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Startup Visa Application Support in Portugal

Portugal Startup Visa application support helps founders of technology or knowledge-based projects prepare the IAPMEI programme file and the entrepreneur residence-visa documents. We organise the certified-incubator evidence, and the applicant submits both applications.

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Who Needs a Portugal Startup Visa

  • You are building a technology or knowledge-based project that you intend to develop in Portugal.
  • You want the certified-incubator declaration of interest and IAPMEI programme application files prepared around the project evidence.
  • You want the entrepreneur residence-visa documents prepared after the IAPMEI stage.
  • Your company needs information on family-reunification, residence-authorisation, NIF, tax or Social Security steps alongside the founder's move.

You do not have a Portugal-based development plan, certified-incubator route or entrepreneur-residence need; ordinary company formation and business matters are covered only when they form part of this route.

What's Included in Startup Visa Support

You get a quote in writing before any work starts.

  • Founder and project evidence. The founder, project, market, innovation, employment and financial evidence that Despacho Normativo 4/2018 refers to is organised into one file.
  • Incubator evidence. A specialist prepares the declaration of interest file and gathers the certified-incubator evidence required for the programme file.
  • IAPMEI application. The online programme application and the evidence IAPMEI uses to assess the Article 5 requirements are prepared. The applicant submits it.
  • Entrepreneur residence-visa file. The residence-visa documents for the competent Portuguese consular post are prepared after the programme stage. The applicant submits the application.
  • Family-reunification information. The published family-reunification conditions are set out, and the family, accommodation and means documents are gathered.
  • Post-arrival company steps. A specialist prepares the documents for the company, NIF, tax and Social Security registrations that remain separate from the visa and programme decisions.
Document showing Startup Visa financial evidence and IAPMEI assessment.
The Startup Visa combines financial evidence and assessment.
Diagram text version

Show own means equal to 12 times IAS. Submit the evidence for IAPMEI assessment.

What You'll Need to Provide

Founder details
Identity, age, nationality, residence history, criminal-record evidence and the founders who will be included.
Project plan
The product or service, technology, innovation, market, Portugal activity and development plan.
Financial evidence
Your financial means and the bank document showing the amount required under the 12-times-IAS rule.
Incubator evidence
The certified-incubator declaration of interest, discussions and any proposed incubation contract.
Employment and growth plan
The qualified-employment potential, market plan and projected turnover or assets relevant to the programme assessment.
Family and arrival plan
Family members, intended arrival, consular post, accommodation and the residence-authorisation steps under review.

How a Portugal Startup Visa Is Handled

A specialist prepares the IAPMEI programme file and the residence-visa documents for the competent Portuguese consular post. The applicant submits the programme application and the visa application.

  1. Building the Founder and Project Checklist

    A specialist records the founders, project, market, financial means and development evidence in a checklist built from the programme rules.

  2. Preparing Certified-Incubator Evidence

    The declaration of interest file is prepared and the evidence is kept for the current certified-incubator route.

  3. Preparing the IAPMEI Application

    A specialist prepares the online programme application and evidence for IAPMEI's assessment. The applicant submits it.

  4. Preparing the Entrepreneur Visa File

    The residence-visa documents for the competent Portuguese consular post are prepared after the programme stage. The applicant submits the application.

  5. Preparing Family and Residence Documents

    A specialist gathers the family, accommodation, means and residence-authorisation documents covered by the engagement.

  6. Preparing Company and Tax Registration

    The documents for the separate company, NIF, tax and Social Security registrations after arrival are prepared.

Timing and Possible Delays

Set by the project evidence and consular appointment

The work is planned around the project evidence, incubator declaration, family records and consular appointment.

What delays it

The work takes longer when the project evidence, financial means, incubator declaration, criminal-record documents, consular records or family documents are incomplete.

What to prepare now

You organise the founder, project, bank, incubator, family and consular records before the work begins.

