No, I didn’t do a golden visa - rather, a retirement visa - residency is easy if you have even only a moderate income of €1,200 a month or so or assets. It also handily comes with a ten year exemption on overseas income, which I don’t feel too bad about as I avail myself of no state services beyond those which I do pay for through other taxes, and I’ve made some substantial investments in local businesses.

The golden visa was a much abused scheme largely for absentee landlords who want EU residency, and it has indeed jacked up property prices in the major population centres to an unsustainable degree - many properties have been priced to the visa threshold, and then sit vacant, unrented, often dilapidating. I’m glad to see the back of it, as it gives estrangeiros a bad rap.

A good example of seizing the opportunity none the less. In such a dynamic world, I'm sure there's ways to do the same.