For years Greece and Portugal were the two names every property investor compared when they wanted a European Golden Visa. They are not really comparing the same thing any more. Portugal closed its property route in 2023 and, in 2026, doubled the time it takes to reach citizenship. Greece kept its property route, has no minimum-stay rule and processes applications in months. This is the honest, current comparison, on cost, on property, on how long you must stay, on the path to a passport, and on who each programme actually suits now. It is general information, not legal advice.
Key takeaways
Only Greece still has a property route. Portugal removed real estate from its Golden Visa in October 2023. If you want a tangible, income-producing asset, Greece is the choice.
Portugal's path to citizenship just got much longer. A law signed in May 2026 doubled the qualifying period to 10 years, and the clock now starts when the permit is issued, so the real-world wait is closer to a decade. Greece is 7 years.
Greece is far faster to get. Months for a Greek Golden Visa, against a year or more and a large backlog in Portugal.
Portugal still wins on time on the ground. Its roughly seven days a year of presence is even lighter than Greece's zero, but Greece asks nothing at all and keeps the property door open.
Different goals, different answer. Greece for a property-backed visa, fast, with a clearer citizenship path. Portugal for a fund-based investment and the lowest presence, if you can wait for the passport.
Can you still buy property for a Golden Visa?
This is the headline difference, and it decides the comparison for most people. In Portugal, no. The real-estate route was removed in October 2023, so a new applicant cannot qualify by buying a flat, a house or a commercial property anywhere in the country. Portugal's Golden Visa is now an investment-fund and donation programme. In Greece, yes. Real estate remains the core route, and a qualifying property gives you a tangible asset you can let on a long-term lease. For an investor who wants the residency and a property, that is not a small difference, it is the whole decision.
What does each one cost?
The entry prices look similar on paper but buy very different things.
Greece, a property. €250,000 for a commercial-to-residential conversion or a listed-building restoration, €400,000 for a standard property in most of the country, or €800,000 in the high-demand zone, under Law 5100/2024. The threshold must be a single property of at least 120 square metres, except for the €250,000 conversion route, which has no size limit.
Portugal, not a property. From around €250,000 for a cultural or heritage donation, or €500,000 into a qualifying investment fund that holds no real estate, or €500,000 of company capital that creates ten jobs. You get the residency, but no Portuguese asset to live in or let.
So the lowest number is similar, around €250,000 either way, but in Greece it buys a flat and in Portugal it is a donation you do not get back. Our minimum investment guide breaks the Greek thresholds down in full.
How much time do you have to spend there?
Both are light, and Portugal is slightly lighter. Greece has no minimum-stay requirement at all, you can hold the residency without setting foot in the country between renewals. Portugal asks for roughly seven days in the first year and fourteen days across each following two-year period. For an investor who simply wants the status and the travel rights, both are easy, with Greece asking literally nothing.
How long does it take to reach citizenship?
This is where Portugal changed dramatically in 2026, and where a lot of online guides are now out of date. Portugal long offered citizenship after five years, one of its biggest draws. A nationality law signed in May 2026 doubled that qualifying period to ten years for most applicants, and crucially the residence clock now starts from the date the permit is issued rather than the application date. Given Portugal's processing delays, lawyers put the realistic, real-world timeline closer to nine to thirteen years. Greece grants citizenship after seven years of legal residence, with a B1 Greek-language requirement and an integration test. So the position has flipped: Greece now offers the shorter and clearer route to an EU passport, though it does require learning Greek and genuine integration, while Portugal's lower presence comes with a much longer wait. The full Greek picture, including the 2026 reforms, is in our law changes guide.
How fast is the process, and what about tax?
On speed, Greece wins comfortably. A Greek Golden Visa is often issued within a few months, while Portugal's programme runs to a year or more and sits behind a well-documented immigration backlog. On tax, both offer incentives but they are different. Greece has a non-domicile regime, a flat €100,000 a year on worldwide foreign income for up to fifteen years, and a separate 7% flat rate on foreign pensions for retirees who move their tax residence. Portugal's famous non-habitual-resident regime closed to new entrants at the start of 2025 and was replaced by a narrower incentive aimed at highly qualified professions, so the broad tax break that drew many movers to Portugal is no longer on offer.
Greece vs Portugal at a glance
Greece | Portugal | |
|---|---|---|
Property route | Yes, the core route | No, closed since October 2023 |
Lowest investment | €250,000 (conversion or restoration) | ~€250,000 (donation) or €500,000 (fund) |
What you get for it | A property you can let long-term | A fund stake or a non-refundable donation |
Minimum stay | None | About 7 days a year |
Citizenship | After 7 years, with B1 Greek | After 10 years (7 for EU and Portuguese-speaking nationals), clock from permit issuance |
Processing | Months | A year or more, large backlog |
Short-let the property | Banned for Golden Visa property | Not applicable |
Tax incentive | Non-dom €100k flat, 7% on foreign pensions | Old NHR closed; narrower successor regime |
So which one suits you?
It comes down to what you actually want from the programme.
Choose Greece if: you want a property-backed visa with a real asset and rental income, the fastest route to the residency, no obligation to spend time in the country, and the shorter path to citizenship, and you are comfortable that prime-Athens entry is now €800,000 or that the €250,000 route means a genuine conversion property.
Choose Portugal if: you are happy without owning property, you prefer a fund-based or donation investment, you value the slightly lower presence requirement, and a long, now roughly decade-length, path to citizenship is acceptable because residency and Schengen access are enough for you.
For most people specifically searching to buy a property and get a European residency, the 2026 facts point clearly to Greece, because Portugal no longer offers that combination at all.
What to do next
If a property-backed European residency is the goal, Greece is now the programme that still offers it, and the question becomes which threshold and which area fit you. Our complete Greece Golden Visa guide covers the full process, the minimum investment guide explains the three tiers, and the best areas in Athens shows where the €250,000 conversions sit. mamaXO works specifically with that central-Athens conversion route, confirming a property genuinely qualifies and managing it long-term afterwards. For a view on your situation, get in touch.
