Key Takeaways
- Portugal has abolished the Job-Seeker Visa and canceled all scheduled appointments as of October 23, 2025.
- It will be replaced by a new highly skilled work-seeing visa, but applications are not yet open as the new regulations are not in place.
- The Manifestação de Interesse scheme will also be discontinued as of December 31, 2025, forcing thousands of pending cases to be concluded.
- Tourism, construction and hospitality industries may suffer increased labor shortages because of new restrictions.
As of October 23rd, 2025, due to the introduction of Law No. 61/2025 which fundamentally changes the way that Portugal handles immigration, the Portuguese government has canceled all appointments for work-seeking visas.
The Law was announced through Portugal’s Official Gazette on October 22nd, 2025, and abolishes the previous job seeker visa. Instead, it introduces a “highly skilled work-seeking visa” for high-qualified professionals; however, no applications for this visa may be submitted until the necessary regulations for it have been prepared.
The Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs also stated that all work-seeking visa applications scheduled after October 23rd, 2025, were automatically canceled because the job-seeking visa is now extinct according to the current law.
Therefore, hundreds of thousands of applicants who had scheduled appointments for their work-seeking visas, are currently waiting without knowing how long they will have to wait before they can apply for the new “highly skilled work-seeking visa”.
Immediate Cancellation Creates Regulatory Gap
Portugal’s parliament voted for Law No. 61/2025 on September 30; the president signed it on October 16; and it was published on October 22. One day later, it came into effect. Law No. 61/2025 changed article 57-A of the “Foreigners Law” (Law No. 23/2007) which was intended to allow foreigners to seek employment in Portugal for up to 120 days at any level of skills.
The new skilled work-seeking visa creates a much tighter regulatory framework than its predecessor. The new visa will be issued to people who have what are considered “specialized technical competencies,” as established by an eventual joint ministerial order that will be jointly prepared by the departments responsible for foreign affairs, immigration, education and labor.
As of October 26, 2025, no such regulation has been enacted by the Portuguese government, so the new regulations cannot yet be used in processing visa applications. In fact, the Portuguese Department of Foreign Affairs stated that visa applicants will not be able to apply until there is the appropriate regulation, based upon the provisions of the new Foreigners Law. At the time of this report, no date had been set for when the regulation would be completed.
Important Changes to New Law
What has been eliminated: Previously, the job search visa allowed for any foreigner with funds (approximately €2,460 for the entire duration) to enter Portugal and look for work. The visa was valid for 120 days, renewable for an additional 60 days, and was a Schengen visa valid for travel indo the Schengen Area.
What replaces it: The skilled job search visa limits eligibility to high skilled professionals only. The visa retains the 120 day validity period and provides for an automatic appointment with AIMA (Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum) to apply for residence authorization, but introduces a number of important limitations:
- Territorial limitation: Only valid for Portuguese territory, with no automatic right to Schengen access
- Qualification limit: Limited to holders of “specialized technical competencies” (definition yet to come)
- Stricter consequences: If employment is not achieved within 120 days, application must depart from Portugal and wait one year before re-applying.
- No time frame: Regulations as to qualifying competencies not yet issued.
Article 46(2) of the revised law states in no uncertain terms “temporary stay visas, residence visas, and skilled job search visas are valid only for Portuguese territory,” thereby removing the previous free mobility throughout Schengen that made Portugal such an attractive gateway to applicants wishing to work anywhere in Schengen.
Manifestation of Interest Ends December 31
Law 61/2025 also definitively terminates Portugal’s “manifestation of interest” (Manifestação de Interesse) regularization pathway, which allowed non-EU nationals to enter as tourists, find employment, make 12 months of Social Security contributions, and then apply for residence authorization. The mechanism, which created a backlog of approximately 400,000 pending cases, will end permanently on December 31, 2025.
Article 4 of the law sets this date as the absolute final deadline for pending cases, stating that “residence permit applications must be submitted, mandatorily, by December 31, 2025, under penalty of forfeiture.” Approximately 130,000 manifestation of interest cases remain pending as of late 2025, according to government reports.
Prime Minister Luís Montenegro had announced in June 2024 that the government aimed to “put an end to excessive abuse of hospitality by migrants” when the manifestation of interest was initially suspended. The October 2025 law makes this suspension permanent.
Green Route Offers Alternative But With High Barriers
A “green route” exists as an alternative to traditional immigration routes, however, there is a high barrier to entry into the green route.
