NDR guest speaker at 9th Annual Property Conference

NDR’s partner Rui Parente was a guest speaker at the recent 9th Annual Property Conference organized by the Portuguese Chamber – The Portuguese UK Business Network.    The conference was held under the title “Investing in Portuguese Property – the time is now” and took place June 13^th at the Intercontinental Hotel in Westminster, London.

 

The conference focused on several topics related to the Portuguese property market, namely its current challenges and business strategies.  Making use of the firm’s vast experience in property and foreign investment, NDR’s partner Rui Parente provided his views on the current status of the property market and also on the potential benefits that could come from strategic alliances with the air travel industry.

 

Overall, we considered that this was a very successful event, which gave the possibility of sharing insight and ideas between different players in the market.  NDR was very proud to be associated once again with the Portuguese Chamber's Annual Property Conference and to have one of its partners invited once more as a guest speaker. 

OBTAINING A GOLDEN VISA – SIMPLE AND SWIFT

Our recent experience is proving that the initial skepticism surrounding the Golden Residence Permit Programme (or Golden Visa Programme) was unfounded.

Since the beginning of the year, NDR has been receiving an increasing amount of foreign clients who are actively investing in Portugal, specifically in real estate, in order to obtain Golden Visas. The process is proving to be remarkably straightforward and swift.

The ongoing assistance provided to clients has enabled NDR to establish an increasingly closer cooperation with The Portuguese Immigration and Borders Service (“SEF”) which is currently processing these requests in an extremely efficient manner. As a result of this cooperation, the time in granting and issuing the Golden Visas has decreased significantly, which means that in reality, the period of time from the moment the application is submitted until the approval and issuing of the Golden Visa is, on average, 3 to 4 days. This has enabled the amount of Golden Visas obtained for clients to increase at a significant pace.

At the end of the day, we believe that the growing amount of Golden Visas obtained for clients shows that the work being developed by NDR, both with the Portuguese Authorities and with the clients, is producing increasingly satisfactory results and living proof that the Golden Residence Permit Programme has already created a considerable amount of foreign investment in Portugal.

Francisco Barata Salgueiro

Foreign Investment & Tourism

"GOLDEN CHANCE TO SOAK UP SUN" - GOLDEN VISA FOR CHINESE INVESTORS

Portuguese law firm, Neville the Rougemont (NDR), has received numerous accolades by the media with respect to its recent involvement in the “Golden Visa Permit”.

With particular relevance, on 20^th March 2013, the South China Morning Post interviewed the firm’s Senior Partner, Francisco Barata Salgueiro, regarding the situation of Portugal opening its doors to foreign investment. In his interview, Francisco highlights the fact that the simplicity of the programme is a creating some skepticism for Asian investors because from the perspective of a Chinese investor, it is not easy to understand the fact that the only requirement to obtain a residency permit in Portugal is to make an investment.

However, the fact that NDR is obtaining significant results is inspiring the necessary confidence in potential investors to proceed with their investment.

The expectations are high, and Francisco concludes his interview by referring that he expects “..hundreds or perhaps more of clients using our company to proceed".

Francisco Barata Salgueiro

Foreign Investment & Tourism

GOLDEN VISAS & NON HABITUAL RESIDENTS TAX REGIME: TWO STORIES OF SUCCESS

It seems like everyone in Portugal is aware that in the last six months, the Portuguese Government has introduced a new “Golden Visa Programme” and clarified the “Non Habitual Resident’s Tax Regime”, both highly promoted by the Ministries of Economy and Foreign Affairs, mostly under the scope of the New Programme for Economic Dynamism.

 

These continuing efforts in the promotion of Portugal as both a tourism and an entrepreneurial destination have been rewarded with an increasing amount of investment in Portugal, especially investment by individuals. Recent experience has also shown that foreign clients who are attracted to Portugal are so for different sets of reasons. 

 

There is, as a result, a buzz amongst professionals in all tourism related businesses, especially because, since 2008-2009, the market was stagnant. For each investor applying for the ARI Programme (commonly known as Golden Visa Programme), either via the acquisition of a property, the investment of € 1,000,000 in the acquisition of any shares in Portuguese companies, or the creation of at least 10 jobs, a number of business opportunities will necessarily arise. Promoters will sell, local businesses will increase their sales, etc..

 

Take the example of Miss Pi (fictional name due to confidentiality reasons), a Chinese business women who, upon gaining knowledge of the Portuguese Golden Visa programme, has made an investment of € 1.000.000,00 via a Portuguese bank so that she could further apply for the Golden Visa. After having made the investment, Miss Pi has travelled to Portugal and while in Lisbon, fell in love with the old parts of the city and decided to acquire a property in the Lapa area for an amount of over € 500.000,00. Notwithstanding this, Miss Pi is also envisaging incorporating a small company in Portugal and starting a small business in the tourism area.

 

Another example is that of Mr. and Mrs. Beekman (fictional name due to confidentiality reasons), a South African couple, whose sole contact with Portugal occurred during their holidays in Mozambique, where they met several Portuguese people. Now, close to their 60’s, they have decided to live and work from Portugal and take advantage of the Non Habitual Resident’s Tax Regime. They have now bought a small cottage in the Algarve and are planning on moving to Portugal before the Summer.

 

It is indeed interesting to see that the efforts made by the Portuguese Government have turned Portugal once again into a much sought-after destination by investors, which clearly shows that Portugal is not only seen as a tourism destination but also as a country where foreign investors settle and thrive.

 

Joao Cunha Vaz

Corporate Department