Portugal D7 Visa: Requirements, Income and How to Apply

The Portugal D7 visa, often called Portugal’s retirement visa or passive income visa, is a residence visa for people who live on their own income: a pension, rent, dividends, interest or royalties.

To qualify in 2026, you need at least €920 a month for yourself, plus €460 for a spouse or partner and €276 for each child, along with a recent criminal record certificate, travel insurance and somewhere to live in Portugal. You also need about a year of that income in savings, in a Portuguese bank account.

You get a four-month visa, then a two-year residence permit you renew for three years at a time. After five years you can apply for permanent residency, with proof of A2 Portuguese, and after 10 years of residency you become eligible to apply for Portuguese citizenship, as long as you actually live in Portugal.

Portugal D7 visa requirements at a glance

Minimum income	€920 a month (2026), about $1,028 or £767, in passive income
Savings	12 months of the income figure, €11,040 for one person, in a Portuguese bank account
First permit	A 4-month residence visa, then a 2-year residence permit
Renewable?	Yes, for 3 years at a time
Apply from inside Portugal?	No, only at a consulate or visa center abroad
Leads to permanent residency?	Yes, after 5 years, with proof of A2 Portuguese: a national permanent permit or EU long-term resident status
Leads to citizenship?	Yes. You’re eligible to apply after 10 years of legal residence, or 7 if you’re a citizen of a Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) country such as Brazil
Special tax regime	No. The NHR regime is closed, and its replacement, IFICI, only covers income from specific kinds of work in Portugal
Work in Portugal later?	Yes, once you hold the residence permit

What can and can’t you do on the D7 visa?

You can:

• Live in Portugal on a pension or other passive income, renewing your permit while you meet the conditions
• Bring your spouse or partner, children and dependent parents, with extra income for each person
• Work in Portugal, employed or self-employed, once you have your residence permit
• Use Portugal’s national health service once you’re a resident
• Travel in the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180
• Apply for permanent residency after five years, with proof of A2 Portuguese, and become eligible to apply for citizenship after 10

You can’t:

• Count a remote work salary toward the income test. That’s what the D8 digital nomad visa is for
• Apply from inside Portugal as a visitor
• Leave Portugal for more than six months in a row, or eight months in total during a permit, without good reason, or you risk losing the permit
• Use the NHR tax regime, which is closed to newcomers

Who can apply for the Portugal D7 visa?

The D7 is open to citizens of countries outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, including the US and the UK. Portugal’s foreign ministry lists it as a visa for three groups:

• Retirees, with a pension from any country, such as US Social Security, a 401(k) or IRA, or a UK state, workplace or private pension
• People living on their own income, from property, investments, or intellectual property such as royalties
• Religious workers, which this guide doesn’t cover

You don’t have to be retired, and there’s no minimum age. The test is that the income comes from something you own, not from work you’re doing now. If your income is a salary or freelance fees, look at the D8 digital nomad visa instead.

The income also has to be “stable and regular”. The UK visa centers ask for income that has reached you for at least three months before you apply, with evidence of its source and how often it’s paid.

How much income do you need for the Portugal D7 visa?

You need at least Portugal’s monthly minimum wage, which is €920 in 2026, after any social security deductions. Each extra adult in your family adds 50% and each child adds 30%.

Family	Income a month	Income a year
Just you	€920 (about $1,028 / £767)	€11,040
You and a spouse or partner	€1,380 (about $1,542 / £1,151)	€16,560
Couple and one child	€1,656 (about $1,850 / £1,381)	€19,872
Couple and two children	€1,932 (about $2,158 / £1,611)	€23,184

Dollar and pound figures use the European Central Bank’s reference rates for 30 October 2026.

The figure moves every January, when Portugal raises the minimum wage. The government plans to raise it to €970 in 2027, which would make the D7 figure €11,640 a year for one person. That isn’t law yet, so if you apply in 2027, check the new figure on the foreign ministry’s means of subsistence page.

Treat €920 as the floor, not a target. It’s Portugal’s minimum wage, and it doesn’t go far once you’re paying rent, especially in Lisbon, Porto or the Algarve. Consulates decide what counts as stable and regular income, and an income that only just clears €920 can still be refused if it doesn’t look enough to live on. The more clearly your income clears the line each month, and the more savings you can show, the easier your file is to approve.

Earning from work rather than investments? The Portable Income Launchpad is a six-week program for experienced professionals turning their expertise into remote income that meets a visa threshold like the D8’s €3,680.

Do you need savings for the D7 visa?

