NEW CHANGE TO PORTUGAL'S GOLDEN VISA APPLICATION PROCEDURE
8 January 2018
SEF, Portugal's foreigners and border agency, which processes the Golden Visa applications, has just announced another change to the application procedure. From now on, copies of all of the required documents must be filed online on their portal and approved, and the Government application fee must be paid, before the initial interview and biometrics-collection session may be booked.
Once the copy documents are approved, the applicant will be given online access to SEF's schedule of available time slots and may then make the necessary appointment. The original documents must be submitted at the interview, but their validity is to be calculated as at the time of the online filing date.
More than 70,000 Alojamento Local units in Portugal are at risk of losing their licenses, which could lead to the cancellation of their short-term rental status.
A new legal change is now in effect in Portugal: Decree-Law No. 85-B/2025 introduces key updates for foreign residents, including permit validity extensions.
