D8 visa family income requirement: 460 or 1,840 euros per spouse?
A D8 couple needs 4,140 euros a month in 2026 under Portugal's means of subsistence rules. Some advisers quote 5,520. Here is where each figure comes from.
Published . Updated . 6 min read.
The D8 visa family income requirement in 2026 is 3,680 euros a month for the applicant, plus 460 euros for a spouse and 276 euros per child, so a couple needs 4,140 euros a month. That is the reading that follows the text of Portugal's means of subsistence rules. Some advisers publish a much higher figure, 1,840 euros per spouse, and a couple planning on the lower number should know why.
No official page publishes a D8 household table. The figures below are built from the official rules, dated, and set against what the main published guides say.
What does the official D8 rule say about family members?
The official rule says nothing about family members. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MNE) document list for the remote work residency visa asks for an average monthly income over the last three months of at least four times the minimum monthly guaranteed remuneration (checked 26 September 2026). It names no amount for a spouse, a child or a household.
The Portuguese government set the minimum wage at 920 euros for 2026, up from 870 euros, in an announcement of 17 December 2025. Four times 920 gives the 3,680 euro applicant threshold that our Visa Check tool uses.
For the household, every figure you see comes from a second instrument: Portaria 1563/2007 of 11 December 2007, which fixes the means of subsistence that foreign nationals must hold to enter and live in Portugal. The disagreement is about how to combine that Portaria with the D8 multiplier.
How much does a spouse add to the D8 income requirement?
A spouse adds 460 euros a month under the Portaria's own wording. Article 2(2) measures means of subsistence by reference to the minimum monthly guaranteed remuneration, with a per capita weight for each member of the household:
- First adult: 100 percent.
- Second and further adults: 50 percent.
- Children under 18 and dependent adult children: 30 percent.
The base for every percentage is the minimum wage itself, not the requirement of the main applicant. AIMA, the immigration agency, restates the same weights on its means of subsistence page (checked 26 September 2026). With a 920 euro minimum wage, that makes 460 euros for a spouse and 276 euros per child.
This is also how the D7 has always been quoted. Movingto lists the 2026 D7 at 920 euros for one person, 1,380 for a couple and 1,656 for a couple with one child (verified 11 July 2026), the same 50 and 30 percent of the minimum wage. Global Citizen Solutions applies the same method to the D8 (updated 1 September 2026), though its page prints the couple figure as 4,104 euros, a transposition of 4,140. Small errors like that one are part of why the topic feels unsettled.
Why do some advisers quote 1,840 euros per spouse?
The 1,840 euro figure comes from applying the D8 multiplier to the whole household. MSP Lawyer's 2026 guide lists 1,840 euros per spouse and 1,104 euros per child, giving 6,624 euros for a couple with one child and 7,728 with two (checked 26 September 2026).
The arithmetic is simple: 1,840 is 50 percent of 3,680, and 1,104 is 30 percent of it. Put another way, the family members are charged the same four times multiplier as the applicant.
We found no official text that supports this. The MNE page sets the four times test for the applicant only, and the Portaria ties the family weights to the minimum wage. The stricter reading is an interpretation, not a published rule. It is still worth taking seriously for one reason: the consular officer decides the file, and the law gives that officer a judgment on whether the household can support itself.
How much income does a couple need for the D8 visa?
A couple needs 4,140 euros a month on the Portaria reading and 5,520 euros on the stricter one. The gap is 1,380 euros a month for a couple, and it grows with each child.
| Household in 2026 | Portaria reading (percent of minimum wage) | Stricter reading (percent of the D8 threshold) |
|---|---|---|
| Single applicant | 3,680 euros a month | 3,680 euros a month |
| Couple | 4,140 euros a month | 5,520 euros a month |
| Couple plus one child | 4,416 euros a month | 6,624 euros a month |
| Couple plus two children | 4,692 euros a month | 7,728 euros a month |
All figures use the 920 euro minimum wage for 2026. They move every 1 January with the minimum wage, because Article 13 of the Portaria updates its amounts automatically with it. If your income is paid in another currency, check the euro value with our currency check and leave a margin for exchange rate swings over the three month averaging window.
How much savings does a D8 family need?
A D8 family should plan on 12 months of the household figure in savings: 11,040 euros for one person and 16,560 euros for a couple in 2026. Article 5(6) of the Portaria asks residency visa applicants for means of subsistence covering at least 12 months, and 12 times the 920 euro minimum wage is 11,040.