Yes. The law sets the minimum income, and the visa centers ask you to show both the income and a year’s worth of it in the bank:

• US: the visa center checklist asks for means covering at least 12 months, which is 12 times the minimum wage, €11,040 for one person, plus 50% for each extra adult and 30% for each child. Your pension or other income also has to be available in Portugal, usually through a Portuguese bank account.
• UK: the March 2026 checklist asks for three months of bank statements showing your declared income arriving, and a recent Portuguese bank statement showing at least €11,040 for a single applicant, with your Portuguese tax number (NIF).

You’ll need a NIF to open the Portuguese account, so get one early.

What health insurance do you need?

For the visa, you need travel insurance that covers medical expenses, urgent medical care and repatriation. The UK visa centers want it to cover the full 120 days from your planned entry. Eligible British pensioners can use an S1 form instead, certified by the relevant authorities.

When the consulate grants the visa, it also gives you a pre-authorization with provisional Portuguese tax, social security and national health service numbers.

Bring health insurance that’s valid in Portugal to your appointment with AIMA, Portugal’s immigration agency, in case it asks. AIMA doesn’t list it for this permit, and travel insurance is built for trips, not residence.

Can you bring your family on the D7 visa?

Yes, and the timing matters more since October 2025.

Apply together. Your spouse or partner, children under 18, dependent adult children studying in Portugal, and dependent parents of you or your spouse can apply for their own residence visas at the same time as you. You need proof of the family relationship and enough income for everyone, at the rates in the table above. Portugal’s foreigners law and foreign ministry treat this as a separate route from family reunification.

Family reunification later. If your family joins you after you’ve moved, they use family reunification, and Law 61/2025 changed it. You now need to have held your residence permit for two years before you can apply. The exceptions:

• Children under 18, or dependents who can’t legally look after themselves, can join you without the wait, and so can your spouse or partner if they’re the child’s other parent
• If you and your spouse or partner lived together for at least 18 months right before you moved, the wait drops to 15 months

For reunification you also need suitable housing and enough income to support everyone without social benefits, and family members have to take Portuguese language and civic training, and children have to attend school, for their permits to be renewed. AIMA has nine months to decide.

If your family is moving with you, apply together.

How long does the D7 last, and can you renew it?

The residence visa lets you into Portugal twice within four months. In that time you go to an AIMA appointment and apply for your residence permit.

The first residence permit lasts two years. You then renew it for three years at a time. Apply for renewal at least 30 days before your permit expires. To renew, you need to show you still have enough income and somewhere to live, and that you’re up to date with Portuguese tax and social security. Your renewal receipt counts as your residence document for 60 days, and that can be extended.

You have to actually live in Portugal. AIMA can cancel a temporary permit if you’re away for six months in a row, or eight months in total during the permit’s validity, without good reason. You can ask AIMA to approve a longer absence before you leave, and the law makes an exception if you were working, running a business, or doing cultural or social work abroad.

There’s no rule that you must spend 183 days a year in Portugal to keep the permit. The test is the absence limit above. 183 days matters for tax, below.

How are you taxed in Portugal on the D7?

Once you live in Portugal you’ll almost certainly be a Portuguese tax resident. That happens if you spend more than 183 days a year there, or have your habitual home there. Portugal then taxes your worldwide income, including pensions, at progressive rates. For 2026 they run from 12.5% on the first €8,342 of taxable income to 48% on income above €86,634.

The NHR regime is closed to newcomers, so the tax break that made the D7 popular with retirees is gone. Its replacement, IFICI, gives a 20% rate on income from specific kinds of work in Portugal, such as higher education and research or jobs at certified startups. It’s no help if you’re living on a pension or investments.

Portugal has tax treaties with both the US and the UK, which decide which country taxes each kind of pension and investment income. The UK and Portugal signed a new treaty in 2025, which applies from 2026, so older guides on UK pensions in Portugal may be out of date. US citizens also keep filing US tax returns wherever they live, including an FBAR report if your foreign accounts add up to more than $10,000 at any point in the year, and a FATCA report above higher thresholds. Talk to a cross-border tax adviser before you move, because the treaty rules can change what you pay a lot.

Does the D7 lead to permanent residency or citizenship?

Yes. After five years, you can choose between two permanent statuses. Both need proof of basic Portuguese, which AIMA accepts as a certificate at A2 level, the upper beginner level, or above.

National permanent residence permit. You need to have held temporary residence permits for at least five years, have no prison sentences adding up to more than a year in that time, and show enough income, somewhere to live and proof of A2 Portuguese. AIMA can cancel it if you’re away for 24 months in a row, or 30 months in any three years, without good reason.

EU long-term resident status. You need five years of legal, unbroken residence, stable and regular income, health insurance, somewhere to live and proof of A2 Portuguese. It also gives you the right to apply to live in most other EU countries, on the conditions each one sets.

