You have decided to change your life altogether. Choosing Portugal as your new home is one of the best decisions you can make for you and your family. This country, with its Old World history, laid back pace and modern community offers many opportunities for you. It may take a bit of an effort to make the change and here are some of the things you need to act upon in preparation for your new home in Portugal.
Survival Tool No.1: Language
You need to learn the language in order to be abreast of things in Portugal. Portuguese is still the main language of use in the daily pace of life in the country. You can do this before you uproot yourself from your current situation. Learning the language is quite easy, so long as you have the proper mindset and tools for it. You can learn the language by reading and listening from the many self-help material available in the market. If you would use the language as part of your employment, getting a certification from a duly recognized school or language center would certainly help you for this end. The bottom line is you need to learn Portuguese to be able to survive in Portugal with your family.
Survival Tool No.2: Visa Certifications
Entering the country for a citizen of a European Union or North American or Oceania is easy. There is no visa requirement if you are a passport holder of a European Union country, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. If you were to stay in the country for more than ninety days, you would need to get a visa certification. Since you are planning to make Portugal your place of residence, you would need to apply for a residency visa. You can do this by going to the Portuguese Embassy in your current country of residence and applying for one for you and your family. Once you are in Portugal and you have stayed in the country for more than 183 days, you have become a fiscal resident and thus subject to a few other requirements. These can be fully known by coordinating your transfer with your country’s embassy.
Survival Tool No.3: Representation
Since you are new to the country, with little or no knowledge of the country’s bureaucracy or business practices, it is best that you hire a representative in the country to handle the paper work and other governmental requirements. Portuguese bureaucracy is quite complicated and an expert in that field is best for you to avoid the hassle and stress of handling the bureaucratic machinery of Portugal.
Survival Tool No.4: Residence
You have many options for living quarters when you take residence in Portugal. You may choose to rent a house or a flat. Depending on the location, the rates vary greatly. When you choose to live in the urban centers, the rates can go as high as €1,000 for a home while a flat can rate between €300 to €500 inclusive of water, electricity and gas utilities. If you opt for purchasing your own home in Portugal, you may have to put up quite a sum not only for the purchase price but also for the costs of transfer, taxes and other incidental expenses. You may choose to buy a home in a rural area or you can opt to purchase property in the urban areas. You have many options as to this kind of home ownership and it is best that you work through a real estate agent so that you can best the location for the price and to have someone handle all the paperwork for the transfer or ownership.
Survival Tool No.5: Support Services
Knowing where the hospital is and your way in getting there are indispensable pieces of information for your survival in Portugal. Finding your way around governmental services such as police and fire department numbers are also very important. These basic social support services are still of high quality and with very commendable response times. Public transportation services are also important to get your way around. The urban areas transport system is well-maintained and easily accessible. Much though still has to be said about the rural areas as these still require much work from the government. So traveling between urban areas by land is quite a tedious affair, but you can still breathe the fresh air the countryside provides as you go back to the urban areas.
Another key service available in all the areas in Portugal, be it the urban, suburban and rural areas is the public school system. The program is subsidized in whole by the Portuguese national government. The problem though is the high illiteracy rates as well as the high dropout rates as high as 8%. Overall, there are excellent universities with many accreditations with the United States and the United Kingdom. All you need to do is find the best school for you or for your children while you live in Portugal.
Survival Tool No.6: Employment
Portugal has recorded low 7.6% unemployment rate that rates it the 48th lowest in the world. With an economy that is still stable despite the current world financial crisis. The most promising areas for expatriate employment are in the education industry and the new export industries. Depending on your location, your employment opportunities would also vary. So finding a way to earn your keep as you live in Portugal can be done by applying while you are still in the process of finalizing your move to Portugal. There are many online sites that offer employment opportunities for your expertise.
Another way to earn money in Portugal is by putting up your own business in the country. This you cannot do on your own as you need a local to help you set up your business both physically and formally. Physically putting up your business means finding an office or place of business for your wares or for your expertise. Formally putting up your business includes the registration requirements for your business. You would need a local in this aspect as the Portuguese bureaucracy is quite complicated. Also the local can provide you the depth and breadth of responsibilities of the business owner, such as taxation, employment and other specific guidelines required. You can hit the ground running by having a local partner in your business. The first thing you need to obtain is a fiscal number as it is your key to the financial aspects of business in the country.
So surviving in Portugal is easy so long as you have prepared yourself and your family for the road ahead. Preparations include having the necessary paperwork for your residence, finding an actual residence and establishing a means to sustain your stay in Portugal. A representative can provide you with much information on the basic necessities for you and your family’s survival in Portugal.