Such is the efficiency of the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) that 7,000 Golden Visas are waiting to be processed.
An estimated €3.5 billion in real estate sales are held up by bureaucracy, a testament to Portugal’s failure to run a scheme with knock-on benefits to the economy and rich pickings for top-end estate agencies.
This estimate assumes that the vast majority of Golden Visa applicants are keen to buy property of €500,000 or more, which has been the pattern so far.
The average number of Golden Visa has mysteriously tailed off and now we know why, it is not a drop in demand, it is because the applications are held up 'in the system.'
The number processed each month dropped from 127 in 2014, to 50 during the months of 2015. The SEF blames the problems caused by Operation Labyrinth which led to the arrest of 11 people in government and the civil service on allegations of bribery and corruption. Among the arrested was the head of the SEF.
An enhanced scheme promoted by Deputy Prime Minister Paulo Portas and instigated by lame duck minister Anabela Rodrigues has failed dismally to cope with the backlog due to lack of staff and complexity.
The collapse in processing Golden Visas is infecting other processes such as residence permits and renewals, with appointments in Lisbon only available after a minimum six month wait.
The SEF management blames a lack of staff and the requirement for more bureaucratic procedures when checking applicants.
The director of the SEF recognises "a pressing need for personnel reinforcement that is not yet resolved,” and blames the hold up for Golden Visa applicants on the failure by applicants to correctly complete the overly complicated paperwork requirements leading to each taking "several months.”