Citizenship. Lei Orgânica 1/2026 changed the rules for applications made from 19 May 2026. You’re now eligible to apply after 10 years of legal residence, or 7 years if you’re a citizen of a Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) country such as Brazil. That means 10 years for US and UK citizens. You can add separate periods of legal residence together if they fall within 12 years. You also need:

• Enough Portuguese, proven by a test or certificate, currently at A2 level, the upper beginner level
• A test or certificate showing you know Portuguese culture, history and national symbols
• Knowledge of citizens’ rights and duties and how the Portuguese state works
• A formal statement that you support democratic principles
• Proof you can support yourself
• No prison sentence of more than three years for serious crimes

Applications already pending on 19 May 2026 are assessed under the old law, which needed five years. Portugal doesn’t ask you to give up your current nationality when you naturalize, and the UK allows dual nationality. If you’re a US citizen, check how US rules apply to you.

You need A2 Portuguese for permanent residency and for citizenship. To prove it, you can pass an exam such as the CIPLE, or complete a government-approved course such as Português Língua de Acolhimento (PLA), which is usually free for residence permit holders.

How do you apply for the Portugal D7 visa?

You apply at the Portuguese consulate or visa center that covers where you live, then finish the process with AIMA in Portugal.

From the US

Where you apply depends on the state you live in. VFS Global runs visa centers for Portugal in Washington DC, New York, San Francisco, Houston and Miami, and the consulates in Boston, Newark, New Bedford and Providence cover their own areas. Check the jurisdiction list on VFS Global’s US site before you book.

1. Get a NIF and open a Portuguese bank account.
2. Move your savings in. Plan on 12 months of the income figure, €11,040 for one person, and set up your pension or other income so it can be paid into Portugal.
3. Get an FBI Identity History Summary if you’ve lived in the US for more than a year. It must be issued less than 90 days before you apply, and apostilled, so leave time for the apostille inside those 90 days.
4. Arrange accommodation and travel insurance.
5. Gather the rest: the national visa form, two photos, your passport valid for three months after your planned return, proof of your pension or other income, and a signed personal statement on why you’re moving and where you’ll live.
6. Submit at your VFS appointment. The visa fee is $127.11 plus a VFS service fee of $43.91. Most centers take cards, but San Francisco wants the visa fee by money order or cashier’s check.

From the UK

You apply through VFS Global. The London center covers London, the South East, the South West and East Anglia. The Manchester center, and a satellite center in Edinburgh, cover the North, the Midlands, Scotland and Northern Ireland. VFS’s county lists don’t mention Wales, so if you live there, ask the London consulate.

1. Get a NIF and open a Portuguese bank account, then move in your savings: at least €11,040 for one person.
2. Get an ACRO police certificate with a paper apostille from the FCDO’s Legalisation Office. It has to be an ACRO certificate, and ACRO certificates can’t get an e-Apostille. The paper apostille costs £45 and takes up to 25 working days. The March 2026 UK checklist wants the certificate issued within the last 90 days.
3. Arrange accommodation. The UK checklist accepts property deeds in your name, a lease of at least 12 months registered with Portugal’s tax office, or a certified term of responsibility from a host.
4. Arrange travel insurance for 120 days, or an S1 form.
5. Gather the rest: the national visa form, two photos, your passport valid for at least 90 days beyond the 120-day visa period, and your income evidence. That’s three months of statements showing the income arriving, plus a recent statement from your Portuguese bank showing the savings. Add pension statements if you’re retired, or leases, deeds or dividend vouchers for investment income.
6. Submit at your VFS appointment. You pay the €110 visa fee, charged in pounds, plus a VFS service fee of £32.85. Manchester and Edinburgh don’t take cash.

If you’re not a UK or US citizen, you also need proof of your legal residence in the country where you apply.

After the visa

Once you have the visa, travel to Portugal within its four-month window and apply for your residence permit at an AIMA appointment. The UK checklist says you book this yourself. If your visa doesn’t come with an appointment, request one through AIMA’s online contact form: choose “Autorização de Residência”, then “Autorização de Residência com Visto Consular (Não CPLP)”.

Can you apply from inside Portugal?

No. You need the residence visa from a consulate in the country where you live before you can apply to AIMA.

How much does the D7 visa cost?

