The D7 Portugal Visa has made it easier to obtain a residence permit on Portuguese soil. Widely known as the “retiree visa,” this new immigration visa is not only aimed at those who receive a pension or are in such a scheme.

The D7 Visa is suitable for a wide range of people, and is also the right visa for holders of other sources of income.

If Portugal is among your choices for your future residence destination and you would like to know more about the D7 Visa, this article is all you are looking for.

We will explain to you whether this is the best way to apply for a stay in Portugal and what the main differences are when compared to the Gold Visa, when it comes to obtaining a residence permit in the country.

What is the D7 Visa?

The D7 Portugal Visa was created to attract people who have their own financial resources and are able to live off their income. The D7 Visa allows not only third country pensioners to obtain residency in Portuguese territory, but is also the best option for holders of other types of passive income.

This new Visa is aimed at foreign citizens with a certain guaranteed financial potential, so that they can invest and contribute to Portugal’s development, moving the local economy by creating new jobs or income.

Thus, the D7 Visa is focused on those who:

• They are already retired and can prove receipt of their pension amounts;
• They already have income from other sources, for example, from real estate or movable property, from interest, from investments, from company profits or dividends;
• They come to exercise religious activities in Portugal.

What are the requirements to obtain the D7 Portugal Visa?

There are several requirements to fulfill before you can apply for your D7 Visa. Among them, one of the most important is proof that you have the minimum income required by law to support your residence in Portugalfor a minimum period of 12 months.

Income for the D7 Visa

The amount of income varies from family to family, depending on how many members are in the household applying for the visa. The important thing is that your minimum income is in line with the minimum amounts that are established, based on the Portuguese minimum wage:

• 1 adult (applicant): 100% of the current minimum wage (€ 705) = € 8,460/year in 2022.
• 2 or more adults: 50% of the current minimum wage (€353) = €4,236/year in 2022.
• Children and young people under 18 and dependent adult children: 30% of the current minimum wage (€ 211.50) = € 2,538/year in 2022.

What are the main steps to obtain the D7 Portugal Visa?

The process for obtaining this visa begins with an application submitted to the Portuguese Consulate or Embassy in the country where the applicant currently resides. Once this request is approved, the applicant must travel to Portugal to deal with the next steps of the process at SEF – Foreigners and Borders Service.

The main steps involved in the process are:

1) Application Submission – Once you have gathered all the necessary documentation, you must present the D7 visa application documents at the Portuguese consulate or embassy in your current country. Assuming the application is correctly submitted, the approval process can take up to 60 days to be processed by the Portuguese authorities.

2) Temporary Visa and Interview – If your application is approved, you will be granted a Temporary Visa, valid for 4 months, allowing you to travel to Portugal. Once you are in Portugal, you should make an appointment with the SEF – Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras. This interview is a fundamental step in obtaining the D7 visa.

3) Approval of D7 Visa and Residence Permit – After the interview, and once your D7 visa has been approved, you must apply for your Residence Permit in Portugal. The initial Residence Permit will be valid for 1 year, renewable twice for successive periods of 2 years, for a total of 5 years.

4) Permanent Residence Permit – After 5 years of legal residence in Portugal, you can apply for a permanent residence permit, valid for another 5 years. After 6 years, you also have the option to apply for Portuguese Citizenship, through naturalization. Naturalization involves taking a Portuguese language test.

How long can it take to get a D7 Visa?

Approval of the D7 visa is not automatic. First of all, you should gather all the necessary documentation before applying for a visa. You can greatly increase your chances of having your visa successfully approved by submitting as much documentation as you have available to prove your visa eligibility.

We strongly recommend that you hire an expert to help you obtain all the necessary documentation for your application. The documentation involved is complex and an application with errors will suffer significant delays. If you need help, we have partners we can recommend in this area with proven experience in this type of process. Contact us for more details.

In general, the application process at the Portuguese Consulate or Embassy in your home country takes up to 60 days to process. This assumes that all documents have been correctly submitted and that the process has been properly presented. If something is missing, the process will have considerable delays.

Therefore, it is recommended that you process your request well in advance of the planned date of travel, to avoid unnecessary losses due to bureaucratic delays.

Once issued, the Temporary Visa is valid for 4 months. At this point it will be necessary to travel to Portugal, where you must schedule an interview with SEF – Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras. Currently, scheduling an interview with SEF – Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras, can take up to 120 days, both in Lisbon and in Porto. If you choose to live in other smaller towns or rural areas, the waiting time for an interview can be significantly shorter.

What documents are required to acquire the D7 Visa?

