Selling a Golden Visa property in Portugal: when you can sell and what happens to your residence permit (2026)

Is the Golden Visa property route still open?

No. Lei 56/2023 (the Mais Habitação housing law) stopped new Golden Visa applications based on buying property, and on the €1.5 million capital transfer, from 7 October 2023 (article 42(1)). The Golden Visa is formally the autorização de residência para investimento (ARI), the residence permit for investment under article 90-A of Lei 23/2007, the Foreigners’ Act.

The property route was by far the most used. Of the 12,718 Golden Visas granted from October 2012 to September 2023, 11,383 were for buying property, according to official figures reported by Diário de Notícias (7 May 2024).

For people who already hold one:

• Existing permits can still be renewed (Lei 56/2023, article 42(2)), and family members’ permits too (article 42(3)).
• Applications pending on 7 October 2023 remained valid (article 43), and many were only granted in 2024 or 2025.
• On renewal, the law says the permit “converts” into a residence permit for immigrant entrepreneurs (article 42(5)). The stay requirement is unchanged: at least 7 days in the first year and 14 days in each later two-year period. AIMA, the immigration agency, still lists these renewals on its investment-permit (ARI) page.

How long must I keep the property?

Five years, counted from the date the residence permit was granted. Article 65-B of Regulatory Decree 84/2007 says: “the minimum time requirement of five years for maintaining the investment activity is counted from the date the residence permit is granted.” The same five-year period appears in the definition of an investment activity in article 3(1)(d) of Lei 23/2007.

It does not run from the date you bought, or from the date you applied. With AIMA’s backlog, the gap can be years:

Bought	Applied	Permit granted	Earliest safe sale date
June 2017	September 2017	15 March 2018	15 March 2023
March 2022	May 2022	10 January 2024	10 January 2029
September 2023	October 2023 (pending on 7 Oct)	1 July 2025	1 July 2030

The permit is valid for two years and renewed for two years at a time, as long as you prove you still hold the investment (article 90-A(2) of Lei 23/2007). For a property, the proof at renewal is the purchase deed, an up-to-date land registry certificate (certidão permanente) and the tax record (caderneta predial) (Regulatory Decree 84/2007, article 65-E(4)).

Check your own date. The grant date is on the approval notice and printed on your first residence card. Your immigration lawyer’s file will have it.

Can I let or mortgage it while I wait?

Yes. Article 65-A(4) of Regulatory Decree 84/2007 lets you:

• let the property, including for commercial, agricultural or tourist use;
• mortgage it, but only for the part of its value above the minimum investment (for example, up to €200,000 on a property bought for €700,000 under the €500,000 route).

Letting it out is often the way owners cover the holding cost until the five years are up.

What happens if I sell before five years?

Selling is legal: nothing stops the deed. The problem comes at your next renewal, when you must prove you still hold the investment. If you cannot, AIMA can refuse to renew the permit. Family members’ permits were granted through family reunification with you, so they are exposed too.

What we cannot tell you is how AIMA treats every case. The law does not list what happens when a holder sells, say, three months before the five years end, or while a renewal is pending. Get written advice from an immigration lawyer before you sign a promissory contract (CPCV).

Can I sell and swap into another qualifying investment?

The law gives no procedure for swapping one Golden Visa investment for another.

• Another property will not do. The property routes were revoked in October 2023, so a new purchase cannot count as a qualifying investment.
• Moving into a route that is still open, such as €500,000 in a qualifying Portuguese investment fund, is a different investment category. Whether AIMA will accept it as “maintaining” your original investment is not set out in the law or in AIMA’s published guidance.

Treat any promise of a simple swap with caution until a lawyer has confirmed it in writing.

Can I sell once I have permanent residence?

After five years of legal residence, a Golden Visa holder can apply for permanent residence if they meet the conditions of article 80 of Lei 23/2007, including basic Portuguese. Golden Visa holders receive a special permanent investment permit that is not cancelled for long absences from Portugal (Regulatory Decree 84/2007, article 65-K; Lei 56/2023, article 42(4)).

By then the five-year investment period has been met. We have found no rule requiring you to keep the property after permanent residence is granted.

What about citizenship under the 2026 nationality law?

