The Regressar Program will cover “emigrants who have left Portugal for at least three years in relation to the date they started working in Portugal”. Measure in force until 2026.
The Regressar Program, which provides financial support to those who wish to return to Portugal, will now cover “emigrants who have left Portugal for at least three years in relation to the date they started working in Portugal,” according to the ordinance published on Tuesday in the Official Gazette.
Created in 2019, the Return Program was initially intended only for those who came with a work contract, but now also covers those who return to launch their own business. There is also positive discrimination for those who move to the interior, through an increase in the support granted by the IEFP.
According to the ordinance published this Tuesday in the Official Gazette, emigrants who “start working in mainland Portugal between January 1, 2019 and the end date of the Regressar Program,” i.e. until 2026, will now be covered by this program, as well as “emigrants who have left Portugal for at least three years in relation to the start date of the work activity subject to application.
The measurealso covers holders of research grants, as well as “emigrants and their families who are unemployed at the time before the application is submitted. This ordinance aims to encourage the return of qualified staff to the country and, in particular, attract younger people. The new rules come into effect as of this Wednesday.
In this scope, the Government stipulates that the financial compensation for those who have permanent contracts or who create companies is “seven times the value of the Social Support Index (IAS)”, i.e. 3,363.01 euros. In the case of a “fixed-term employment contract for an initial duration of 12 months or more, or a fixed-term employment contract for an indefinite duration for a foreseeable duration of 12 months or more”, it is five times the value of the IAS, i.e., 2,402.15 euros.
On the other hand, the diploma authored by the Ministry of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security also establishes an additional compensation in the “costs of travel to Portugal for the recipient and other members of the household, with a maximum limit of three times the value of the IAS”, i.e. 1,441.29 euros, as well as the costs of transporting goods (in the same amount). These expenses are paid by the IEFP.
