Portugal Residence & Permanent Residence (D7, D8, Golden Visa)

Meet Harpreet: rental income in Ludhiana, a wish to live in Europe

Harpreet is 48. He owns two shops in Ludhiana that bring in rent every month. His daughter studies in Europe, and he and his wife want to live near her, with the right to stay for good. He does not want to work for a Portuguese employer. He wants a legal way to move, live, and one day hold permanent residence.

Portugal has a route for people like Harpreet. It also has routes for remote workers and for investors. Each route leads, after five years of legal residence, to permanent residence, which means the right to live in Portugal without renewing a temporary permit. This page explains the three routes we file, the money you must show, and the traps that cost families a year or more.

Three residence visas that lead to permanent residence

D7 — the passive-income visa

The D7 visa is for people who live on passive income. Passive income means money that comes in without you working for it: rent, a pension, dividends from shares, or interest.

The figures for 2026 are set by Portugal’s minimum wage, which is €920 a month. You must show at least:

• €920 a month for yourself;
• plus 50% of that for a spouse;
• plus 30% of that for each child.

So Harpreet, his wife and one dependent child would show roughly €920 + €460 + €276 a month. The income must be real and documented: rent agreements, bank credits, pension letters or dividend statements.

D8 — the digital-nomad visa

The D8 visa is for people who work remotely for clients or an employer outside Portugal. You could be a software developer on contract with a US company, or a designer with clients in Dubai and Singapore. The rule is that your income does not come from Portuguese sources.

You must show earnings of at least €3,680 a month, which is four times the minimum wage, plus increments for family members. Proof means contracts, invoices and bank statements showing regular payment.

Note what D8 is not. It is not a work permit for a Portuguese job, and we do not arrange employment. If your plan is to find a job in Portugal after arrival, that is a different route we do not file.

Golden Visa — the investment route

The Golden Visa is for people with capital who do not want to live in Portugal full time. The main route today is an investment of €500,000 into a regulated fund. Presence is light: about seven days a year. It still counts toward permanent residence after five years. Full details are on our Portugal Golden Visa page. We are not investment advisers; you choose the fund with your own adviser and we file the residence application.

What all three routes share

• Proof of accommodation in Portugal: a rental contract or property deed.
• Savings of about €11,040, which is twelve months of minimum wage, for D7 and D8.
• A Portuguese tax number, called a NIF, and a Portuguese bank account. Both are needed early, before the visa is filed. Getting them from India takes planning.
• Genuine residence for D7 and D8. These visas are for people who actually move to Portugal and live there. If you plan to stay in India and visit once a year, D7 and D8 are the wrong routes; look at the Golden Visa instead.

The money rules on the Indian side

Two rules matter before a single euro leaves your account.

• The Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) lets each person send up to US$250,000 per financial year abroad. A family of three can pool three limits.
• From 1 April 2026, 20% Tax Collected at Source (TCS) applies to investment remittances above ₹10 lakh. TCS is not a final tax; it can be adjusted against your tax return, but it affects cash flow. Plan with your chartered accountant.

Once you live in Portugal, you become a Portuguese tax resident. That means Portugal taxes your worldwide income, with relief under the India–Portugal treaty for income taxed in India. We are not tax advisers, and we will tell you to get one before you move.

From residence to permanent residence and citizenship

After five years of legal residence you may apply for permanent residence. Citizenship is a separate step. Under the nationality law in force since 19 May 2026, Indian nationals need ten years of residence to apply for citizenship; before that date it was five. If you have read older articles promising a Portuguese passport in five years, they are out of date.

Portugal is in the Schengen area, so a Portuguese residence permit lets you travel across Schengen countries without separate visas.

Where families lose time and money

• Weak income proof on the D7. Cash rent with no bank trail is not accepted. Build a clean twelve-month record before you file.
• Applying for D8 with Portuguese clients. The income must be foreign. Mixing sources causes refusals.
• No NIF or bank account. Without these, the file is not ready and the consulate appointment is wasted.
• Slow processing at AIMA. AIMA is Portugal’s immigration agency. It is slow, and the wait for a residence card after arrival can be long. We do not print a figure because it changes. Plan your move so a delay does not leave you without status.
• Expecting to work locally. D7 and D8 are not paths to a Portuguese job through us. If work is the goal, tell us and we will point you to routes we file elsewhere.

Family members

Your spouse and children can be included, with the income increments above. Once you hold residence, family reunification is available for others. See dependent and family visas. If your child is choosing a course in Europe, our study visa page covers that separately.

If you were refused

Portuguese refusals are usually about proof: income, accommodation or intent to reside. A second application with the same file rarely helps. We read the decision and rebuild the evidence. See visa refusal help.

Fees

Our fees are all-in with GST included. Portuguese consular and AIMA fees are paid at cost. See pricing.

Talk to us

On one call we settle three things: whether D7, D8 or the Golden Visa fits your income and your plan to live in Portugal, what income and savings proof you can show today, and what the first filing costs. If you are Harpreet, bring your rent agreements. Call or WhatsApp +91 91155 80911. We file D7, D8 and Golden Visa residence applications; we do not arrange jobs or work permits.