The ARI/Golden Visa application is divided in two stages: an online first stage, where all basic documents are uploaded to the SEF’s platform and, once approved, a second stage, where the main applicant (and family members, should this apply) personally go to SEF facilities and have their biometric data collected, also they handover all necessary documents in this stage. Regarding your question, the point in time that matters is the moment when your online application was executed, not when application has been decided. If you applied under the former legal framework, your rights cannot be jeopardized due to a new set of rules that go against them. As such, if by the end of the year, your application (at least online) has been executed but hasn’t been decided yet, you will still be eligible.
