Christmas lights are going up!
First off full stop. Don't come at me for the title. I don't care if you voted for him "but didn't really like him." You're the problem and this blog is not for you.
So your country elected a dictator and you want to move to Portugal. I've done a few posts on living in Portugal mostly the commuting for my job aspect, and a few other random ones you can dig for. But I'll go over a little more detail in this one.
First off I am happy to help answer any questions I can BUT the process has changed quite a bit from when I applied in 2020 so I will help where I can.
If you decide Portugal is for you and want to apply you will need to apply for a D7 visa (retirement) or D8 (digital nomad) there is also a "Golden Visa" which I will not comment on at all as I know nothing other than they keep changing the requirements for it. I will say I applied as a D7 but thats because when I applied that was the only visa option. Here is the page that will point you in the direction along with the requirements for the visas.
So for fun you will actually apply through VFS Global. VFS Global is who you will give your application to depending on what state you live in depends on which office you will go to. The big ones are DC and San Francisco. But there are others like Houston/Boston/NY?/Miami? At any rate you can look up and see where you will apply. VFS Global also has a list of visa types and the paperwork you need to have when you apply. Most items for both visas are similar; background check/passport photos/accommodations/NIF(pt tax number)/proof of funds, and no doubt more that I have forgotten. When we applied I did all the paperwork myself. I did not hire a lawyer or anyone other than hiring someone to help set up our bank account in PT because when we applied (because of covid) we couldn't travel to set it up in person and had to do it remotely. I also would endorse Relocate to Portugal, they offer a free consultation and I did use their services to help call and schedule my immigration appointment(s).
But let's be honest you didn't come here to learn how to follow a checklist and fill out paperwork, while confusing as that is, it is self-explanatory. You came here hoping for a fantasy world to escape the impending horror that the US will become, and while Portugal is no Utopia it is looking a lot better after November 5th.
Do not undertake a move like this lightly. It's hard. It's hard to move to another city, much less a country where you don't know anyone, don't speak the language and don't know how anything works. Plenty of people have done it successfully but it's hard and you will cry, and you will hate it at times. It's also expensive. Portugal is somewhat cheaper for some things but the initial move isn't cheap. You have to open, then transfer a bunch of money to a PT bank to pay for deposits on apartments/plane tickets/ and something I like to call "stupid fee's."
Stupid fee's you may ask, what are those? Everyone I know that has moved here has paid some form of a stupid fee. From bogus insurance on a water bill, to our stupid fee which was using transfer wise to pay our deposits on our first apartment because we didn't know how to transfer money between accounts on the ATM's. Your stupid fee amounts will vary but you will pay one.
Lets talk cost. The biggest thing everyone thinks is that it's super cheap to be in Portugal. The answer is yes and no. Some things are cheaper and some are not. I touch on this topic and some others in my earlier post on why I chose Portugal.
The one thing that you will need to do is pack your patience. I don't mean airport McDonalds patience. I mean bureaucratic patience. This will start the minute you hand over your application to VFS, in theory they have 90 business days to turn your application around but that wildly varies for literally no reason. Some people get an answer in 30 days, some people it takes 6 months, and there is nothing you can do about this. Some people who apply after you will get an answer before you, some won't. This is because all VFS does is take the application which they then send to Portugal where it lands on someone's desk so this is why some are processed faster than others, just depends on whose desk your application lands on.
Once you get your visa you will have "2 ins and 2 outs" until you have your immigration appointment. This can be hard esp because some people have an appointment scheduled when they get their visa back and some don't. If you are unlucky and don't it's rough, they are extremely backed up and basically no appointments are available ever. If you are lucky enough to get an appointment it likely won't be near where you live. It doesn't matter, go to it, they are so hard to get if you try to change it to a closer location it could take months. My appointment was 4 hours away (each way). I ended up paying a company to drive me there and back, totally worth it. Back to the 2 in and 2 out. It's pretty much what it sounds like. You can only enter and leave the country twice until your immigration appointment so plan carefully.
So now (yay) you've had your immigration appointment your card will be mailed to you sometime. Cue me laughing. I learned a saying when we lived in New Mexico, they told us manana doesn't mean tomorrow it just means not today. The same can be said in Portugal "Ahmana doesn't mean tomorrow it just means not today." Again no consistency on when your card gets mailed versus anyone else's it's just luck. Also will your CTT post person deliver it? Some deliver the card, some make you go to the post office to pick it up (technically you do need to sign for it ). My CTT person didn't even bother to see if I was home (I was) and just dropped off a slip for me to pick it up at the post office rather than ring the bell and have me sign for it.
It also took me a year to get my drivers license, yes a year. I hear that it's better now but that also varies wildly. Again I say all this because if you are a type A person this is going to be very hard for you, even if you aren't it's very hard to be so laissez faire about everything. I am the absolute opposite of type A and my drivers license exchange almost broke me.
While it seems like some of this might be meant to deter you it's really not supposed to be, I just want people to be well informed when they make a decision and not just see with rose coloured glasses on.
Comments