Why Portugal

When you think of Portugal you think of beautiful beaches, surfing, great food and wine, fado music, and Cristiano Ronaldo. 

And why you should move and work in Portugal? We’ll give you 4 damn good reasons:

Quality of life and health

Portugal’s popularity among expats, when it comes to the quality of life, is largely due to its temperate climate and widely available leisure activities. Portugal ranks 2nd out of 65 countries in the Leisure Options subcategory. Not a single respondent has something negative to say about its climate and weather, which nearly two-thirds (65%) consider excellent, compared to 26% globally. In fact, nine out of ten expats took this as a potential benefit before relocating. Portugal’s public healthcare system has an excellent reputation, with 94% of expats answering positively in the Expert Inside 2017 study on the Portuguese health environment. 

If the health serenity isn’t your top priority when moving somewhere, we don’t know what is. But even if this isn’t on your top priorities, we offer you plenty of more.

Practicality 

Citizens from the EU, EEA and Switzerland moving to Portugal don’t need any official permit to work but they are required to find a job and apply for a residency card within six months. Once you find a job or start a business, you can then apply for the mandatory residence card. The easiest way to get a Portuguese work permit will probably be to work for a multinational that operates in Portugal. The advantage is that the company usually takes care of all of the paperwork. We already mentioned great healthcare system. If you’re a foreigner living or working in Portugal, you will typically be eligible to access subsidised state healthcare in Portugal. The Portuguese healthcare system incorporates both public and private healthcare services and the standard of Portugal’s healthcare is high. 

New friends and networks

Portuguese people are extremely friendly and helpful. Neighbours will often bring their homemade food, share their wine and talk to expats quite happily despite the language barrier that might exist. They are also never in a hurry to do something, so if you, too, want to take it easy and slow down, this is your dream country! But back to the friends, here’s incredibly easy to get new acquaintances and network a lot. When you experience working and living in a country like this it can easily turn out that you found friends for life. 

If you’re considering living in Portugal, city of Lisbon is an obvious draw, with its winding streets and beautiful architecture, but there are plenty of other expat-friendly alternatives, whether you’re looking for a slower pace of life or a beachside location. 

“The reason for moving was because I wanted to try something new and I generally like warm weather. The weather in Denmark was to grey and I was ready to test myself in a new environment.

So far I’ve only been in Lisbon for two weeks, and already spending a lot of time outside work, with my new friends. There are a lot of cool people working here and everyone is super open to experience life and meet new people.

I am very happy that I choose to move to Lisbon. It’s little bit hard to communicate with Portuguese people because they don’t understand English, that’s why I’m learning Portuguese words and a sign language. It is a great experience and a huge challenge.” 

Morten from Denmark

Affordable living costs

Portugal is a really affordable place to live. Food costs are generally low and the food quality is high. Many cities and towns in Portugal, including Lisbon, continue to have large, thriving traditional markets, as well as supermarkets. One person’s grocery budget can run from about 90 EUR a month, depending on how you choose to buy. Some items that are luxuries elsewhere, such as good wine and olive oil, are locally produced and therefore inexpensive. You can get decent bottles of local wine from about 3.5 EUR a bottle.

Costs of living:

Housing 300-400 EUR
Utilities (gas, water, electric, phone, internet)  230 EUR
Groceries 90 – 300 EUR
Entertainment (dining out, cultural activities) 95 EUR
Health insurance 75 EUR

It’s always hard to step outside your comfort zone and try something new, but when you do, the outcome is rewarding. Challenge yourself to try something new, you won’t regret it!

If you need help finding a job in Lisbon, Portugal, feel free to contact us at fjb@jobsqd.com