Three and a half months after the so-called "green route" for hiring foreign workers came into effect, employers have already submitted applications to recruit 493 immigrants under this protocol.

According to Diário de Notícias, only the Portuguese Farmers' Confederation (CAP) and the Association of Civil Construction and Public Works Workers (AICCOPN) have submitted applications, while the Tourism, Commerce, and Services sectors have not applied for visas due to their inability to meet accommodation requirements.

The confederation, led by Álvaro Mendonça e Moura, submitted 380 applications and granted eight visas. The association representing the construction sector submitted applications for 113 workers, 48 of whom have already received the green light from the Directorate-General for Consular Affairs and Portuguese Communities (DGCACCP). The workforce comes primarily from Cape Verde, Angola, Colombia, and Peru.

AICCOPN wants to go further and is currently finalising another round of applications to hire 137 immigrant workers, aiming to address the labour shortage in the sector. "At this stage of the RRP [Recovery and Resilience Plan] and Portugal 2030, we need 80,000 to 90,000 workers. I hope this protocol will ultimately resolve, or at least alleviate, the problems in the construction industry," noted Manuel Reis Campos, president of the CPCI (Portuguese Construction and Real Estate Confederation).