en 
According to a report by idealista, between January and
mid-June, foreign investors were prevented from submitting their applications
for golden visas due to the unavailability of the online platform. Now, the
platform is back up and running, but the waiting time for appointments – a
necessary step to obtain a visa – has skyrocketed, having more than doubled
since the Covid-19 pandemic. Currently an investor can wait up to 18 months for
a meeting with the SEF.
Faced with this situation, a foreign investor decided to
take the SEF to court and according to idealista, the judge ended up agreeing with
the plaintiff and ordered SEF to speed up his process. This decision is seen as
“an important precedent that can be used as a paradigm to guide the judgment of
similar cases”, Bettino Zanini, the lawyer who led the process, told
idealista/news.
Lawyer Bettino Zanini, an immigration specialist, explained the
process which begins with the application for golden visas being submitted to
the ARI Portal (Residence Authorization for Investment) of SEF. After this, the
application will be analysed by SEF, which had previously taken two to three
months but this is now taking up to eight months according to the lawyer.
Months of waiting
Once the application is approved, investors can schedule a
date at SEF for the delivery of the legally required documentation and the
collection of their biometric data and at this stage, foreign investors could
choose from several dates. But after the pandemic, vacancies became scarce and
now successful candidates wait months until they receive an email to schedule
an appointment.
“The substantial increase in the waiting time between making
the investment and obtaining the residence permit has been one of the factors
that has keep foreigners from investing in Portugal”, said Bettino Zanini.
“The waiting periods between approval and scheduling have
increased considerably”, reports Bettino, noting that the first dates available
at SEF are for almost six months after approval. “Golden visa investors are
looking for a prediction of how long the process might take. And a procedure
that used to take 6 or 8 months, is taking 18 months or more since the Covid-19
pandemic”.
Court tells SEF to
speed up
It was in December 2021 that an English citizen, a client of
Bettino Zanini, decided to invest €350,000 in a real estate investment fund in
Portugal for the purpose of a residence permit. And “he was prepared to wait
eight months until he had his residence permit issued and moved to Portugal
with his family”, said the lawyer in statements to idealista/news. With this
change in mind, the foreign citizen “planned to leave his country of residence
to come and live in Portugal”. Which included renting a house, enrolling his
daughter in a school and leaving the country where he lived.
“Investors choose to invest substantial capital and with
that they expect to be treated with seriousness and predictability”, said
Bettino Zanini.
With the investment made, the investor applied online at the
SEF ARI Portal at the end of 2021 to obtain residency in the country. And it
was from then on deadlines began to slip: “The waiting time for the entire
procedure, which was already long, increased”. After five months, the investor
was still waiting for the approval of the first stage and that was when he
decided to proceed with against SEF.
The case was filed in court on April 11, 2022 and in July,
the lawyer received the judge's final decision: that SEF would have to analyse
and decide on the golden visa application and, if the application met all the required
criteria, then SEF would have to make an appointment available for the investor
and his family within 10 days, so that they could deliver all the required documentation
and collect the biometric data. “The client was very satisfied with the
decision rendered by the Administrative Court of Lisbon”, the lawyer told idealista/news.
How does this affect
other Golden Visa applications?
Asked whether the court's position on this golden visa
process can be applied to other similar processes, Bettino Zanini said that the
"decision applies only to this case". But “this is an important
precedent that can be used as a paradigm to guide the judgment of similar
cases”.
The case is also seen as a warning to the authorities to
look at the long waiting times that investors face, because this “is very
harmful to this program that aims to attract foreign investment in Portugal and
boost the economy of the country”.
Also highlighted by idealista is the amount of money that foreign
citizens have to pay to gain access to residence permits. “Each investor pays
almost €6,000 in fees for the issuance of their residence permits, which is
much higher than other types of residence permits, [but] in return they receive
a lower quality service with much longer delays than others cases”.
Originally from the UK, Daisy has been living and working in Portugal for more than 20 years. She has worked in PR, marketing and journalism, and has been the editor of The Portugal News since 2019. Jornalista 7920
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Why do people going for the golden visa think they are so special they should be treated as a special cases and jump the queue, they should be treated the same as any other person that wants to live in Portugal.
By Alan M from Algarve on 10 Aug 2022, 08:34
@AlanM, the article is not about people thinking they've a special entitlement to queue jumping, but about a SEF appointment for the issuance of a residence visa being conducted within a reasonable time delay. There is no reference in the article to any other type of migrant seeking residence, only the process for a Golden visa being too long, which is what the Tribunal ruled on. So your attempt to stoke class war fails miserably, quite aside from being totally off topic.
By Billy Bissett from Porto on 10 Aug 2022, 10:21
After I year wait We went to driving licence office in Faro Took photos
Gave up our foreign licences and was told in the post in two weeks I recieved mine 6 months later and many many emails and phone calls to Algarve services My husband still hasnt recieved his What is going on with all these terrible terrible inefficient people ?????
By Linda from Algarve on 10 Aug 2022, 11:01
I think SEF thinks the same as the majority of the portuguese. It is immoral and should be unlawful to give a resident permit to a foreign just because he or she has money, while other foreigners working in the country, who do not earn enough to buy a house, have to wait at least 5 years. The argument of predictability and fast track for foreign "investors" compared to foreign workers, is a non-sense. Citizen rights should be equal to everyone.
At these pseudo investors are not investing in anyone else than themselves, their families and their properties. While the poor workers waiting 5 years are the ones contributing in fact to the economy. The pseudo-investors are only inflating the house market, which is already overpriced by a large margin for portuguese incomes, and so only a few young-adult nationals will ever be able to buy their own home.
