Portugal Residence Permit

Residence Permit for Work

As a Nepali citizen, you can migrate to Portugal if you have an employment contract. You can scout for job opportunities open to non-EU nationals and apply for them.

If you get the job, you can apply for a work permit. The residence permit for work is slightly different from other permits. This is because your employer has to request on your behalf to the labour heads in Portugal. If your employer is approved to employ you, you can apply for your permit.

If your application succeeds, you will be issued a residency visa, which can get you into Portugal. Upon arrival, you must apply for a work residence permit within 120 days.

The work residence permit’s validity is 1 year, but it will be eligible for renewal depending on how long your employment will last.

A benefit of the work permit is that you can bring your family to stay in Portugal while you work. They are permitted to study or work as long as your permit is valid.

One of the downsides of the work permit is that it ties you to a particular location and work. You cannot move to another location other than the one specified in your application by your employer. If there is a reason for you to move, then you have to notify the SEF and labour authorities.

Again, if you find another job, you must reapply for a work permit to be authorised to work for a new employer and live in a new location.

The residence permit for work is also of many types, each one depending on the kind of job you are being employed for. There are the following:

• Skilled worker residence permit for professionals.
• Highly skilled worker residence permit for professionals employed to carry out highly specialised work in Portugal.
• Teaching residence permit for lecturing and research purposes.
• Tech residence permit for IT professionals.
• Cultural activities residence permit for those coming to Portugal for creative and artistic purposes.
• D7 residence permit for digital nomads, freelancers, remote workers, retired pensioners and the self-employed.

If you intend to apply for a work residence permit, you must meet certain requirements. You must have:

• A valid job contract from a Portuguese-based employer.
• A document showing the labour authorities approved your employment.
• A recent Nepali passport.
• A criminal history certificate from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Nepal Police.
• A completed consent form that gives the SEF the go-ahead to do a background check on your criminal history.
• A document that shows you have health insurance with a value of up to €30,000.
• A document that proves you have a place to stay in Portugal. This could be a rental contract, proof you bought a house or a letter of invitation from someone living in Portugal.
• A bank statement that shows you have enough money to survive in Portugal.
• A document that proves you are a legal resident in the country you are applying from, if it is not Nepal.

Residence Permit for Students

If you get admission to study a course that will last longer than 90 days in Portugal, you must apply for a student visa. Just like the work visa, what you get upon applying for the student visa is a residency visa that allows entry into Portugal.

When you get to Portugal, you can apply for a residence permit within 120 days. This permit allows you to study in Portugal for 1 year. You must renew the student residence permit yearly until you finish your study.

A downside to this visa is that you can only bring your spouse and children to Portugal. This is unlike other permits allowing you to bring other family members.

Again, the student residence permit is not a route to permanent residence or citizenship. You will have to switch to another kind of permit to be eligible for citizenship or permanent residency after 5 years of stay.

Before applying for the student residence permit for Portugal, ensure you meet all of these eligibility criteria:

• You must complete a student visa application form. You can get this from the Foreign Affairs website of the Portuguese government.
• You must have a valid Nepali passport.
• You must have two recent digital passport photographs.
• You must present a criminal record certificate from the CID of Nepal Police.
• You must have a health insurance policy with a minimum value of €30,000.
• You must have a place to stay. Your accommodation could be the school’s hostel, a rented apartment or an invitation letter from a friend or family who stays in Portugal.
• You must show that you have paid all or part of your tuition fee as stipulated by the school. This requirement will be waived if you have a scholarship, sponsorship letter or any other kind of study grant or funding.
• You must show that you have paid the visa application fees.

Residence Permit for Family Reunification Purposes

If you have a family member who lives in Portugal, you can also apply for a residence permit. Alternatively, if you are in Portugal with a valid residence permit, you can apply for a residence permit on behalf of your family members in Nepal.

For this visa, the primary eligibility requirement that the Portuguese Consulate looks at is the relationship between the person in Portugal and the family member in Nepal.

Not all family members can move to Portugal with the family reunification residence permit. Here are the eligible family members:

• Spouse or de facto partner.
• Under-18 children.
• Adopted children and legal wards below 18.
• Dependent biological children above 18 but have been admitted to study in Portugal.
• Siblings who are under 18 and are legal wards.
• Dependent parents and parents-in-law above the age of 65.

For the family reunification residence permit, you have to show:

• Proof of adequate accommodation in Portugal.
• Completed visa application form.
• Proof the principal applicant in Portugal has enough funds to care for the family members coming over.
• Passport of all the family members who are coming via this route.
• Recent passport photographs of all the family members coming via this route.
• Marriage, adoption or birth certificates that prove there is a genuine relationship between the person in Portugal and the person in Nepal.

