Citizeo
Pathway

Portugal Skilled Professional Work Residence

Portugal Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Portugal's highly qualified activity route is for people with advanced qualifications or specialized professional experience who will work in a highly qualified role in Portugal. It generally requires a qualifying role, strong credentials, and a Portuguese employer or host arrangement.

Type
Skilled-work residence
Job fit
Workers with a qualifying role or strong professional profile
Core requirements
Job offer, qualifications, and pay or points rules
What to know
The job usually has to meet salary and skill rules
Salary requirement
About 1.5 times the average salary
Job offer required?
Yes

Summary

Article 90 of Portugal's Foreigners Act provides a national temporary residence permit for highly qualified activity. It can cover either employed work or genuine independent professional activity requiring exceptional specialized skills or appropriate qualifications. It is broader than the EU Blue Card because it is not limited to an employment contract, but it does not have the Blue Card's EU mobility framework.

The normal route begins with a residence visa for research or highly qualified activity, followed by an AIMA permit. The initial permit is normally valid for two years and renewable for three-year periods.

Pathway fit check

Eligibility

All applicants need reliable proof of the highly qualified activity and their qualifications or specialization. A regulated profession also requires the recognition or professional registration needed in Portugal.

For employed work, AIMA applies a remuneration formula: at least 1.5 times the national average gross annual salary or three times the Social Support Index (IAS). For specified occupations in major groups 1 and 2 of the International Standard Classification of Occupations that particularly need third-country workers, the lower formula is 1.2 times the national average or two times IAS. AIMA's page displays historical euro examples, so confirm the current calculation before signing or applying.

For independent work, evidence can include a service contract, proof of company formation, recent receipts, and tax and social-security registration. There is no single salary formula for every independent case, but the activity must genuinely be highly qualified and the applicant must meet the general residence requirements.

What This Route Allows

The holder may live in Portugal and perform the approved highly qualified employed or independent activity. Article 90 holders are exempt from the ordinary two-year family-reunification waiting period, although every family member must still qualify and complete the procedure.

The permit permits short Schengen travel, not unrestricted work abroad. Qualifying legal residence may contribute to permanent residence or EU long-term-resident status, or nationality under the separate conditions in force when applying.

What This Route Is Not

It is not a label that can be attached to any senior or well-paid role. The duties, required expertise, qualifications, remuneration where applicable, and supporting entity must fit the statutory category.

It is not the EU Blue Card, which is limited to employed work and has its own contract, salary, and mobility rules. It is not the Tech Visa, which requires a certified Portuguese employer, or the researcher permit now governed separately by Article 91-B.

Next Steps

  1. Write a detailed role or project description showing why the work requires specialized qualifications.
  2. Determine whether the relationship is employment or independent services and prepare the correct contract.
  3. For employment, obtain AIMA's current salary calculation; do not use the historical euro examples on its page without updating them.
  4. Complete any Portuguese recognition required for a regulated profession.
  5. Confirm the residence-visa checklist with the responsible consulate, then complete the AIMA permit process after entry.
  6. Keep qualification, contract, payment, tax, and social-security evidence for renewal and report material changes to AIMA.
Compare your options

Similar skilled work pathways in other destinations.

Sources