Fee	Amount
Residence visa	€110 ($127.11 at US visa centers)
VFS service fee	$43.91 in the US, £32.85 in the UK
AIMA residence permit, first or renewal	€114.30
AIMA residence card	€79.10
AIMA processing fee	€133, charged on renewals, family reunification and permanent permits
AIMA permanent residence permit	€351.10, plus processing and card

AIMA’s amounts come from its official fee table, last updated in February 2026. The table doesn’t say clearly whether the €133 processing fee applies to a first D7 permit, so budget up to about €330 a person for your first card. On top of these, budget for your criminal record check and apostille, translations and insurance. A lawyer is optional.

How long does the D7 take?

Plan on several months from start to finish.

• Before you apply: getting a NIF, a bank account, a lease and an apostilled criminal record can take weeks. Start with the criminal record timing in mind, because it has to be less than 90 days old when you apply.
• The visa: the consulate has 60 days by law to decide.
• The residence permit: AIMA has 90 days to decide once you’ve applied, which it can extend. Getting the appointment can take weeks or months, so request it as soon as you arrive.

Why do D7 applications get refused?

The law lets consulates and AIMA refuse you for a conviction for a crime that carries more than a year in prison in Portugal, an entry ban or Schengen alert, or not enough means, insurance or accommodation. In practice, check these:

• Income that’s really from work, such as a salary or freelance fees, presented as passive income
• Income below €920 a month, or below the family total once you add your spouse and children
• Income that only just clears the minimum, with little savings behind it, so it doesn’t look enough to live on in Portugal
• Income with no clear trail from its source to your bank account
• No savings in a Portuguese account when your visa center expects them
• A short or informal lease. Bring a lease of at least 12 months that’s registered with the Portuguese tax office, property deeds, or a host’s certified term of responsibility
• A criminal record certificate older than 90 days
• A missing document at your AIMA appointment

What applicants report

These points come from two applicants who wrote about their own D7 applications between December 2025 and July 2026, one applying in the UK and one through the San Francisco consulate.

• Your visa center checks documents closely. A UK applicant at VFS Manchester had his first visit turned away because his ACRO certificate lacked proof it was genuine. On his second visit he was asked for a newer, full official statement from his Portuguese bank, and screenshots and ATM printouts weren’t accepted.
• The AIMA appointment is the slow part. The UK applicant waited weeks for an AIMA date while his visa was close to expiring. An applicant who got their visa from the San Francisco consulate in June 2025 had no AIMA appointment with it and no reply from AIMA, and only got one, for February 2026, after taking AIMA to court.
• AIMA can ask for more. A week after his appointment, AIMA asked the UK applicant for an extra apostilled, translated document that wasn’t on the official list, with 10 working days to send it.

Sources for this section: Tomorrow magazine, June 2026 and July 2026, and Nomad Gate community, December 2025.

Who this visa suits

The D7 is still the cheapest way into Portugal for anyone living on a pension or investment income. €920 a month is lower than the income bar for any digital nomad visa on this site, and it leads to permanent residency after five years, as long as you can prove A2 Portuguese.

It suits you if you want to live in Portugal most of the year. It’s a poor fit if you want a second base and plan to spend long stretches elsewhere, because AIMA can cancel the permit after six months away. If that’s you, look at Portugal’s Golden Visa instead. It costs far more, usually from €500,000 in a qualifying fund, but you only need to spend about seven days a year in Portugal to keep your residency rights, and it leads to permanent residency after five years too, with the same A2 Portuguese requirement.

Two things have changed that matter for planning. Portugal ended the NHR tax break, so your pension is taxed at normal Portuguese rates. And US and UK citizens now need 10 years of residency to become eligible to apply for citizenship, up from five.

If your family is coming, apply together, because joining you later now means a two-year wait for most adults.

What I’d check first: whether your passive income clears €920 a month, plus the extra for each family member, every month and in a way a consulate can trace back to its source.

How does the D7 compare with Portugal’s other residence routes?

	D7	D8 digital nomad visa	Golden Visa
What you need	€920 a month in passive income	€3,680 a month from remote work	An investment, usually from €500,000 in a qualifying fund
Time away allowed	Up to 6 months in a row, or 8 in total per permit	Up to 6 months in a row, or 8 in total per permit	Only about 7 days a year in Portugal needed
First permit	4-month visa, then 2-year permit	4-month visa, then 2-year permit	2-year permit
Family joining later	2-year wait, with exceptions	2-year wait, with exceptions	No wait
Leads to permanent residency?	Yes, after 5 years, with A2 Portuguese	Yes, after 5 years, with A2 Portuguese	Yes, after 5 years, with A2 Portuguese

For more countries, see our digital nomad visas page.

FAQ

How much money do you need for the Portugal D7 visa?

At least €920 a month in passive income in 2026, plus €460 for a spouse or partner and €276 for each child. Visa centers in the US and the UK also expect savings of 12 months of the income figure, €11,040 for one person, in a Portuguese bank account.

