Portugal D8 digital nomad visa: how much you must earn

Portugal's D8 income test looks backward, at the average of your last three months, and the official pages set no separate savings amount for it, though a consulate may still ask for bank statements. A savings figure presented as a D8 rule is not in the rules we read; the figure above is the monthly average that counts.

Two things people repeat about the D8 do not match the ministry's own pages. One is that you need a set pot of savings; the D8 pages set an income test and no separate savings amount. The other is that a good contract starting next month will do; the test averages what you earned in the three months before you apply, so a raise that has not yet landed does not count, and one thin month now drags the average down.

The figure above is the monthly average the ministry asks for: four times the Portuguese minimum wage, from work for employers or clients outside Portugal, as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' visa pages state it. It is income you earn, not a sum you pay or hold.

What counts, and what does not

• The income has to come from employment or self-employment for employers or clients outside Portugal.
• The minimum wage it is measured against is usually updated each January, so the threshold moves with it; the rule change shown above tells you when it last moved.
• The ministry's pages set this income test and no separate savings amount.

Each family member who comes with you raises what you need to show. Ask the consulate how it applies to your household before you apply.

What to ask before you pay

On this visa the state's charges come in two steps, at the consulate and then at AIMA, and an adviser's fee is a third item.

Charges that go to the government:

• The consular fee for the visa, and AIMA's application and grant fees for the residence permit after you arrive. The government fee shown above is these charges; AIMA currently charges the same reduced amounts in person and online.

Charges that are the firm's own:

• A lawyer's or adviser's fee, on a separate line from the government fees.

Ask yourself, and whoever is advising you:

1. What did you earn, on average, over the last three months, and do your payslips or invoices show it?
2. Has anyone told you that you need a savings amount for the D8? Ask them to point to the official rule.
3. Do the employers or clients you work for sit outside Portugal?
4. Is the calculation based on this year's minimum wage?
5. How many family members are coming, and what does the consulate ask for each?

If an adviser or agency has sent you a proposal that names an income or savings figure for the D8, answer yes to the first question in the box below and it will be read line by line against the official rules on file; if you have none, enter your own average income and the period it covers. The check compares a document or a figure with the published rules, and does not look at your application or advise on it; for advice on your own case, speak to a qualified immigration lawyer.

General information, not legal advice.