Spain, Portugal or Greece? An Honest Comparison

If you are early in your thinking, you have heard all three names. All three are in southern Europe, all three have good weather, all three are in Schengen. But as legal routes they differ substantially.

This comparison is written from the point of view of an applicant without Ibero-American nationality — someone on the ten-year path to citizenship.

At a glance

	Spain	Portugal	Greece
Golden visa	❌ Abolished (April 2025)	❌ Property removed; funds route from €500,000	✅ Active — €800,000 in major cities, €400,000 elsewhere
Residence without work	✅ €28,800/yr	✅ (D7) lower threshold	✅ (FIP)
Digital nomad	✅ ~€2,849/month	✅ Lower threshold	✅
Self-employment / entrepreneur	✅ Clear routes	✅	More limited
Citizenship (no special status)	10 years	5 years*	7 years
Cost of living	Moderate	Moderate, Lisbon expensive	Lower
Size of job market	Large	Medium	Small

*Portugal's qualifying period for citizenship has been subject to legislative debate in recent years; check the current position before deciding.

What each does best

Spain — the largest economy and the widest choice of routes. Six distinct residence paths, a job market several times larger than Portugal's or Greece's. Its special tax regime (the Beckham Law, a flat 24% for six years) is among the best in Europe for higher earners.

Portugal — a shorter path to citizenship. That is its main advantage. Financial thresholds are usually lower than Spain's, and English speakers settle in more easily.

Greece — the lowest investment threshold of the three. If your goal is simply a European residence permit through investment, Greece still offers that route. Since September 2024 the threshold is zoned: €800,000 in Athens, Thessaloniki and popular islands, €400,000 elsewhere, and €250,000 for restoration projects.

The weak points people are not told

Spain: ten years to citizenship is long, and the queue is real — more than 256,000 nationality files were pending at the end of 2025. Bureaucracy is heavy, and without local help, booking appointments and following up becomes exhausting.

Portugal: a smaller job market and lower salaries. Rents in Lisbon and Porto have risen sharply. If you intend to work, opportunities are narrower than in Spain.

Greece: the investor permit carries restrictions on employment that have changed in recent years — get the current position in writing from a Greek lawyer before committing, rather than relying on what you have been told. Separately, the job market is small, the economy more fragile, and Greek is a harder language barrier than Spanish.

One warning that applies to all three

All three have tightened their rules over the past three years. Spain and Portugal have both closed property-based golden visas. Which means:

Any adviser telling you today to "buy property and get European residency" is either out of date or not being straight with you. If someone proposes it, ask exactly which law and which country — and ask for the answer in writing.

So which one?

It depends on what matters most:

• Working and building a business? Spain. The market is bigger and the self-employment and entrepreneur routes are clearer.
• Getting a passport sooner? Portugal is shorter, provided you verify the current legal position.
• An investment route, residence only? Greece — provided you get the employment rights and renewal conditions in writing from a Greek lawyer before paying anything.
• Family and schooling as the deciding factor? Spain, for its free and extensive school system.

What all three share

In any of them, the wrong route on day one costs the same: months of time, a refusal on your record, and sometimes being sent home to start again.

We work in Spain and we talk about Spain honestly — including when we tell someone their situation does not fit it. Write to us and hear in the first meeting which route is realistic for you.

For a closer comparison of the routes within Spain, see this article.