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It’s Getting Harder to Obtain a ‘Golden Visa’ in Europe

Portugal is joining other countries in scrapping its residency-by-investment program, which has been a draw for wealthy foreigners.

Residential buildings in the Alfama district of Lisbon, Portugal.

Photographer: Goncalo Fonseca/Bloomberg
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Europe’s golden age of golden visas appears to be ending.

For wealthy foreign investors, they offered easier travel, better lives and even breezier retirements. But the pathway to the so-called golden visas grew narrower this week as two countries popular with the jet-set crowd scrapped their programs.