What is Startup Visa Portugal?

The Startup Visa Portugal is a way of encouraging entrepreneurship in the country. This visa, created in 2018, offers a residence permit in the country to citizens from outside the European Union who want to open an innovative company in Portugal. The Startup Visa in Portugal takes place in two stages. The first is dedicated to certifying the incubators that will receive the new companies in their physical spaces and provide support to entrepreneurs so that they can enter the Portuguese business ecosystem. The Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation is responsible for analyzing and selecting these incubators to ensure that they really are able to help immigrant entrepreneurs. This registration takes place during a certain period of the year, usually from January to February. Then the Startup Visa de Portugal process begins for the entrepreneurs themselves. You can apply to take part in this selection throughout the year, as long as you meet the visa's prerequisites, which we'll talk about below.

Anyone who has already had a company in their home country for less than four years and wants to internationalize their activities can apply for Portugal's Startup Visa. Those who don't yet have an open company but intend to develop their project directly in the country are also candidates for the visa. In other words, any entrepreneur can apply for the Startup Visa in Portugal, as long as they meet the required criteria. In addition, each visa can be issued to up to 5 entrepreneurs per application, meaning that if you have up to 4 partners, they are all eligible to reside in the country.

• Cannot be from the European Union
  

Anyone who is a citizen of an EU country cannot apply for a Startup Visa in Portugal.

• No residence in the Schengen Area
  

To apply for the Startup Visa in Portugal, you must not have acquired the right to reside permanently in one of the Schengen area countries.

• No criminal record
• Be over 18
• Members must be able to support themselves

To get a Startup Visa in Portugal, you need to prove that you can support yourself in the country until your company starts generating income. To do this, each partner must have an amount equivalent to 5265.72€, which is 12 times the Social Support Index for 2020. 

• Projects focused on technology and knowledge
  

In addition, your company's projects must aim to develop innovative products or services.

• Interest from incubators
  

To be accepted onto the Startup Visa, one of the incubators certified for this visa process must show interest in incubating your project.

• Potential for job creation
  

Your business proposal must have the potential to create skilled jobs in the country, beyond its founding partners, in the long term.

• Financial potential
  

The company you intend to develop during the visa process must have the potential to generate a turnover of over €325,000 per year within 5 years of the start of the incubation process.

• Prospects for settling in Portugal
  

The program gives priority to companies that can remain in the country even after the Startup Visa in Portugal ends.

• The criteria must continue to be met
  

The required criteria must be met at the time of the visa application and may be required to continue to be met throughout the duration of the project.