World Health Organization, and is also known as the most expensive health care system per capita.
- Travel and Visa-Free Countries
As Portugal is also a Schengen Agreement country, you can live and work in any EU country with Portugal’s Golden Residence. At the same time, after applying for Portuguese citizenship, you can also enjoy visa-free and visa-on-arrival benefits from 192 countries worldwide.
- Educational frontier, international recognition.
Portugal has up to 12 years of free public education and a large number of international schools, which are recognized by international universities.
- Low investment thresholds
You can qualify for residency by investing €280,000 which is one of the lowest investment thresholds in Europe.
Things You Need To Consider Before Moving To Portugal
Since January 2022, foreigners are no longer able to get residential property in major cities such as Lisbon or Porto or in coastal towns of the mainland. Only the property investments inland and possibly rural or low-density areas are eligible.
In addition, according to the Portuguese Immigration Service (SEF), the number of people who chose the Golden Visa Fund program last year was eight times higher than two years ago.
This is mainly due to the irreplaceable advantages: low investment amount, no capital source requirement, low risk, strong supervision, tax-free income, and the ability to get EU status! If you choose the real estate fund investment immigrants, the advantages have to add one more: not directly invest in real estate, but can enjoy the dividends of rising housing prices.
Compared to the period before the new policy, the price advantage is lost; however, considering the wave of global investors’ enthusiasm for Portugal, it is still the right time to invest in Portugal.
Portugal not only meets the diversified needs of people, but also provides investors with a quick way to obtain permanent residency in the European Union, and offers more options for children’s education planning.
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