Lei Orgânica 1/2026, published on 18 May 2026 and in force from 19 May 2026, changed the residence needed for naturalisation:

	Before 19 May 2026	From 19 May 2026
Legal residence required	5 years	10 years; 7 years for EU and CPLP (Portuguese-speaking countries) nationals
Residence counted from	Date the first permit was applied for, if granted	Date the permit was granted (article 15(4) of the Nationality Law, which counted from the application, was repealed)
Gaps in residence	–	Periods can be added together if they fall within 12 years (9 for EU and CPLP nationals)
Other conditions	Basic Portuguese	A test or certificate of Portuguese language and culture, history and national symbols, plus knowledge of citizens’ rights and duties
Applications pending on 19 May 2026	–	Decided under the old law (article 7(2))

Most Golden Visa holders are neither EU nor CPLP nationals (Brazilians are the main exception), so the road to a passport is now 10 years from the grant date.

That creates a question the law does not answer directly. If you sell after five years but have not moved to permanent residence, you will still need to renew a temporary Golden Visa permit to reach ten years. Renewal requires you to “maintain” the investment requirement, and that requirement is defined as a five-year minimum. The wording suggests five years is enough. AIMA has not published guidance on this. Many holders will simply take permanent residence at year five, which removes the question.

Once you are a Portuguese citizen, the property has no bearing on your status. Sell when you like.

How is the sale taxed?

Most Golden Visa owners spend only the minimum days in Portugal and are not Portuguese tax residents. As non-residents, since 1 January 2023 they pay tax on 50% of the gain at Portugal’s progressive rates of 12.5% to 48%, with the rate set by reference to their worldwide income. The old flat 28% rate for non-residents no longer applies to property. Full detail: capital gains tax for non-residents.

Worked example. A property bought in 2017 for €500,000, with €35,000 of purchase taxes and deed costs, sold in 2026 for €850,000. The owner has €60,000 of other income worldwide.

	Calculation	€
Sale price		850,000
Purchase price × inflation coefficient	500,000 × 1.18 (2017, 2025 table, provisional)	−590,000
Purchase taxes and deed costs	assumed	−35,000
Agent 5% + 23% VAT	850,000 × 5% × 1.23	−52,275
Energy certificate		−300
Gain		172,425
Taxable half		86,212.50
Worldwide income for rate-setting	86,212.50 + 60,000	146,212.50
Tax on 146,212.50 at 2026 rates		58,794.73
Average rate	58,794.73 ÷ 146,212.50	40.21%
Tax on the Portuguese gain	86,212.50 × 40.21%	34,667.63
Solidarity surcharge	(86,212.50 − 80,000) × 2.5%	155.31
Portuguese tax		€34,822.94 (20.2% of the gain)

Nothing is withheld at the deed. The gain goes on the IRS return (Annex G) for the year of sale, filed from 1 April to 30 June of the following year. Your country of residence may tax the gain too, usually with a credit for the Portuguese tax; see UK residents selling. Run your own figures in the selling calculator.

The buyer pool has changed. Since 25 May 2026, non-resident buyers of homes pay a flat 7.5% IMT (property transfer tax) under Decree-Law 97/2026, so a €600,000 home costs a non-resident €45,000 in IMT against €35,300.11 for a resident buying a second home (8% − €12,699.89). Above €1,150,853 everyone pays 7.5%, so the gap disappears for the most expensive properties.

A checklist before you sell

Step	Why
Find your permit grant date and add five years	The earliest date selling cannot affect your renewal
Check your next renewal date and your family’s	You must prove the investment at each renewal before year five
Decide on permanent residence or citizenship	Permanent residence at year five removes the investment question
Ask an immigration lawyer for written advice if you are inside five years	The law does not cover every early-sale case
Estimate the Portuguese tax and your home-country tax	Non-residents pay on 50% of the gain at 12.5%–48%
Confirm the fiscal representative or e-notifications position	Non-EU owners need one or the other

Key points

• New Golden Visa applications through property ended on 7 October 2023 (Lei 56/2023); existing permits can still be renewed.
• The property must be held for five years from the date the permit was granted, not from the purchase (Regulatory Decree 84/2007, article 65-B).
• Selling earlier puts your next renewal, and your family’s permits, at risk; take immigration advice before signing a CPCV.
• You may let the property, and mortgage it above the minimum investment, while you wait.
• Naturalisation now needs 10 years of legal residence (7 for EU and CPLP nationals) counted from the permit grant (Lei Orgânica 1/2026); permanent residence at year five is the cleaner route if you want to sell.
• Non-resident sellers pay Portuguese tax on 50% of the gain at progressive rates, declared the following year; there is no withholding at the deed.