If you are planning to visit Portugal and you are a national from a country outside the European Union (EU), then carry on and read about the entry requirements for Portugal, the EU and the Schengen area (we’ll explain everything!), including a list of the countries exempt from visa requirements for short stays.
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Passport, entry and visa requirements for Portugal, EU and Schengen area
If you are a national from a country outside the EU wishing to visit or travel within the Schengen area, including Portugal, you will need a valid passport and possibly a visa. Your passport should be valid for at least 3 months after the date you intend to leave the EU and it must have been issued within the last 10 years. You may also have to produce other supporting documents to border officials upon arrival such as an invitation letter, proof of lodging, return or round-trip ticket. For the exact requirements contact the Portuguese embassy in your country.
EU visa rules and the Schengen area
The EU has a common set of visa rules which apply to short stays (that is up to 90 days in any 180-day period) and for transit through international transit areas of airports in the Schengen area. These rules apply in 27 European countries, including Portugal, 23 EU countries as well as 4 non-EU countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland). Collectively these countries make up the Schengen area. Once you have crossed the external Schengen border and border guards have verified that your documents satisfy the entry requirements, you will not be subject to further checks when travelling within the Schengen area.
Applying for a short stay visa in the Schengen area up to 90 days in any 180-day period (Schengen area visa)
Depending on your nationality you may need a visa, but there are a number of countries whose nationals are exempt from visa requirements for stays of 90 days or less (see list below). If you need a visa, you must apply to the Portuguese consulate or embassy in your country (or in some cases via an external service provider).
List of third countries whose nationals are exempt from a Schengen area visa for stays of no more than 90 days in any 180-day period
1. States
- former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1)
- Andorra
- United Arab Emirates (2)
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Albania (1)
- Argentina
- Australia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina (1)
- Barbados
- Brunei
- Brazil
- Bahamas
- Canada
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Dominica (2)
- Micronesia (2)
- Grenada (2)
- Georgia (3)
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Israel
- Japan
- Kiribati (2)
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- South Korea
- Saint Lucia (2)
- Monaco
- Moldova (4)
- Montenegro (5)
- Marshall Islands (6)
- Mauritius
- Mexico
- Malaysia
- Nicaragua
- Nauru (6)
- New Zealand
- Panama
- Peru (6)
- Palau (6)
- Paraguay
- Serbia (excluding holders of Serbian passports issued by the Serbian Coordination Directorate (in Serbian: Koordinaciona uprava)) (5)
- Solomon Islands
- Seychelles
- Singapore
- San Marino
- El Salvador
- Timor-Leste (6)
- Tonga (6)
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tuvalu (6)
- Ukraine (7)
- United States
- Uruguay
- Holy See
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (6)
- Venezuela
- Vanuatu (6)
- Samoa
2. Special administrative regions of the people’s republic of China
- Hong Kong SAR (8)
- Macao SAR (9)
3. British citizens who are not nationals of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for the purposes of union law
- British nationals (Overseas)
- British overseas territories citizens (BOTC)
- British overseas citizens (BOC)
- British protected persons (BPP)
- British subjects (BS)
4. Entities and territorial authorities that are not recognised as states by at least one member state
- Taiwan (10)
NOTES:
(1) The exemption from the visa requirement shall only apply to holders of biometric passports.
(2) The exemption from the visa requirement shall apply from the date of entry into force of an agreement on visa exemption to be concluded with the European Union.
(3) The exemption from the visa requirement shall be limited to the holders of biometric passports issued by Georgia in line with standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
(4) The exemption from the visa requirement shall be limited to the holders of biometric passports issued by Moldova in line with standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
(5) The exemption from the visa requirement shall only apply to holders of biometric passports.
(6) The exemption from the visa requirement shall apply from the date of entry into force of an agreement on visa exemption to be concluded with the European Union.
(7) The exemption from the visa requirement shall be limited to the holders of biometric passports issued by Ukraine in line with standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
(8) The exemption from the visa requirement shall only apply to holders of a ‘Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’ passport.
(9) The exemption from the visa requirement shall only apply to holders of a ‘Região Administrativa Especial de Macau’ passport.
(10) The exemption from the visa requirement shall only apply to holders of passports issued by Taiwan which include an identity card number.