To get your visa you will need to make sure that you gather all the required documentation to submit your application. So make sure you have it with you:

• National visa application form (fully completed and signed by the applicant);

• Proof of regular status if you are a nationality other than that of the country where you are applying for a visa (National Registry of Foreigners – RNE) valid for 3 months after the expected date of return;

• Statement proving of subsistence means (income that guarantees your subsistence in Portugal) and accommodation (hotel or hostel reservations, invitation letter or property lease contract are accepted);

• Passport (+ photocopy of it) or other travel document, valid for more than three months after the expected return date;

• Criminal record certificate issued by the competent authority of the applicant’s country of nationality or of the country in which he/she has resided for more than one year (not applicable to minors under 16);

• Request for authorization to consult the Portuguese criminal record by SEF – Foreigners and Borders Service (not applicable to minors under 16);

• Valid international travel medical insurance that allows you to cover necessary expenses for medical reasons, including urgent medical assistance and possible repatriation in case of death (or, if you are a Brazilian, PB4 issued by the Brazilian Ministry of Health) – this medical insurance must be valid for the period that the applicant intends to stay in the country on a D7 Portugal Visa;

• 2 identical photographs(2 identical, 3×4 size, up-to-date, good resolution photos for better identification of the applicant – one of them pasted on the form).

Since the documents mentioned above are mandatory for anyone who intends to apply for a D7 visavisa, depending on your situation as an applicant, other more specific types of documentation may be requiredwhen applying for your visa.

So, if the applicant is:

• Religiousyou will need the certificate of the church or community to which you belong, recognized by the Portuguese legal system. (If from Brazil, request the Declaration of the respective church or community in Brazil, with a notarized signature). In addition, you will still need your Income Tax Declaration and proof of availability of financial means in Portugal.

• Retired/PermanentYou must be in possession of the Document proving the amount of the retirement and the Income Tax Declaration. In addition, you must also have in your possession the Proof of availability of financial means in Portugal.

• The person who lives on his/her own incomeyou will need documents proving income from movable or immovable property, or from intellectual property, or from financial investments (Income Tax Return and, as applicable, articles of association or lease, recent bank statements, or others). In addition, as in the first two cases, you must also have with you Proof of availability of financial means in Portugal.

How much does the D7 Visa cost?

The fees associated with the D7 visa are not very significant, compared to the other costs you will have related to moving to Portugal, or renting or buying a property in Portugal, among other costs.

Government fees per applicant are less than 300 euros. For example, the initial cost to apply for a D7 visa is 90 euros. Applying for a Residence Permit costs about 160 euros.

What are the minimum stay requirements for D7 Portugal visa holders?

The general assumption of the D7 Visa is that the visa holders will be in the country most of the time. For example, during the initial 2-year period, you must spend at least 16 months in Portugal.

There are absence limits stipulated, allowing absences of 6 consecutive months or 8 months interspersed, for the duration of the authorization validation period. Longer periods of absence are allowed if justified by professional or other compelling reasons.

The residence permit in Portugal may be cancelled if no valid reasons are given to justify the absence beyond the limits stipulated in the visa rules.

Do I need a bank account in Portugal to get the visa?

Yes! The D7 Portugal Visa applicant will need to open a Portuguese bank account. There are several online banks that allow you to open an account while you are still in your home country. To learn how to open a bank account in Portugal, click here!

What are the differences between the Golden Visa and the D7 Visa?

Both the Gold Visa and the D7 Visa enable the holder to enjoy 3 common points.

These allow:

• residence in the country, besides authorizing the holder to work in Portugal;
• the completion of the family reunification application;
• the application for Portuguese nationality after 5 years.

While the Golden Visa is actually a Residence Permit for investment, the D7 Portugal Visa was created for citizens who wish to live in Portugal through their own income.

The two visas differ, mainly in terms of the minimum financial requirements for obtaining the visa, the minimum criteria regarding the need to remain in Portugal, and, finally, in terms of the application for Portuguese nationality.

Above all, when it comes time to make the decision about which Visa to opt for, it is important to take a good look at all the options that each of the visas presents and gather as much information as possible about them. What you should keep in mind is that everything will depend on your personal goals and their possibilities.

For a better and more informed choice, you can read more information about Gold Visas here!

Should I get help from experts to get a D7 Visa?

For those who have chosen Portugal as the country where they intend to live, the D7 Visa is an excellent option as long as you can prove that you currently have income that assures your means of subsistence in Portugal.

As described above, the application process is a complex process that requires the preparation of a lot of documentation, and some of these documents are very specific to Portugal. In addition, there are several bureaucratic steps involved, and any errors along the way can cause very significant delays.

For this reason, we strongly recommend that you hire professional services to help you, using experienced specialists to coordinate the entire process of your application.

If you need help, please contact us. We have a vast network of partners with whom we work closely together. They are reliable professionals who have been successful with our Customers.

At TEAM 5 STARS you will find dedicated professionals, to accompany and advise you throughout your application for the D7 visa. We have extensive experience with foreign clients looking for their new home in Portugal, working in close coordination with legal and tax partners.

When you choose to come and live in Portugal , we can help you, whether you decide to buy or rent.

ANY DOUBTS OR QUESTIONS CONTACT US!

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