On April 1, 2025, the Portuguese government initiated its “Via Verde” (“Green Route”), which is an expedited immigration visa route, to allow processing of work visas within twenty days for workers who already have a pre-arranged employment position. However, this option has very strict requirements placed on employers who want to sponsor foreign workers for employment in Portugal, specifically:
- An employer must have at least 150 direct employees;
- Annual turnover of at least €25 million;
- No debt owed to Social Security or Tax Authorities;
- A valid contract of employment for each foreign worker employed by them;
- Training of their foreign employees in skills relevant to the job and/or language training in Portuguese;
- Adequate housing for their foreign employees meeting all applicable laws and regulations;
Therefore, due to these very restrictive conditions, it is unlikely that small to medium sized business will be able to participate in the “green route”.
The green route is intended to facilitate the movement of skilled foreign workers into certain economic areas experiencing extreme labor shortages including:
- Agriculture;
- Construction;
- Tourism;
- Services;
- Industry;
Unlike the previously available “manifestation of interest”, prior to the establishment of the green route, applicants were permitted to apply for regularization after they had arrived in Portugal.
Immigration Lawyers Warn of Labour Shortage Impact
Portuguese immigration law firm LVP Advogados stated that “sectors dependent on lower-skilled workers, such as hospitality and agriculture, may face labour shortages as the new job seeker visa focuses only on highly skilled professionals.”
Madeira Corporate Services noted that “although the law took effect on 22 October 2025, some measures depend on secondary regulations from AIMA and the Ministry of Interior,” highlighting the regulatory uncertainty facing applicants.
Global mobility platform Centuro Global emphasized that since April 2025, “the Portuguese government has ruled that all applications must be fully completed—a ‘zero-defect’ approach. AIMA only accepts applications, both new and renewals, that are 100% complete at the time of submission.”
Employers Express Frustration Over Worsening Worker Shortage
Portugal faces approximately 58,000 job vacancies across eight sectors, according to Eurostat, with construction requiring 70,000 workers and tourism/hospitality forecasting 49,000 positions unfilled. The cancellation of general work-seeking visas while implementing skilled-only requirements has drawn criticism from employers.
AHETA President Hélder Martins told Portugal Resident:
Hotels that have two or three restaurants may have to close one of them, and in other cases, hotels may close some rooms because they don’t have the staff to clean them. That is a shame!
Despite 20% salary increases over recent years—bringing average hospitality wages to €881/month in the Algarve and €1,198 nationally by December 2024—the sector still cannot attract sufficient workers. The new restrictions eliminate access to foreign workers in lower-skilled positions that comprise the bulk of hospitality vacancies.
We run the risk of seeing the quality of services provided affected by the labour shortage, and that is a real problem.
What Current Applicants Should Do
If you are an applicant who had your appointment cancelled: All appointments booked at VFS Global, BLS International, and TLScontact locations around the world have been automatically cancelled. You don’t need to cancel the appointment yourself. Instead, please keep checking official sources for news about when Portugal will again accept applications from people seeking a skilled work-seeking visa.
If you already submitted your application: Although there is no specific guidance available from the government concerning applications which were submitted prior to October 23rd, affected parties can contact the Portuguese consulate that processed their application to find out if their application is still being reviewed, or if it is pending.
As yet, the Portuguese government has not given information regarding refunds for either the cancellation of appointments, or the fees that were paid. However, as per standard Portuguese visa policy, fees are generally non-refundable whether the visa is approved, or refused. Therefore, the cancellations of the skilled work-seeking visa categories through October 2025 are considered a rare instance of the government cancelling an entire visa category due to lack of demand.
Please continue to check for updates on the following official sources:
- Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa portal: https://vistos.mne.gov.pt/en/
- AIMA (Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum): https://aima.gov.pt
- VFS Global, BLS International, or TLScontact websites for your country
Alternative Portugal Visa Options Remaining
While the job-seeking visa cancelation has taken place, other Portugal visa options remain available:
D8 Digital Nomad Visa
This category is unaffected. According to VisaGuide.World, it requires minimum monthly income of €3,548 (four times the Portuguese minimum wage) from remote work for non-Portuguese entities.
Valid for maximum one year in temporary stay option or way to two year residence permits.
D7 Passive Income Visa
This category is for those individuals having steady passive income including pensions, rental income, dividends, and royalties. Minimum monthly income of €870 plus bank savings of €10,440 required.
