Portugal Residency Visa For Us Citizens - Lomelono Travel Solutions

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For us U.S. citizens, getting a Portuguese Residency Visa is very difficult; however, an easier way exists to reside in Portugal legally through the purchase of a property — a surprisingly adequate option.

Get a Portugal Residency Visa and live in one of the most beautiful nations in Europe. Note from the Author: I work remotely as a digital nomad and split my time between Europe and Southeast Asia. I originally picked up Portuguese at the age of 18 and always wanted to spend more time in Brazil, one of the Portuguese-speaking world’s most exciting countries on Earth!

A few months ago I received an email from a US citizen who was interested in moving to Portugal. He had already visited the country, fallen in love with it and he was willing to start a brand new life thousands of miles away from his homeland. The guy had gone through the process of choosing a place to call home, getting a job and even buying a property in his new country. The question he asked me was what the best way to get residency in the country was.For us citizens this is typically not an easy topic to cover since you are talking about having to go through immigration laws that apply to non-residents (denizens) as opposed to permanent residents.

Portugal Residency Visa For Us Citizens

When you mix the flaming spirit of the Mediterranean and the astounding development of western Europe, you get Portugal. Lisbon’s ever-growing economy draws many foreign investors, and new tech companies and start-ups have flooded Lisbon’s historic neighborhoods.

When US citizens think to move or retire, Portugal is usually on the top of the list. Americans choose to move to Portugal from the United States to have a high-quality life in a European country. Recent studies show that over 60,000 expats have decided to live in Portugal, with 11 percent of them being US citizens.

In this guide for Americans, you’ll find everything you need to know before moving to Portugal as an American. We’ll cover the documents you’ll need, visa application, cost of living in Portugal, healthcare, education, retirement, and more. Enjoy the read!

In this article, you’ll learn:

Table of Contents

Moving to Portugal From the USA

The Portuguese government welcomes expats from the US and the move is generally straightforward. Before getting into details on a visa, there are a few things you need to know about Portuguese law when it comes to foreigners entering the country.

Customs

Getting through customs in Portugal is easy if you follow a few simple rules. Before you move to Portugal, you need to go to your local Portuguese consulate, or diplomatic mission, and ask for a Certificado de Bagagem (Luggage Certificate). You can obtain this by giving a complete inventory of your possessions and household goods, which you’re planning to take with you to Portugal.

Remember that your items on your Certificado de Bagagem will arrive within 90 days of your arrival in the country.

Shipping and Flying Goods

Luckily, you’ll find that shipping your belongings to Portugal is easy. Because the country has a very advantageous geographical position, you have a wide variety of options, such as air freight and sea freight. Road freight is not an option from the US, but sea freight is an affordable alternative to air freight, although slightly slower.

Below is a table according to World Freight Rates and SeaRates, to give you the average cost of sea freight for a 20ft container of furniture.

Departing	Destination	Price	Duration
New York City, USA	Lisbon, Portugal	$1,229.11	14 days
New York City, USA	Figueira Da Foz, Portugal	$1,297.98	14 days
Los Angeles, USA	Lisbon, Portugal	$2,993.41	27 days
Los Angeles, USA	Figueira Da Foz, Portugal	$3,161.21	28 days

If you’re in a hurry, you can choose to ship your belongings by air freight. It typically takes about two-four business days with express shipping and five-eight days with standard shipping. Keep in mind that for large quantities, sea freight is easier.

In the table below, you’ll find the average prices for shipping a single m3 250KG container of household items. Landing anywhere in Portugal costs about the same as landing in Lisbon.

Departing	Destination	Price
New York, USA	Lisbon, Portugal	$2,705.42
Los Angeles, USA	Lisbon, Portugal	$3,205.42

Storage

Storage in Portugal requires some preparation in advance. A quick online visit to storage companies near where you’re planning to move will be enough. Most storage companies work 24 hours a day and are very helpful to expats. Keep in mind that exact pricing is hard to find online and you might need to do that via email or a phone call.

Pets

Over 64 percent of all US households own pets. If you have pets, then rest assured that your four-legged family members are more than welcome in the eyes of Portuguese customs.

All you need for your pet is a rabies vaccination, which also means they must be older than three months. For some breeds that may be considered “dangerous”, you might need to sign a liability term and have a local vet examine them to get a special permit.

Vaccinations

There are no official Portuguese laws for vaccinations, though it’s always recommended to make an appointment with your local doctor before visiting anywhere new. Better safe than sorry.

How To Move to Portugal From the USA

Technically, Americans don’t need to get a visa to enter Portugal. Anyone with an American passport can enter the country for up to 90 days for tourist or business purposes. Nevertheless, if your plan is moving to Portugal from the US, then you’ll need to get an appropriate residence permit.

The Portuguese government offers different kinds of visas, such as a residence visa, a work visa, and a family reunification visa.

As an American, you need to get a Portuguese residence permit if you’re planning to stay there for longer than three months. If you reside in Portugal with a proper residence permit for five years, you can then apply for permanent residency or Portuguese citizenship.

The Visa Process

As an American, you have a couple of options to acquire the necessary visa or residence permit moving to Portugal for the long term. Here are some of your options:

Portugal Golden Visa
D7 Visa
Student Visa
Tech Visa
Startup Visa
D2

The most common two options to acquire your initial temporary residence permit are the Portugal Golden Visa and the D7 Visa.

The immigration and border service, referred to as Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras (SEF) in Portugal, carries out the visa application process. The Portuguese government allows online applications via this platform. As of 2020, residence permits can be automatically renewed, which is very convenient.

Portugal Golden Visa

The Golden Visa program in Portugal allows applicants to invest in the country and obtain Portuguese resident cards. The Golden Visa residence permit allows you to live, work, and study in Portugal and travel freely across the Schengen Area.

In order to learn more about the process and its requirements, check out our article on Portugal Golden Visa program.