Incubation, Residence and Company Steps

The project and incubator evidence

A specialist prepares the incubator declaration file with the project, founders, activity and intended incubation details, and the certified incubator signs the declaration of interest. The signed evidence is kept with the project, market, technology, qualified-employment and financial-means records before the applicant submits to IAPMEI.

The IAPMEI and consular sequence

The applicant submits the programme application through IAPMEI’s electronic platform. The entrepreneur residence-visa appointment follows the IAPMEI decision. The consular post file is prepared after the programme stage, and the appointment evidence is recorded with the visa documents.

Post-arrival company and renewal obligations

The holder requests renewal up to 30 days before the residence title expires. The individual title depends on continuing means, accommodation, tax, Social Security and criminal-record conditions.

Published by Advisors in Portugal Published: Last reviewed:

Set out your Startup Visa project

Describe who the founders are, what the project will develop in Portugal, which incubator is involved and how the move will work.

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Common questions

What is the Portugal Startup Visa?
The programme supports an entrepreneur residence-visa and residence-authorisation route for a qualifying project developed in Portugal. IAPMEI assesses the programme application before the consular visa stage.
Who can apply to the Startup Visa programme?
An individual or group can apply. The rules include age, residence, criminal-record, tax and Social Security conditions, where applicable, financial means and a project with the required development, market and employment potential.
Does the project need a certified incubator?
Yes. The programme requires certified-incubator interest and a declaration that forms part of the application. The current certified-incubator evidence is gathered for the file.
What does IAPMEI do?
IAPMEI analyses the candidate application and the Article 5 requirements, then makes its decision available through the platform.
Which visa route applies after IAPMEI?
The entrepreneur residence-visa route is in Article 60(2) of Lei 23/2007. The residence visa permits two entries and four months' stay so the holder can request residence authorisation.
Where do I apply for the entrepreneur visa?
The current government service directs the applicant to the competent Portuguese consular post. A specialist prepares the consular file after the IAPMEI programme stage, and the applicant submits it.
How much financial means must a founder show?
Despacho Normativo 4/2018 uses 12 times IAS for the own financial-means requirement. IAPMEI's 2026 IAS notice gives EUR 537.13 per month and EUR 6,445.56 for 12 times IAS, checked on 18 September 2026.
How long does IAPMEI take to decide?
IAPMEI decides within 30 working days and makes the decision available on the platform within three working days after the decision, under Despacho Normativo 4/2018.
Can my family apply with me?
The law allows a residence-authorisation applicant to request family reunification simultaneously with the residence-authorisation application. The sponsor generally needs a residence permit held for two years, or 15 months in the Article 98(2) spouse case; the Article 98(3) exceptions do not cover the Article 89(4) route. Article 101 also adds integration measures on top of the accommodation and subsistence-means conditions.
What happens after I arrive in Portugal?
The pre-authorisation may include provisional tax, Social Security and health-service identification numbers. Company formation, Social Security registration and the start-of-activity filing remain separate steps.
How is a Portugal Startup Visa case handled?
Each enquiry is reviewed and the reply confirms what can be prepared. A specialist manages the document file for the IAPMEI and entrepreneur-visa steps and stays the point of contact. The applicant submits the programme application and the visa application.

How the Service Works

  • One team for the whole case.

    The programme, visa, company, tax and Social Security documents are tracked as one file, with independent qualified professionals engaged for the regulated tax and Social Security work.

  • English or Portuguese.

    English or Portuguese, whichever you are most comfortable in.

  • A quote in writing before work starts.

    You get a quote in writing before any work starts. You are told plainly if a case falls outside the service.

Contact us

Your request is in

Every request is read in house. The requirements are assessed, and a reply by email sets out the appropriate next steps.

Every enquiry is read in house, and the aim is a reply within one business day.

Describe your Startup Visa project

Every enquiry starts with the form below. Each enquiry is reviewed, and the reply confirms what can be prepared, in English or Portuguese.

Describe the founders, project, market, incubator, funding and move plans. A reply follows within one business day, and the first conversation is free.

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The information on this page is checked against official sources and reviewed regularly. It is corrected when the law or official guidance changes, as the Editorial Standards describe.