For many South Africans holding a South African passport, the dream of acquiring residency in Spain or Portugal has been shattered by the belief that it is simply too difficult, or impossible.

It’s easy to get confused and discouraged by the numerous residency options available, and the complex legal requirements of each. The reality is that it’s far easier than one might think.

The first and most well-known option for residency in both Spain and Portugal is the Golden Visa through Real Estate Purchase. This can be achieved in a few variations, but the most common is the purchase of real estate to the value of €500 000 or more.

For more information on Golden Visa options, you can reach out to Consult Immigration here.

The lesser-known residency options available to South Africans are the Spanish ‘’Non-lucrative Residency Visa’’ and the Portuguese ‘’Passive Income Residency Visa’’.

The requirements of these types of residency visas hinge largely on the applicant’s ability to prove that they can sustain themselves financially for each year that they hold the temporary residency.

Below are the base requirements & benefits of these applications.

Spanish ‘’Non-lucrative Residency Visa’’

• You must make your application from the Spanish Consulate or Embassy in South Africa.
• You will need to prove your relationship with family members (birth certificates, marriage certificate etc.).
• For the application, you will need to show sufficient funds in your bank account to prove your ability to support yourself (and your family) for each year that you hold the temporary residency:
  –  Primary applicant: €25 816,32 min. for the year.
  –  Each family member: €6 454,08 min. for the year.
• You may not derive an income from within Spain in the first year. You may live off investments, rental income, or income from a business, outside of Spain etc. At the end of the first year, you can apply for a working permit.
• You must spend a minimum of 180 days in Spain in the first year. No more than 10 months outside of Spain over five years.
• You will need valid police clearance certificates from any countries that you have resided in, in the past five years.
• You will need medical certificates, certified by the Health Professions Council of South Africa.

With this residency permit, you will be able to travel to all Schengen countries without requiring a Schengen visa. After five years of temporary residency, you can apply for permanent residency, and after 10 years of residency, you can apply for Spanish citizenship.

Portuguese ‘’Passive Income Residency Visa’’

• You must make your application from the Portuguese Consulate or Embassy in South Africa.
• You will need to prove your relationship with family members (birth certificates, marriage certificate etc.).
• For the application, you will need to show sufficient funds in a Portuguese bank account to prove your ability to support yourself (and your family) for each year that you hold the temporary residency:
  –  Primary applicant: €7 620 min. for the year.
  –  Each adult family member: €3 810 min. for the year.
  –  Each minor family member: €2 286 min. for the year.
• Although you need to show that you can sustain yourselves in the first year, you are still entitled to work in Portugal at the same time.
• You must spend a minimum of 180 days in Portugal in the first year. No more than 10 months outside of Portugal over five years.
• You will need valid police clearance certificates from any countries that you have resided in, in the past five years.
• You will need medical certificates, certified by the Health Professions Council of South Africa.

With this residency permit, you will be able to travel to all Schengen countries without requiring a Schengen visa. After five years of temporary residency, you can apply for Portuguese citizenship.

If you are interested in any of the above residency options, or the other services that Consult Immigration offers (these include immigration, business, real estate, and forex), you can get in touch with them here.