How to move to Portugal
One of the questions I get asked often is, how and why did I move to Portugal. Let's start with why – I literally had a dream of Lisbon sometime in early 2022. At the time, I didn’t know much about Lisbon or Portugal. I had never really seen pictures, and the only thing I really knew about this country was about the conquistadors.
I planned to travel to Europe for the summer, and Lisbon was the place I decided to stay for a month. I have a tendency to pursue the things I dream about. I follow what, in Spanish, they call ‘corazonadas,’ my intuition. After three days here, I knew I had to live here. I was completely in love with Lisbon; there was no way this was only going to be a holiday for me. That is my why: I followed my instincts, and it led me to this magical place.
The process of moving here was an interesting experience. People say that when something is meant for you, the universe aligns to make it happen for you. That is how my visa process was. I made my visa appointment sometime in November 2022; my appointment date was for January 5, 2023. Things moved quickly from here on out. I was approved for a D7 visa, which is for retired people. As a self-proclaimed woman of ease and leisure, I thought this was an extremely funny joke from the universe. I got the approval for my visa a week before I was set to move out. I sent my passport in, and it was returned a couple of days before my departure. On my visa, I had a link to my SEF appointment for my temporary resident permit interview. I did this all on my own without the help of a lawyer, which is what most people do. I was trying to save money, and I knew I could figure it out on my own. Maybe this was naïveté, or I had hella faith in the universe and my intuition in knowing that this was meant for me. It was a serendipitous experience.
The D7 visa I qualified for requires applicants to show a monthly passive income of 820€ per month and 9,840€ in savings. 820€ is the minimum wage salary in Portugal; multiply that by 12 months, you get 9,840€.
Other cool benefits of a D7 visa that were important to me:
- Apply for Portuguese citizenship after 5 years of living here.
- Full access to public healthcare
- No work restrictions
- No property purchase requirement
- Travel throughout Schengen without needing a visa
Requirements for the D7 visa application:
- Proof of income
- Portuguese NIF number - Número de Identificação Fiscal (NIF) also called Número de Contribuinte. This is a tax identification number. You will need this to be able to open a bank account and rent an apartment. I used a service called e-resident ; they also helped set up my bank account.
- Portuguese bank account
- Savings - minimum of 9,840€
- Proof of accommodation in Portugal
- Personal statement - a short letter explaining why you want to live in Portugal
- Criminal record certificate - You can get this at the post office
- Birth certificate
- Flight information
- Valid passport
- Visa application
I had all these documents when I went to my appointment at the consulate/VSF in San Francisco. The representative was a super cool Filipino man. We giggled together the whole time.
The application process is a lot of waiting, making decisions, and gathering documents. The process looks like this:
1. Gather your documents and prepare your application
2. Submit the application
3. Wait for a decision - I applied in January and was approved in April
4. Move to Portugal - YAY, you did it!!! Find yourself an apartment and set up your life
5. Attend your SEF appointment interview
6. Receive your residence permit - YAAAY!! You’re a temporary resident. Welcome to the club!!
That’s pretty much it. This was my experience of moving from California to Portugal in 2023. Of course, do your own research as requirements may have changed and they may be different depending on where you’re coming from. This is just what I did and my experience.
