What is the Tech Visa?
Tech Visa is a certification for companies, not a visa you apply for yourself. IAPMEI certifies companies that meet the programme's conditions, and a certified company can then recruit highly qualified staff from outside the EU with simpler procedures for the visa and the residence permit. The programme began with technology companies and has since been opened to companies in all sectors with an international footprint.
For you as a candidate, it means the employer has already been vetted for this kind of hire. The visa is still yours to apply for, and it is still a work visa for a highly qualified role, but the company side of the file is lighter and already known to the authorities.
What does the certification mean, and what does it not mean?
Certification tells you IAPMEI has checked the company against the programme's conditions and that it may use the simplified route. It does not tell you that the company is hiring now, that it hires for your role, or that it will sponsor you. Certification is granted for a fixed period and has to be renewed, so a name on an old copy of the list may no longer be current.
It does not replace the contract either. A certified employer still has to offer you the job, and the contract still has to meet Portuguese labour law and the pay rules for highly qualified work.
Is there a salary floor?
Yes. A highly qualified role pays at or above a legal threshold: 1.5 times the national average gross wage, or 3 times the Social Support Index (IAS), depending on the basis that applies to the role category. It is the same rule our work visa page sets out for the D3.
Whether a Tech Visa hire carries any further condition on pay, and the current euro amounts behind those multiples, change over time. Check with us for the figure that applies to your offer.
How do I check whether a company is certified?
IAPMEI publishes the list of Tech Visa certified companies on its website. Search it for the company's legal name, which is often different from its brand; you will find the legal name in the footer of the company's website, on its invoices or in its job posting.
If the company is not on the list, it can still hire you through the standard routes. A large employer may also file through Via Verde, the fast lane for employers recruiting abroad: employers with more than 150 staff and EUR 25M turnover can file it directly. Tech Visa and Via Verde are two different doors to the same result, a contract and a work visa.
How do I approach a certified company?
Look at its postings first. Role fit and recent hiring activity matter more than the certification: a certified company that has not posted a role like yours in months is a weaker lead than an uncertified one hiring for it this week. Then write to the company directly, with a CV in English that states your level honestly, name the role, and say that you are outside the EU and would need a work visa; certified companies know what that involves.
Why does this guide not name companies?
Because a list goes stale fast and says nothing about fit. Certifications lapse and are renewed, companies stop hiring, roles change. The useful question is not which companies are certified, but which of them hire people like you, recently, from abroad.
That is the question our Employer Match Report answers: twenty employers in Portugal with public evidence that they hire people who are still abroad, scored out of 100 on five published criteria, scale and Via Verde eligibility among them, each with its source and the date it was checked, and a ready-to-send email for each. EUR 100, delivered within 3 business days, with a full refund if we find fewer than 15 qualified employers.
What happens once a certified company offers me the job?
The file follows the work visa route for a highly qualified role: your degree or equivalent experience, a contract of at least 12 months, pay above the threshold, a clean criminal record certificate, and the Portuguese essentials, meaning your NIF, NISS and bank account.
Our preparation takes 5 to 9 weeks before the authorities' processing, and the residence permit needs one in-person AIMA appointment for biometrics. Everything before that, we handle remotely.
Questions people also ask
Can I apply for a Tech Visa myself?
No. The certification belongs to the company. You benefit from it when a certified company hires you.
Does the Tech Visa only cover IT jobs?
No. It is for highly qualified roles, and the programme has been opened to companies in all sectors with an international footprint. Check the role against the highly qualified categories: broadly senior management, ICT, engineering, scientific research, healthcare and other specialist technical occupations.
Is a Tech Visa company always faster than any other employer?
Not always. A large employer filing through Via Verde can be quick too, and a well-prepared standard file avoids the delays that come from contract problems. What matters most is how fast the employer moves and how clean the contract is.
Sources
The official pages behind this guide. Rules change, so we confirm the current position on every case.
- IAPMEI: Tech Visa programme page, which hosts the current list of certified companies as a PDF
- IAPMEI: the current list of Tech Visa certified companies, a PDF on the Tech Visa page
- Government of Portugal: Tech Visa opened to companies in all sectors
- AIMA: residence permit for highly qualified activity (art. 90)
- Embassy of Portugal in India: the Via Verde protocol (PCMLR) explained
