Portuguese Digital Nomad Visa

On October 30^th, 2022, several amendments to the Portuguese immigration framework were enacted. One of the most awaited changes revolves around the so-called Digital Nomad Visa.

The Portuguese Digital Nomad Visa was created specifically for non-EU or non-EEA citizens, who work remotely. Officially, it is named “residence visa for individuals whose professional activity is provided remotely to a foreign country – outside of the Portuguese territory”.

While the world is still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, one of the biggest changes is the adoption of remote work in a large scale.

Portugal has now put in place two frameworks applicable to such cases:

• Temporary stay visa for the exercise of subordinate or independent professional activity, provided remotely – it is important that the domicile of the activity or the company headquarters are located outside of the national territory (has a duration of up to 1 year, renewable for an equal period);

and

• Residence visa for the exercise of professional activity remotely provided outside the national territory (similarly to the D7 visa, allows a foreigner to enter Portugal for a period of 4 months and subsequently apply for a residence permit valid for a minimum period of 2 years, renewable for subsequent periods of 3 years).

Before the creation of the Digital Nomad Visa, the D7 residence permit provided a solution for many cases. However, under the D7, it is mandatory for the applicants to provide proof of regular income, allowing them to stay in Portugal in a similar situation as a retired individual. Nevertheless, the situation was never ideal, due to the fact many applicants were not capable to meet the minimum stay requirements of the D7, thus many of them lost the opportunity to relocate to Portugal.

With such changes, Portugal expects to receive a higher number of remote workers for the next couple of years.

Do not hesitate to get in touch with our team should you have any queries.

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