Is the D7 the same as Portugal’s retirement visa?

Yes. The D7 is the visa usually called Portugal’s retirement visa, but it also covers anyone living on passive income, such as rent, dividends or royalties. There’s no minimum age.

Is the Portugal D7 visa hard to get?

The paperwork is manageable if your income clearly clears €920 a month and comes from a pension or investments. The harder parts are proving the income is stable and regular, with a clear trail to your bank, getting an apostilled criminal record certificate within its time limit, and waiting for your AIMA appointment once you’re in Portugal. An income that only just clears the minimum is riskier.

What are the disadvantages of the D7 visa?

You have to live in Portugal, because AIMA can cancel your permit if you’re away for six months in a row, or eight months in total during a permit. Your pension is taxed at normal Portuguese rates now that NHR is closed. Most adults who join you later face a two-year wait. You only become eligible to apply for citizenship after 10 years. And the AIMA stage can be slow.

Can US citizens get a D7 visa?

Yes. You apply through the Portuguese consulate or VFS Global visa center that covers the state you live in, with proof of your income and savings and an apostilled FBI background check issued within the last 90 days. Then you finish the process with AIMA in Portugal.

Does the D7 visa allow you to work in Portugal?

Yes, once you hold the D7 residence permit. Portuguese law lets permit holders work, employed or self-employed. Remote work income doesn’t count toward the D7 income test, though, so if that’s how you’d qualify, apply for the D8 instead.

Can I bring my spouse and children?

Yes. The easiest way is for them to apply for their visas at the same time as you. If they join you later, most adults face a two-year wait under the 2025 rules. Children under 18 don’t.

Do I pay tax in Portugal on the D7?

Yes, once you’re tax resident. Portugal taxes your worldwide income at 12.5% to 48%. The NHR tax break is closed, and IFICI only covers income from specific kinds of work in Portugal.

Does Portugal tax US retirement income?

In most cases, yes. Under the US-Portugal tax treaty:

• Workplace pensions, such as a 401(k), are taxed by Portugal, as the country you live in
• Social Security can be taxed by the US, and Portugal can tax it too, giving you a credit for the US tax
• Pensions from US government service, federal, state, local or military, are taxed only by the US, unless you’re also a Portuguese citizen

As a US citizen you keep filing US returns, and the treaty’s credit rules are there to stop you paying tax twice on the same income. How IRAs and other accounts are treated depends on the details, so get advice from a tax adviser who works with both countries before you move.

How long until I can apply for Portuguese citizenship on a D7?

US and UK citizens become eligible to apply after 10 years of legal residence, under the law in force since 19 May 2026. Citizens of Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) countries become eligible after 7. You can apply for permanent residency after five years, with proof of A2 Portuguese.

What’s the difference between the D7 and the D8?

The D7 is for passive income and needs €920 a month. The D8 is for remote work and needs €3,680. Both lead to the same residence permit and renewals, and to permanent residency after five years with proof of A2 Portuguese.

If you don’t qualify: alternatives and similar visas

• Portugal’s digital nomad visa (D8), if your income comes from remote work
• Spain’s digital nomad visa, with a lower income bar than the D8 and permanent residency after five years
• Italy’s digital nomad visa, for highly qualified remote workers
• Our digital nomad visas page, to compare every country

Sources

• Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Means of subsistence (official)
• Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Residency visa documents (official)
• Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Family reunification (official)
• Law 23/2007 on foreigners, consolidated text (law text, in Portuguese, Lisbon District Prosecutor General’s Office)
• Law 61/2025 amending the foreigners law (official gazette, in Portuguese)
• Nationality Law 37/81, consolidated with Lei Orgânica 1/2026 (law text, in Portuguese)
• AIMA: Portuguese language questions and answers (official, in Portuguese)
• AIMA fee table (official, in Portuguese)
• VFS Global UK: D7 checklist, March 2026 (official visa partner)
• VFS Global USA: residency visa checklist for pensioners and self-sufficient individuals (official visa partner)
• VFS Global USA: Portugal visa information (official visa partner)
• VFS Global USA: Portugal areas of jurisdiction, April 2026 (official visa partner)
• IRS: FBAR (official)
• GOV.UK: Get your document legalised (official)
• GOV.UK: Portugal tax treaties (official)
• Portal das Finanças: IRS Code article 16, residence (official, in Portuguese)
• Tax Benefits Statute article 58-A (IFICI) (law text, in Portuguese)
• US-Portugal income tax treaty (IRS)
• EY: Portugal State Budget 2026 tax alert (tax brackets)
• European Central Bank: euro reference rates