Digital nomad visas

Portugal digital nomad visa (D8)

Portugal's residence visa for remote work, known as the D8, lets you live there while working for employers or clients abroad. You need EUR 3,680 a month after tax, and you apply at a Portuguese consulate before you go.

At a glance

The visa
D8 digital nomad visa
What you need
About $4,130 a month (EUR 3,680 a month); in pounds, about £3,100 a month
What counts as proof
Your average over the last three months, after tax and social security.
Who can apply
Employees of a company abroad: yes. Freelancers: yes. Owners of a company abroad: yes.
How long
Two years, then renewals of three
Without a visa
British and American visitors: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
EU, EEA and Swiss citizens
Need no visa: they can live and work there anyway.

The catch. The bar is four times the minimum wage, so it rises every January. And a partner can now join you only once you have held the permit for two years.

See where you stand against Portugal and every other country. Check your income

How to apply

  1. Apply in person at the Portuguese consulate, or its VFS Global centre, for the country where you legally live. If that isn't your country of nationality, you need a residence permit there that lasts beyond the visa.
  2. The visa is valid for 120 days and two entries. Some consulates, including London, now label it D9.
  3. In Portugal, attend an appointment with AIMA, the migration agency, for your residence permit. Your fingerprints are taken there. The consulate doesn't book AIMA appointments for you.
  4. You can't switch to it inside Portugal after arriving as a visitor: you need the residence visa from a consulate first.

Fees and timing

Consulate visa
EUR 90 on the Portuguese government's site. Some relocation advisers quote EUR 110, and VFS adds a service fee.
Residence permit (AIMA)
EUR 121.95 to apply in person and EUR 104.82 for the permit, on AIMA's February 2024 table. AIMA raised fees in March 2026; we couldn't find the new figures for this permit.
How long it takes
Usually up to 60 days for the visa, according to the UK consulate.

The documents

The main items. Your consulate's own checklist is the one that counts, so check it before you start.

  • National visa form and two passport photos
  • Passport valid at least three months beyond the visa
  • Proof you work for an employer or clients abroad, and that the work can be done remotely
  • Three months of payslips or invoices, and bank statements, showing the income
  • Proof you're tax resident outside Portugal (in the UK, a P60 or tax return)
  • Somewhere to live for the first 120 days: a lease, deed or a host's notarised statement
  • Travel insurance
  • A criminal record certificate, apostilled, from your country of nationality and anywhere you've lived for more than a year. The UK consulate only accepts an apostilled ACRO certificate issued in the last four months

Health insurance

For the visa, travel insurance covering medical costs, emergency help and repatriation is accepted, valid for six months from the date you apply. British applicants can use an S1 form instead.

Nomad policies differ on cover limits, excess and whether they're accepted for a visa. Compare nomad health insurance

Family, renewing and tax

Family
A partner can now join only once you've held your residence permit for two years. Children under 18 don't have to wait, and a partner you lived with for 18 months before you came waits 15 months. Law firms say D8 holders don't get the faster route that Blue Card and Golden Visa holders keep.
Renewing
The permit lasts two years, then renewals of three, through AIMA. Citizenship takes ten years, counted from when your first residence permit was issued.
What it leads to
Citizenship after ten years, up from five on 19 May 2026
Tax
More than 183 days in any 12 months, or a home there you seem to intend to keep, makes you tax resident

Worth knowing

  • January 2026: the income bar rose to EUR 3,680, because the minimum wage went to EUR 920.
  • October 2025: a new law added the two-year wait for family reunification.
  • March 2026: AIMA raised its fees.
  • May 2026: citizenship went from five years to ten.

Living there

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