Residence Permit for Investment Purposes

You can get a residence permit in Portugal if you have invested in Portugal. This type of residence permit is popularly known as the Golden visa. It was established in 2012 and has drawn many people to Portugal.

You must invest between €200,000 and €500,000 in Portugal to get this residence permit. Your investment must be in an eligible pathway. You must follow one of the following pathways for your residence permit to be approved. The pathways are:

• Investing €400,000 in an existing business and creating a minimum of 8 permanent jobs.
• Investing €500,000 to start a new company and creating a minimum of 10 permanent jobs.
• Investing €200,000 to €400,000 to maintain or restore a cultural heritage or art.
• Investing €400,000 in a tech or scientific research or project that will be carried out in Portugal.

The benefits of this residence permit are many:

• You can bring your family members to Portugal to live or work in Portugal.
• You and your family are free to visit the Schengen area without a visa.
• You can get citizenship or permanent residence after maintaining your investment for 5 years.
• You are not required to pay tax on any income you earn outside Portugal.
• You are required to spend only a mandatory 7 days per year.

The major downsides to this visa are that the Portugal TRC process time is long and the residence permit cost is expensive.

For you to be eligible for this visa, you must have:

• A valid Nepali passport.
• A criminal record certificate issued no later than 3 months.
• A certificate of medical insurance policy worth a minimum of €30000.
• A printed and completed ARI form.
• A proof that you have invested in Portugal.
• A marriage and birth certificate if you are coming with your family.
• A digital passport.
• A receipt that shows you have paid the relevant visa fees.

Special Portuguese Residence Permit

Sometimes, an applicant can get a Portuguese residence permit due to their condition. The Portuguese authorities approve these permits as they deem fit. Here are some of the instances when the Portuguese Consulate can issue a residence permit:

• The applicant has a severe medical condition that needs special treatment from the health services in Portugal.
• The applicant represented the Portuguese Armed Forces in battle.
• The applicant was born abroad to foreign nationals holding a residence permit.
• The applicant spent the first 10 years of their life in Portugal.
• The applicant has been in Portugal since clocking 10 and was born to foreign nationals with valid residence permits.

Submit an Application for the Residency Visa

The application for the residence permit for Portugal is two-fold. First, you must apply for the relevant visa and submit all the required documents. This application is made to the Portuguese Embassy at No 4, Panchsheel Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, India.

Note that the Consulate in Kathmandu is an honorary consulate and does not have the authority to process Portuguese residence permit applications. So, you must visit the Embassy in India to make your application.

The processing time for residency visas is usually 60 days. But this is subject to the workload of the Embassy.

Note that you cannot make an application online. You can print out and complete the application form, fill it out by hand, attach your documents and then schedule an interview. You must attend a physical interview with the Embassy before your application will be processed.

If you are applying for family reunification, your family member in Portugal first starts the application. After they get approval from SEF, you can then proceed with your application.

The same applies to work residence permits. You have to wait for the SEF to approve your employer’s application to the Labour Department before you start your application.

If you succeed with your application, the Embassy will issue you a residency visa valid for 120 days. This visa grants you double entry into Portugal.

Enter Portugal

If you get your residence visa, you can enter Portugal and stay for 120 days. Within these days, schedule a meeting with the SEF. This meeting is another interview to determine whether you will get the residence permit.

Settle in Portugal

If the SEF approves your application, you get a permit that will last for 1 year and is renewable. You must also open a Portuguese account and get an NIF tax identification number. Some residence permits, like the Golden visa, require you to get this before the initial application from your home country.

Apply Online

Employ the services of an expert immigration lawyer or solicitor to apply online for Portuguese citizenship. You cannot apply online without the aid of a lawyer. At Total Law, we have competent lawyers who have applied for Portuguese citizenship on behalf of others. Do not hesitate to contact them to help with yours. Call us at +44 (0)333 305 9375 or message us online.

By Post

You can also make your citizenship application by post. So, gather your documents, download, complete and sign the application form and then send them by post to Conservatória dos Registos Centrais, Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca, 202, 1099-033 Lisbon.

In Person

The last option is to make your application in person. All you have to do is pay the visa fees, gather your documents, download, complete and sign the application form and then submit your documents at any of the application centres below:

• The Nationality desk.
• The Registry spaces in Lisbon.
• The Civic Registry locations in Portugal.
• The Institute of Registration and Notary Affairs (IRN) is in the National Support Centre for the Integration of Migrants (CNAIM). You can find their offices in Lisbon and Porto.
• The Portuguese Consulate or Embassy near you.
• The Citizens’ shop is located at Odivelas.