By AF from Algarve on 10 Aug 2022, 12:42
@AlanM, the queue for golden visa applicants is separate and substantially longer than the queue for other visa types. If you move to Portugal on a D7 visa, you have your biometrics interview within ~3 months of arrival, get a paper document confirming your residency *at* the biometrics interview, and get your plastic card a few weeks later. Golden Visa applicants have to wait around a year for the biometrics interview, and then around another 6 months after the biometrics interview for a decision to be made. This isn't about asking for "special" treatment, it's about asking for fair treatment. Not to mention that officially, according to the law "The application for a residence permit shall be decided within 60 days." (Article 82 of Act 23/2007 of July 4).
By Ian F from USA on 10 Aug 2022, 16:48
@billyb Had you read the article correctly, Taking sef to court was to get his visa faster so queue jumping.
Faced with this situation, a foreign investor decided to take the SEF to court and according to idealista, the judge ended up agreeing with the plaintiff and ordered SEF to speed up his process.
By AlanM from Algarve on 10 Aug 2022, 16:58
Would be nice if this process could be used for construction and habitation licenses. I am waiting close to 5 years now just on that. Had the luck that the person doing my case became pregnant and during her absence of almost 2 years, my file did not move. if something like a fire happens, the renovated property, which is actually illegal as the license to build still is not there, the insurance covers almost nothing. My risk, another 2 or 3 years? Using the Silves district office.
By Steven Earles from Algarve on 10 Aug 2022, 18:15
You need connections in SEF in order to get things done...The right attorney and SEF agent milking the system means you get your little card...Just like paying to have a buisness show up on google on the very top...You pay to play...The Portuguese are masters at this type of game...Boa Sorte...
By sakamoto saurez from Lisbon on 11 Aug 2022, 08:52
I think UK nationals should be excluded from that scheme as a lot rich voted for Brexit and now use this loophole to move here. Its a shame, as young Brits who are in favour of EU can not afford this and would like to have a nice time in Europe to live and work here, but it's not longer possible. Therefore this nonsense should end.
By Marius from Madeira on 11 Aug 2022, 10:08
Good article and well writen. Unfortunately it has to be remembered that winning a judgment in Portugal may not always result in a speedy implementation.
For me, I also find the article thought provoking. I love living in Portugal and therefore feel I must comply and accept the way things are done here, despite the frustration that may cause.
For all us expats peace of mind is getting our residence, and not having it weighs heavily on the minds of many.
The 'Brexit protocol' used by the SEF has to be adopted by the local municipality so I was told.
I do not know if the municipality has to make a payment with the adoption? But the general consensus is that the roll out process has stalled.
Therefore the SEF's advice to me was to continue using your temporary resident document.
Which leaves the big unanswered question. How many years equals temporary in Portugal?
By Gerry Ward from Alentejo on 11 Aug 2022, 10:31
Portugal is notorious for its unnecessary and time consuming bureaucracy. As a nation it aspires to greater things, but it will never attain its goals until it sees that this rotten attitude is holding it back and decides to do something about it.
By Paolito from Algarve on 11 Aug 2022, 13:34
It’s about time SEF showed some respect for Brexiteers and immediately issue Golden Visa’s, rather than trying to punish us for leaving their silly club run by unelected burocrats in Brussels. I say stop acting above your station and do your job!
By Mark Barber from Algarve on 11 Aug 2022, 19:13
it’s bugger all to do with Brexit. All nationalities are affected. Those who seek to blame everything, including COVID, Monkeypox, Ukraine War, sky rocketing inflation and Adele, on BREXIT, need to get a ruddy life. Move on you sad sacks!
By Ian from Other on 12 Aug 2022, 07:20
@AF actually the Golden Visa is more expensive and takes much longer to process than the ordinary D7 visa that most foreigners hold. And we have to wait 5 years before receiving permanent residency just like everyone else. The benefit is I don't have to stay in Portugal for 6 months each year for it to be valid, which gives me flexibility to take care of my aging parents. And as to being a "pseudo-investor", I have 350,000 Euros invested in tech startups in Lisbon employing dozens of people. It is very easy to mouth platitudes about 'equal rights' but golden visas are not the cause of Portugal's problems, and many of us are making worthwhile contributions to the economy and community.
By Jack from Lisbon on 12 Aug 2022, 11:42
Unfortunately with the SEF political turmoil after the Ukrainian was killed in custody everyone has been affected.
By John Jones from Lisbon on 16 Aug 2022, 14:21
How does this not become a legal precedent making it binding on all other golden visa applicants who chose to believe the undertakings given by the authorities that a biometric interview would have to happen within 60 days and the expectation that the right to reside would be granted within 6 months?. He and many others chose to invest in the Portuguese golden visa when others were available. A decision to invest in Portugal was in a large part based on the understanding given regarding the timeline as Portugal offered the quickest route to PM and potential citizenship of all golden visa on offer but the indefinite delays and the unmanageable situation resulting from effectively trapping applicants inside Portugal would almost certainly have changed the decision for a large number of applicants who chose to move to Portugal immediately.
Good luck to the fella but given the only difference is he was fortunate to find a competent lawyer who is not too lazy or complicit with the scam to actually fight his case and win should open the same door to everyone else otherwise he gets to jump the line ahead of me and others in the same position. What’s good for him is good for other golden visa applicants who chose to reside in Portugal.
Timing is less important who have no intention of living in Portugal but doesn’t negate their case for having their investment tied up far longer than they were told to expect and any other matters that stem from a reasonable reliance on the offer of terms provided by the Portuguese authorities initially.
By Jay from Algarve on 25 Aug 2022, 16:24