With locals leaving the country to find work in more developed economies, the number of foreigners choosing to live in Portugal jumped to nearly 400,000 by the end of 2016, with 83% working and much of the remainer, retired.
The number of non-Portuguese living in the country increased by 2.3% in 2016, reversing a downward trend that had been worrying government since 2010.
"In 2016 there were a total of 397,731 foreign citizens with residence permits, according to the latest immigration report.
Asylum applications to Portugal have rocketed - up 64% in a year - the highest number of requests in the last 15 years with 1,469 people 'seeking shelter from oppression.'
According to the 2016 report, most of the asylum applications were submitted by Asian citizens (642), followed by Africans (611) and Europeans (169).
The report records an increase in the granting of new residence permits, which indicates "a return to the attractiveness of Portugal as an immigration destination" as 46,921 permits were issued, up 24% in a year.
The Foreign and Borders Service explained the reason for this increase was two-fold, "the perception of Portugal as a safe country" and "the tax advantages deriving from the non-habitual resident regime."
The top 10 foreign nationalities list has changed in a year with France, up 33%, kicking São Tomé and Principe off the list.
The top 10 countries whose citizens reside in Portugal are, Brazil (81,251), Cape Verde (36,578), Ukraine (34,490), Romania (30,429), China (22,503), United Kingdom (19,384), Angola (16,994), Guinea- Bissau (15,653), France (11,293) and Spain (11,133).
The report noted that 83% of foreign citizens living in Portugal are working with 69% of the foreign population residing in the urban areas of Lisbon (173,118), Faro (63,481) and Setúbal (36,175).
As for Golden Visa incomers, the report states that “at the end of 2016, 1,172 first residence permits were issued to investors and 1,836 to family members under the special residence permit regime for investment activity.”
After presenting the report, the national director of the SEF, Luísa Maia Gonçalves, said that 45 new recruits will soon be taken on as an “essential reinforcement" for the security service as it faces an increasingly complex workload, especially in investigations, inspection, information technology and documentation.
The use of new technology is helping, for example, in the online renewal of residence permits which frees up staff time.
About the queues at Lisbon airport's passport control for non-Shengen passengers, Gonçalves said that there is a very significant number of personnel at the airport and the service is working with ANA to "better management the flow so that people do not land together in a very short space of time."
