Some residence programmes want you to live in the country almost full time. Others ask for a few days a year, or none at all. Here is how stay requirements vary and why they are not the same as tax residence.
Information, not advice. Figures are indicative and current as of June 2026. Always confirm the present rules with the official program authority and a licensed professional before you act.
Stay or physical presence rules set how much time you must actually spend in a country to keep your status and, later, to qualify for permanent residence or citizenship. They shape whether a programme fits a person who wants to relocate or one who wants a backup base while living elsewhere.
The range is wide. Some programmes ask for no minimum stay at all. Greece, for example, has reported no minimum stay to keep its golden visa. Portugal has reported a low average of roughly seven days a year for its route. At the other end, many ordinary residence permits expect you to live in the country for about 183 days a year. Spain closed its golden visa to new applicants in April 2025, and its remaining residence routes are reported to require substantial presence. Always confirm the current figure, since programmes change.
A low stay requirement does not mean you escape tax. Tax residence is decided by each country under its own rules, often around a 183 day count plus tests such as where your home and main interests sit. You can hold residence in one country on a few days a year while being taxed as resident somewhere else entirely. Treat immigration days and tax days as two separate questions.
Check the minimum days for the first card and for each renewal, whether absences are counted strictly, and what presence any citizenship step later demands. Read these against your tax position. Day counts change, so verify the current requirement with the official immigration authority of the programme before you act.
Several reportedly ask for little or no minimum stay, with Greece reported at zero and Portugal at a low yearly average. Figures change, so confirm the current rule with the official authority.
No. Tax residence follows separate rules in each country, often a 183 day count and tests of where your life is centred. Take tax advice from a licensed professional.
Spain closed its golden visa to new applicants in April 2025. Other Spanish residence routes remain but are reported to require more presence. Confirm the current position with the Spanish authorities.
Information, not advice. Figures are indicative and current as of June 2026. Always confirm the present rules with the official program authority and a licensed professional before you act.
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