Portugal’s Golden Visa programme is seeing less interest from foreign investors after the government changed the rules for getting citizenship.

From May this year, most Golden Visa holders must now wait 10 years before they can apply for Portuguese citizenship. Earlier, the waiting period was 5 years. The government introduced this change as part of its plan to manage rising immigration, as the number of foreign residents in Portugal has reached its highest level.

The new rule has already affected investor confidence. According to reports, many people have decided not to continue with their investment plans.

Pedro Lino, CEO of Optimize Investment Partners, said that around 40 investors, mainly from the United States and Asia, have withdrawn nearly €20 million from one of Portugal’s leading Golden Visa investment funds since the start of the year. He also explained that fewer new investors joined the fund before the new rule came into effect.

The company received around €50 million in new investments during the first five months of 2026, compared to €80 million during the same period last year. This shows that interest in the programme has slowed.

Lino said the longer waiting period has reduced investor confidence and also affected Portugal’s reputation as a popular destination for residency through investment.

Portugal launched its Golden Visa programme in 2012 during the financial crisis. Since then, it has attracted more than €7 billion in foreign investment and has become one of Europe’s most well-known residency-by-investment programmes.

At present, applicants can qualify by investing at least €500,000 in an approved investment fund or by donating €200,000 or more to a recognised cultural non-profit organisation. Golden Visa holders are also required to spend only about seven days each year in Portugal to keep their residency status.

Some investors have decided to leave the programme because of the longer wait. Benjamin Trotter, a technology entrepreneur from Austin, Texas, said he withdrew his application after learning that he would now have to wait another 10 years for citizenship, even though he was only a few months away from qualifying under the previous rules.

However, not everyone has changed their plans.

Jim Davis, a geologist from Texas, said he is still happy with his decision to apply through the donation option. Although he knows the citizenship process will now take longer, he believes Portugal is still a great place to live and sees the programme as a valuable long-term backup plan.

The latest changes show that while Portugal’s Golden Visa programme continues to attract some investors, the longer path to citizenship has made others think twice before investing.

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