For property-based EU residency in 2026, Greece is the clear answer: it runs the only live real-estate Golden Visa of the two, priced at €250,000, €400,000 or €800,000 depending on the property and its location. Portugal's Golden Visa still exists, but it has had no property route since October 2023 — you now qualify only through funds, cultural donations, research or job creation — and in 2026 its citizenship timeline doubled to 10 years, stripping away much of its historic appeal.
So the comparison is really about intent. If you specifically want to own property and gain EU residency, it is Greece versus nothing on the Portuguese side. If you are happy to invest in a regulated fund and can wait a decade for a passport, Portugal remains a credible, low-presence option.
This guide sets out the 2026 thresholds, what each visa grants, the physical-presence and citizenship rules, the tax angle, and where a property-led alternative such as Cyprus fits in. INOVO does not sell the Greek or Portuguese programmes, so the guidance here is neutral.
Greece wins for anyone who wants EU residency through property, because it is the only one of the two with a live real-estate route. Portugal's Golden Visa is still open, but real estate stopped qualifying on 7 October 2023, so a property purchase no longer earns Portuguese residency at all.
In short:
Both programmes grant Schengen access and cover the investor's spouse and dependent children. The decisive question is whether you specifically want to hold property. If so, the comparison is effectively Greece versus nothing on the Portuguese side.
No. Portugal removed every real-estate option from its Golden Visa on 7 October 2023, and none has returned in 2026. That includes direct residential and commercial purchases, rehabilitation property, real-estate-linked investment funds and the former €1.5 million capital-transfer route.
What remains open in 2026:
The programme keeps a very light stay requirement: an average of about seven days per year (seven days in the first year, then 14 days across each subsequent two-year renewal period). Permanent residence is available after five years of legal residence, provided the investment and other conditions are maintained.
Greece's Golden Visa is a live property programme in 2026, with three property thresholds set by Law 5100/2024. The amount depends on where the property is and what you do with it.
Key conditions to know:
In return, the investor and their family receive a five-year residence permit, renewable while the property is held, plus full Schengen travel. There is no minimum-stay requirement to keep the permit.
Here is the head-to-head for 2026. The headline difference is simple: Greece lets you invest in property, Portugal does not.
Portugal Golden Visa (2026):
Greece Golden Visa (2026):
Bottom line: choose Greece for a property-backed permit and low-hassle Schengen residency; choose Portugal only if you prefer a fund investment and can accept a much longer citizenship timeline.
For keeping the residence permit, Portugal is lighter; for reaching citizenship, both are now long games. Neither should be treated as a quick passport in 2026.
Maintaining residency:
Reaching citizenship:
The practical takeaway: Portugal is easier to hold from abroad, but its citizenship route is now the longest it has ever been. Greece asks for real relocation if a passport is the goal, but is undemanding if you simply want a renewable EU residence permit and Schengen access.
Tax only matters if you actually become tax-resident; a Golden Visa on its own does not make you tax-resident in either country. If you do relocate, both offer special regimes for newcomers, but they target different people.
Greece:
Portugal:
Neither special regime is automatic, and both carry conditions and can change, so YMYL caution applies: take qualified, country-specific tax advice before relying on any figure here.
The big 2026 shift is Portugal's citizenship timeline, which now makes Greece relatively more attractive for long-term planners. Several European programmes also tightened.
Net effect: Greece is now the standout live property Golden Visa in the EU, while Portugal has become a funds-and-patience programme.
If your goal is EU residency backed by property, choose Greece. It is the only live property Golden Visa of the two, and effectively the main one left in the EU after Spain closed. Budget from €400,000 for a standard mainland or lower-demand purchase, €800,000 in Athens, Thessaloniki or the top islands, or €250,000 for a qualifying conversion or listed-building restoration.
Choose Portugal instead only if you are comfortable investing €500,000 in a regulated fund rather than property, value the very light stay requirement, and can accept a 10-year citizenship horizon.
If the real objective is a property-based residence permit with a faster, cheaper entry point, it is worth looking beyond these two:
INOVO does not sell Greek or Portuguese Golden Visas, so this guidance is neutral: if you specifically want the Greek programme, use a licensed Greek provider. Where INOVO can help is on the property-led alternatives it covers directly, including Cyprus and the UAE, where a home purchase doubles as a residency route.
No. Property has not qualified for the Portugal Golden Visa since 7 October 2023, and that has not changed in 2026. To obtain the Portuguese programme now you must use a non-property route, most commonly a €500,000 investment in a regulated fund, or a €250,000 cultural donation.
The lowest entry point is €250,000, available for converting a commercial property into residential use or restoring a listed/heritage building, with no minimum size requirement. Standard purchases cost €400,000 in most of Greece, rising to €800,000 in high-demand areas such as Athens, Thessaloniki, Mykonos and Santorini, where a single property of at least 120 square metres is required.
Neither is fast in 2026. Portugal now requires 10 years of legal residence for most applicants (seven for EU and CPLP nationals), while Greece requires seven years of continuous genuine residence plus language and civics exams. Portugal is easier to hold from abroad, but Greece can be quicker to citizenship if you actually relocate.
Not to keep the residence permit. Greece imposes no minimum stay to maintain the permit, and Portugal asks only for an average of about seven days per year. Physical presence only becomes essential if you want to pursue citizenship, which requires genuine residence in both countries.
No. Holding a Golden Visa does not automatically make you tax-resident; tax residency generally follows spending 183 or more days a year in the country or having your main home there. If you do relocate, Greece offers a €100,000 flat-tax non-dom regime and a 7% pensioner regime, while Portugal's IFICI regime is narrower and aimed at specific professions.
For a pure real-estate route, effectively yes among the major programmes. Spain ended its Golden Visa entirely on 3 April 2025, and Portugal removed property in 2023, leaving Greece as the main live property-based Golden Visa in the EU. Cyprus is a strong alternative, granting permanent residency from €300,000 plus VAT in new-build property, though it is a national residence scheme rather than a Schengen-wide Golden Visa.
Cyprus and the UAE are the standout property-linked options. Cyprus offers fast-track permanent residency from €300,000 plus VAT in a new-build home, permanent from day one, while the UAE grants a 10-year Golden Visa from AED 2 million in property in a 0% income-tax environment. Both let a single property purchase double as your residency route, which is exactly the kind of structuring INOVO advises on.
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