D2 Entrepreneur Visa
This category is for entrepreneurs and freelancers who are starting up businesses in Portugal. A necessary condition is business plan shows economic viability and investment funds are available.
D3 Highly qualified professionals Visa
This category applies to highly qualified workers having valid employment contracts for a minimum of one year. It requires that advanced academic qualifications match the job offered, the employer supporting will be in a need of sponsorship.
Golden Visa
This investment based residency program is still available though rumors persist that it is not. Investment options include €500,000 Portuguese venture capital funds, €250,000 for cultural/artistic donations and contributions, scientific research investment.
Alternative EU Options – Germany Becomes Number One Destination
Of all the alternative job-seeking visa options available in the European Union, Germany’s Chancenkarte (Opportunity Card) is by far the best. As of 2024, the card will allow you to look for a job for 12 months, which can be extended to a total of three years if you have found employment; the card also permits unlimited trial jobs lasting up to two weeks and part-time work up to 20 hours/week.
In addition, Germany accepts vocational training (a minimum of two years) and university degrees as valid education for the Chancenkarte, whereas virtually all other European job seeker visas require bachelor’s degrees or higher. In order to qualify for a Chancenkarte, applicants must either have their foreign qualifications fully recognized, or score at least six points based on qualifications, work experience, age and proficiency in German (A1) or English (B2). Also, applicants are required to maintain €13,092/year in a blocked bank account. Processing time is generally four to six weeks.
As of 2025 Spain has introduced a new job seeker visa for recent university graduates, and the requirements for this visa are a bachelor’s degree or higher, and proof of financial resources in the amount of €7,200-€12,000 for six to twelve months. This visa does not permit the holder to work while looking for a job, however the conversion to a work permit is fast when a job is obtained. Processing time for this visa is approximately two to six weeks.
The Netherlands has an Orientation Year (Zoekjaar) for graduates of Dutch universities or the top 200 world universities within three years of graduating from said universities. The Zoekjaar provides the graduate with the ability to work freely in the Netherlands immediately upon receipt of the visa, without the need for additional work permits.
This visa is valid for 12 months and cannot be renewed. It requires the applicant to demonstrate financial resources of at least €1,300/month for a minimum of 6 months prior to application, and the cost to apply is €200. The streamlined process of applying for the Zoekjaar began in 2025 and is estimated to take between 8 to 12 weeks for students who graduated from one of the top 200 universities in the world.
Cheapest EU Work Visas 2025
| Country | Main Visa Type | Duration | Cost | Ideal For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Skilled Worker / Blue Card | 1 year (extendable) | €75 | Engineers, IT, healthcare |
| Spain | Digital Nomad Visa | 1 year | €80 | Remote & tech professionals |
| Luxembourg | EU Blue Card | Up to 96 months | €80 | Tech, finance, healthcare |
| Poland | D-type National Work Visa | 1 year | €135 | Agriculture, tourism, IT |
| Austria | Red-White-Red Card | 24 months | €160 | Engineering, healthcare |
| Sweden | General Work Permit | 2 years | €182 | IT, R&D, engineering |
| France | Talent Passport | 4 years | €324 | Tech, finance, skilled jobs |
| Netherlands | Highly Skilled Migrant | Up to 5 years | €405 | Tech & engineering experts |
| Finland | Specialist Permit | 1–2 years | €490 | Software, R&D, data science |
Restrictions on Family Unification as Well
Law 61/2025 extends beyond work-seeking visas to tighten family reunification rules.
The new rule found in article 98 eliminates the possibility to immediately apply for family unification after being granted a residence authorization; instead, you must wait a minimum of 2 years to do so. Minor children, dependents, and spouses that have minor children in common, however, will be exempted from this waiting period.
In addition to the waiting period, applicants will also need to provide proof of suitable and safe housing, show they can financially support themselves and their dependents without needing public assistance, and demonstrate that they completed an integration program, which will require them to attend classes in Portuguese and learn about the principles of the Constitution of Portugal.
Looking Ahead
This is the largest change in immigration law in Portugal in many decades, and it changes the way that immigrants will have access to employment opportunities in Portugal by going from the ability to apply for an open post-arrival regularization process, to a highly restricted pre-vetted entry system. Unfortunately, the government has announced its intention to implement this change, but has not yet published the necessary regulations to explain how the new skilled work-seeking visa will operate.