Sources and methodology
Where the facts come from
I use primary sources first. The main ones:
- The law: Decree-Law 07/2025 as published in the Diário da República No. 33 of 1 August 2025 (a copy of the gazette hosted on rstp.st), with the fee table in Annex I and the document list in Annex III.
- The official programme site of the Citizenship by Investment Unit: home page, investment structure, post-approval inclusion fees, eligibility criteria, application process and frequently asked questions.
- Practice notes and data published by BRIDGES: the São Tomé programme page, the passport index, and articles on costs, visa-free travel, the CPLP and Portugal, applicants from Russia, São Tomé versus Vanuatu, the first year in figures and the 2026 election.
How I check and date information
- Each article shows an "Updated" date. It changes only when the facts are reviewed.
- Fees are quoted as the decree and the CIU publish them, and figures from BRIDGES are labelled as such.
- Where sources differ, I show both. Examples: processing time (about 2 months on the CIU site, around 9 months on the BRIDGES programme page in October 2026), visa-free destinations (58 in the BRIDGES index, over 93 on the CIU site) and the minimum age of parents (55 in the CIU FAQ, 18 on the CIU eligibility page).
- Information I could not confirm in official sources, such as the 7 year passport validity, the limit of two foreign citizenships, the court challenge and the Russian notification rule, is marked as coming from BRIDGES.
How often the guides are updated
All articles are reviewed at least once a quarter, and immediately after the government or the CIU changes the rules. I watch three topics most closely: the fees, which the government can change by joint order, the court challenge to the decree-law, and processing times.
Corrections
If you find an error, please tell us through the contact page. Corrections are made and the update date is changed.