Remote work and digital nomads: visa and residence permit

Working from Portugal for a company or clients based in another country has its own route in Portuguese law. The activity is carried out remotely, from Portugal, for people or entities outside the country. This guide explains the two stages, the visa and the residence permit, what each asks for and what is worth preparing in advance. Exact documents can vary by consulate, so treat the list below as a map rather than a final checklist.

What it is called

The Consular Portal calls this route the residence visa for remote work and, in brackets, digital nomad. AIMA describes the next step as a residence permit for professional activity carried out remotely, based on article 88(1) of the Foreigners Law. On the internet you will often find it as the “digital nomad visa”.

Avoid asking a consulate for a “D8 visa” without saying more. Codes are not uniform between posts: at the Consulate-General in Goa, for instance, that letter denotes family members accompanying a residence visa applicant (see the visas guide). Always give the purpose, “remote work”, and ask the post for the document list that applies to you.

Who it is for

It suits people who work remotely as employees of an employer outside Portugal, or as self-employed workers with clients outside Portugal. At the residence permit stage, AIMA asks for a statement from an entity whose address or registered office is outside the country.

If you plan to work for a Portuguese company or start a business in Portugal, other routes apply: see the guides on working in Portugal, qualified work and starting a business.

Stage one: the visa

The application is made at the consular post responsible for your nationality or residence, as with other national visas (the visas guide explains where and how). According to the Consular Portal, the core of the file is:

• If you are an employee: an employment contract or a declaration from the employer confirming the employment relationship.
• If you are self-employed: a company contract, a service contract or a document showing services provided to one or more entities.
• In both cases: proof of the required income and a document certifying your tax residence.

Add the documents common to any residence visa: form, photographs, passport, travel insurance, criminal record and means of subsistence. The consulate may ask for more. In the temporary stay section, the Consular Portal also accepts a promise of a contract (employees) and a written service proposal (self-employed); those two options appear only in that list.

The income required

Average monthly income over the last three months, from employment or self-employment, must be at least four guaranteed minimum monthly wages. In 2026 the minimum wage is 920 euros, set for the whole year by Decree-Law 139/2025, and four times that is 3,680 euros a month. The figure changes when the minimum wage is updated, so redo the sum with the wage for the year in which you apply. Choose evidence that clearly shows the three months (payslips, bank statements, invoices) and that the consulate can link to your contract or to the client’s statement.

What about the temporary stay visa?

The Consular Portal also has a “digital nomad” section in the documents for the temporary stay visa, with the same income and work-document requirements. The temporary stay visa is for stays of under one year (see the visas guide). Ask the post, before booking, how long the visa would be valid in your case. This is not the residence visa that AIMA requires for the residence permit described next.

Stage two: the residence permit at AIMA

With the residence visa, you enter Portugal and apply to AIMA for the permit within the visa’s validity, which is four months. AIMA says the application is made in person, by appointment, at any AIMA Store, with the Modelo 1 form signed by you or your legal representative. AIMA also provides for an online platform for visa holders; check its website to see whether you can already use it. See the AIMA guide for how the service works and the AIMA forms guide for the templates.

Documents AIMA lists:

1. A valid passport.
2. A valid residence visa for remote work.
3. A sworn statement from the employer or client, based outside Portugal, confirming the working relationship or the provision of services (AIMA provides a template).
4. A sworn statement of your address in Portugal, with the basis on which you occupy the property. Owners or usufructuaries attach the land registry certificate or the access code; tenants or other occupiers attach a statement from the landlord or the entity providing the accommodation.
5. Modelo 1, which is mandatory, and Modelo 4 (statement of responsibility) only if it applies to your case.

Income is assessed at the visa stage and is not on this list. As for fees, AIMA points to its table of fees and charges; check it before paying. To find out the decision time, ask AIMA on (+351) 217 115 000, Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm.

What blocks the grant

AIMA only grants the permit if there is no fact that, had it been known, would have prevented the visa; no conviction for a crime punishable in Portugal by more than one year in prison; no entry and stay ban following a removal measure; and no alert for refusal of entry, stay or return in the alert system (articles 33 and 33-A). If you have doubts about any of these, settle them before filing, with professional help if needed.

Validity and renewal

The residence permit is temporary and lasts two years from the date the card is issued. It can be renewed for successive periods of three years. Renewal has its own documents and deadlines, explained in the renewing your residence permit guide. For the route to permanent residence, see the permanent residence guide.

Working outside what the permit allows can lead to administrative offences; AIMA lists among those that apply illegal stay (article 192) and unauthorised self-employed activity (article 198). If you plan to start working for an entity in Portugal, ask AIMA whether the permit must be changed first.

Tax residence and taxes

The Consular Portal asks for a document certifying tax residence already at the visa stage. If you come to live in Portugal you should also sort out your NIF (see the NIF guide) and, where relevant, report your address to the Tax Authority. Whether a person is a tax resident in Portugal, and how income from abroad is taxed, depends on Tax Authority rules and on double taxation treaties, which vary with your home country. The IRS guide explains the essentials, and for your own case it is worth consulting a certified accountant or the Tax Authority itself.

And the job-seeker visa?

The qualified job-seeker visa, in article 57-A of the Foreigners Law, is not an alternative for someone who already works remotely. It is suspended until it is regulated, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement of 22 October 2025; article 57-A leaves the required skills to an order. See also the visas guide. Before counting on it, check on the Consular Portal whether applications have reopened.

Before you start

• Work out your income for the last three months and check it reaches four minimum wages for the year.
• Get the contract or a statement from the employer or client, and proof of tax residence.
• Ask the consulate for the document list that applies to you.
• Find accommodation in Portugal, or a document that lets you complete the address statement.
• Use the Path assistant to order the steps and the message templates to contact the consulate or AIMA.