In June 2024, the Portuguese government created an action plan to change the country's immigration rules.

Now, foreigners interested in residing for work will first need to apply for a consular visa in their country of residence before traveling to Portugal.

A Via Portugal has always encouraged foreigners who want to live in Portugal to apply for a consular visa before traveling to Portugal, thus avoiding all the inconveniences of becoming illegal and having to enter into a very lengthy legalization process.

As of June 2024, the Expression of Interest (EOI) will no longer be accepted, with the publication of the Migration Action Plan, which establishes 40 measures to regulate and supervise immigration in Portugal.

The changes came into force on the day of publication. The Expression of Interest was a way of legalizing foreigners who entered Portugal as tourists, but in order to do so, they had to meet certain requirements such as obtaining an employment contract and making deductions from the country's social security system for 12 months, as Richard Lawrence, CEO of Via Portugal, explains.

The aim of the new rules is to ease the operational capacity of the Integration, Migration and Asylum Agency (AIMA) and to secure the border control system. The new measure affects all countries that are not part of the European Union.

Before the change, those arriving in Portugal from countries outside the European Union with a tourist visa were able to apply for a residence permit through the MI procedure.

"The MI was just a protocol for the request for

a possible future visa. That's why it wasn't

indicated to those who were in MI to leave the country, because

there was a possibility that his

return, says Lawrence."

Changes

For those who are already in Portugal and have a visa, there are no changes. The rules also remain the same for those who are in Europe and have already started the application process before June 3rd of this year. However, those who have not submitted an Expression of Interest by June 3 will be affected by the changes.

In the latter case, one of the measures published in the Plan is the regularization of the Expression of Interest procedure, which has more than 400,000 pending processes, explains Krishna Brunoni, COO of Via Portugal, a European citizenship consultancy firm.

In regularization, those who are already immigrants living in Portugal have the option of starting the process to legalize and formalize their residence in the country.

According to Brunoni, the Portuguese authorities want to prioritize the regularization of people in the process of family reunion, citizens of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP)qualified professionals and students.

What about the Brazilians?

Portugal has the second largest Brazilian community outside the country, second only to the United States. There were 360,000 Brazilians in the European country, according to Itamaraty estimates in 2022, compared to 1.9 million in the USA. Brazilians are part of the CPLP.

With the changes in the action plan, at least for the time being, Community members interested in working in Portugal must apply for a work visa, applied for and approved at the Portuguese Consulate in their country of origin.

This is because one of the priority measures of the Migration Action Plan, launched last Monday, is to strengthen the CPLP Mobility Agreement. MOBILITY AGREEMENTwhich benefited many Brazilians when it came to formalizing their residence in Portugal, but there are still no updates on whether there will be any changes to this form of immigration.

That's why experts recommend that you apply for the visa that best suits your needs. Depending on the visa, different documents are requested, such as an employment contract, a specific application form and insurance, for example.

Talk to a Via Portugal consultant and get advice on your case.

For the time being, as there is no possibility of an Expression of Interest, Brazilians and other foreigners can apply for a Residence Permit, which allows them to live and work in the country, or other work visas. Once the visa has been granted, there is a period of time for the applicant to arrive in Portugal and undergo an interview with AIMA in order to have their residence permit granted.

Step by step

In order to enter Portugal legally and without future problems, you need to understand the visa required for each case according to the person's needs, as there are specific visas for each type of immigration:

• D1 visa (visas for subordinate or independent work);
• D2 visa (Entrepreneurial Emigrants);
• D3 visa (Highly Qualified Work).

The first thing to note is that experts do not recommend going to a country on a tourist visa to try to change to another one.

"Don't come in this situation anymore. If even here

could file an MI to become legal,

Today there is no longer that possibility.

A consular visa é mandatory for anyone

wants to reside legally in Portugal,

Brunoni points out."

Work visas vary depending on the length of stay in Portugal, such as for short periods, seasonal work and long periods, depending on the contract that has been signed. Understand each one:

• Subordinate professional activity: This is intended for immigrants whose employment contract is valid for a period of more than 9 months under a subordinate regime, i.e. the worker must belong to the staff of the contracting company regardless of the area in which they will work;

• Independent activity: The employment contract must be valid for a period of more than 9 months under the service provision regime, i.e. the worker will not belong to the staff of a contracting company, thus carrying out an independent professional activity;

• EntrepreneursEntrepreneurship: grants residence permits to foreigners who have made investment operations in Portugal such as opening a business in various areas such as construction, a shoe store, a market, among others.

There are other types of residence visa in Portugal, which you can check at Via Portugal which is best for you.

You can always make an consultation with one of Via Portugal's consultants, says Brunoni.

For those interested in living and working in Portugalmust first sapply for the appropriate visa at the Portuguese Consulate in the country of origin. Lawrence emphasizes that travel to the country should only take place after the visa has been issued by the Consulate.

The most popular residence visas in Portugal are:

Study or Internship Visa
✔ Work Visa

Work search visa

✔ CPLP Visa
✔ Entrepreneur Visa
✔ Self-Employed or Retired Visa
✔ Golden Visa
✔ Startup Visa

Want advice on visas? 

Follow the link: VIA PORTUGAL

To reside legally in Portugal, you must apply for a visa before traveling to Portugal. 

You'll find out with the Orientation: 

What types of visas are available;
Which visa is right for you;
What are the procedures;
What are the steps for obtaining a visa; 

Instagram: @vp_viaportugal
Email: viaportugal@veportugal.com

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