In return for the investment made in Portugal, the beneficiary of ARI is entitled to:

• Resident visa exemption to enter Portugal;
• Living and working in Portugal, while maintaining residence in another country;
• Visa exemption for travelling within the Schengen Area;
• Family reunification;
• Obtain permanent residence (after 5 years and in the terms and conditions set out by the legislation in force);
• Acquiring Portuguese citizenship (after 6 years and in the terms and conditions set out by the legislation in force);

All third country citizens who conduct an investment activity, as an individual businessperson or through a company set up in Portugal or in another EU Member State and who, in addition, is stably settled in Portugal, provided that these citizens fulfil the quantitative requirements and the time requirements set out by the relevant legislation.

The ARI legal mechanism does not apply to individuals with Portuguese citizenship and to EU and EEE citizens.

Where the investment is made through a company, only the proportion of the capital actually invested by the applicant of ARI shall be ascribable to him / her.

Applicants may apply to swap from one requirement to another, subject to the condition of reinvesting the capital within a maximum period of three months, from the moment where they formally abandon the first investment.

No. The Portuguese State has no bona fide intermediaries; either Portuguese or foreigner to act on its behalf with regards the administration of ARI applications.

The following are considered conventional relatives:

• Spouse;

• Minor children and incapacitated children under the custody of the couple or of one spouse;

• Children who have been adopted by an unmarried applicant, or by a married applicant or by his / her spouse, provided such adoption was authorized by the relevant authority of the country of origin and has the same legal effects to those of natural children, and that such decision is recognised in Portugal;

• Children of age, who are dependent on both or one parent, provided they are single and studying in a teaching establishment in Portugal;

• First degree ascendants (parents) of the applicant or of the spouse, provided they are dependant;

• Minor siblings, under the custody of the applicant by order of a legal decision by the relevant authorities of the country of origin, if such order is recognised in Portugal.

The following are considered relatives resulting from non-marital partnership:

• Life partner, with registered partnership under the law, either in national territory or abroad;

• Minor, single or incapacitated children, including children who have been adopted by the life-partner who has been given legal custody over those children.

Family reunification can be applied for at a Regional Directorate or Delegation of the Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) from your area of residence.

Family reunification can be applied for at the same time as the ARI title, or at a later stage, according to the preference of the investor. In any case, it is always dependent on the decision on the application of ARI.

The fiscal regime of investors who are in Portugal under the ARI scheme depends on the individual conditions of each investor and must be properly assessed by specialized tax advisors dully accredited to that effect by the Portugal Tax Office.