Portugal or Italy:the two golden visas that refuse property

Portugal or Italy: the amount and the asset

Portugal's mainstream route is €500,000 in a non-real-estate fund with at least 60% in Portuguese-headquartered companies, and Italy's is €500,000 in the equity of an Italian limited company; below that, Portugal offers €250,000 to cultural heritage (not returned) and Italy offers €250,000 in an innovative start-up (held), while above it Italy alone goes to €1 million for a donation and €2 million for government bonds.[1][4] Portugal has a route with no capital minimum at all, 10 jobs; Italy has nothing comparable.

Portugal or Italy: when the money goes in

Portugal expects the investment to be in place when the application is made, and it must then be held for 5 years; Italy approves the plan first, issues the visa, and requires the investment within 3 months of entry.[1][4] A reader who wants to see the country before committing has that option in Italy and not in Portugal.

Portugal or Italy: physical presence and permit length

Portugal asks for 7 days in the first year and 14 in each later period on a 2-year permit renewable while the investment is held; Italy states no minimum stay on a 2-year permit renewable for 3 years while the investment is held.[1][4] Italy's renewal is longer and its presence rule lighter; in practice the fortnight Portugal asks for is the smaller difference.

Portugal or Italy: the road to a passport

Both reach permanent residence after 5 years of legal residence, and both name 10 years for naturalisation, but Portugal counts the 10 years from the grant of the residence permit under Lei Orgânica 1/2026 while Italy counts 10 years of residence.[3][4] That wording is the decisive line for a reader who will not live in the country: a Portuguese permit holder who keeps the permit accrues time; an Italian permit holder who stays away does not accrue residence.

The trade-off

Choose Portugal if the goal is a passport without moving, because the count runs from the permit grant, and accept the presence rule, the 2-year renewal and the 5-year holding period. Choose Italy if you want to invest after arriving rather than before, want a longer renewal and a stated zero-stay rule, or want the bond or start-up routes that Portugal does not offer, and accept that the 10 years to citizenship are 10 years of living there. On price and on the refusal of property the two are the same; the difference is how the years towards a passport are counted.