Imin Portugal's D8 guide (9 December 2025) adds 5,520 euros per extra adult and gives a worked example of 19,872 euros for an applicant with a spouse and one child, which is 11,040 plus 5,520 plus 3,312. The same page states the child figure as 3,132 euros in one sentence, another transposition. MSP Lawyer publishes no D8 savings figure for the stricter reading.
Should your spouse apply as a dependant or on their own D8?
If your spouse also works remotely and earns at least 3,680 euros a month, two separate D8 applications remove the household question entirely. Each file then only has to meet the published applicant test, and no consulate can apply a family uplift to it.
The cost is a second 110 euro national visa fee, the fee set by the MNE for every national visa application (checked 26 September 2026), and a second set of documents. Compare that with a possible refusal. An administrative appeal against a visa decision costs 75 euros on the same MNE fee page, and a fresh application means new apostilles and a new three month income window.
Global Citizen Solutions lists insufficient or unclear income proof first among the common D8 refusal reasons (updated 1 September 2026). A household that clears the stricter figure removes that risk. A household between the two figures is the case where the next steps matter most.
What should you do before you apply?
Get the answer from the consulate that will decide your file, in writing, before you commit money to the move.
- Work out both figures for your household with the table above, using the minimum wage in force on the day you apply.
- Email your consulate or its visa centre and ask what monthly amount and what savings they expect for your exact household.
- Plan on the higher figure until that reply arrives.
- If your spouse earns remotely too, compare one application with a dependant against two individual D8 applications.
- If your income sits between the two figures, book an hour with a Portuguese immigration lawyer before you sign a 12 month lease.
For the wider move, our guide to becoming a digital nomad covers the steps before any visa, and our note on Portuguese permanent residence after five years explains where the D8 leads.
Updated on 26 September 2026. Rules and prices change: confirm with the official source linked above before you act.
Frequently asked questions
How much income do I need for a Portugal D8 visa with a spouse?
About 4,140 euros a month in 2026. The applicant needs 3,680 euros (four times the 920 euro minimum wage) and Portaria 1563/2007 adds 50 percent of the minimum wage, 460 euros, for a second adult. Some advisers apply 50 percent of the D8 threshold instead and quote 5,520 euros, so ask your consulate in writing before you rely on the lower figure.
How much does each child add to the D8 income requirement?
Each child adds 276 euros a month in 2026 on the Portaria reading, which is 30 percent of the 920 euro minimum wage. The stricter reading used by some advisers adds 1,104 euros per child, 30 percent of the 3,680 euro D8 threshold. For savings, the Portaria reading gives 3,312 euros per child, twelve times the monthly uplift.
Can my spouse come to Portugal on my D8 visa?
Yes, as a family member, if your income covers the household. The official MNE page only sets the applicant test, so the household amount comes from Portugal's means of subsistence rules. If your spouse also works remotely and earns at least 3,680 euros a month, a separate D8 application avoids the family calculation, at the cost of a second 110 euro visa fee.
How much savings does a couple need for the D8 visa?
About 16,560 euros in 2026: 11,040 euros for the applicant and 5,520 euros for the spouse. Both figures are twelve months of the monthly amounts, since Portaria 1563/2007 asks residency visa applicants to cover at least 12 months. Add 3,312 euros per child. Consulates usually expect the money in a Portuguese bank account.
Sources
- Vistos MNE, residency visa required documents (remote work: average monthly income over three months of four times the minimum wage), accessed .
- Portuguese Government, minimum wage raised from 870 to 920 euros for 2026 (17 December 2025), accessed .
- Portaria 1563/2007 of 11 December 2007, means of subsistence (Article 2: 100, 50 and 30 percent of the minimum wage; Article 5: 12 months for residency visas), hosted by Vistos MNE, accessed .
- AIMA, means of subsistence (per capita weights by reference to the minimum wage), accessed .
- Vistos MNE, national visa fees (110 euro application fee, 75 euro appeal fee), accessed .
- Global Citizen Solutions, Portugal digital nomad visa guide (updated 1 September 2026: family uplifts, savings, refusal reasons), accessed .
- MSP Lawyer, Portugal D7 and D8 visa requirements 2026 (1,840 euros per spouse, 1,104 per child), accessed .
- Movingto, Portugal D7 visa 2026 (verified 11 July 2026: 920, 1,380 and 1,656 euros a month), accessed .
- Imin Portugal, D8 visa guide (9 December 2025: 11,040 euros of savings, 19,872 euros for a couple with one child), accessed .
