Client story
Client's story
Where they started
Sergey had a touching and ambitious goal: to bring the entire family to Europe at once—four generations. Himself, his wife, children, his 71-year-old mother, and 92-year-old grandmother. All through a single investment in a Golden Visa fund, so no one would be left behind.
Why the standard route did not work
Including children and even elderly parents in a residence permit application is standard practice. But four generations, particularly with grandparents, requires specialized expertise. AIMA, when processing status for elderly parents and especially grandparents, requires proof of financial dependency—that they are financially and factually dependent on the primary applicant, not merely related by blood.
What BRIDGES had to solve
Particular difficulty arose with the 92-year-old grandmother. At such an advanced age and condition, she was physically unable to travel for standard procedures, and financial dependency of a very elderly person must be proved especially convincingly: that the family specifically supports her—paying for care, medication, and living expenses. Without this documentation, she could not be included in the application.
Why a standard answer would not do
Sergey approached BRIDGES understanding that the task was not simply to "file for the family," but to bring four generations through a single investment: to document financial dependency of both mother and grandmother, resolve the issue of grandmother's inability to travel, and obtain residence permits for everyone without leaving anyone behind.
I wanted to bring the entire family at once—four generations, including my grandmother who is 92. Through a single investment in a fund. But grandmother cannot physically travel, and Portugal requires proof that grandparents are financially dependent on us. Anna collected bank statements for three years—showing our payments for caregivers, medication, and living expenses for my grandmother and mother, and arranged for a home notarization for my grandmother. We proved the financial dependency, and all four generations obtained residence permits. No one was left behind.
