@sponger
American looking for information about Portugal
Forum
45 posts
About me
American
Registration: 20 December 2020
Activity
Shipping furniture from California by ggriffin
Hello! We have just purchased an apartment in Lisbon. We’re very excited to embark on this new adventure. Does anyone have advice on shipping furniture from the US? Is it better and more cost effective just to purchase new furniture in ...
hello all...just came across this thread and thought I'd add our experience, having moved about three years ago from the US. When we moved to Lisbon, we ended up buying most of our furniture and electronics when we arrived. We also decided to ship ... Read More
Possible move to Portugal- Questions by rgp102
Hi Friends,I'm new here, thinking about retiring from US. Can someone tell me what is average budget for single person living in Lisbon? Any Americans move to Lisbon can you share your experiences?Thanks!Rohini
@rgp102Hello and welcome!I can give you my thoughts on both budget and experience living in Lisbon. I've been here almost three years, moved from the US, am semi-retired, and live in the Avenidas Novas area of Lisbon.Note that many others will ... Read More
Renting Management Companies (Short/Long-Term Rentals) by JohnnyPT
Renting Management Companies The rental market is divided into short term (including vacation rentals) and long term. Short term is less than 12 months; it’s an option that potential expats may consider when testing the waters here, to see if ...
So here's another (hopefully easy) question regarding renewals.We have a three year lease term. Based on what I've read on the government site, including what is in this thread, it reads as if the Owner can not object to ("Opposition to") the first ... Read More
US Expats - investment brokerage
Here’s a question for other US expats currently living in Portugal who invest:what are you doing for your personal investments in terms of a brokerage (for funds/ETFs)? Are you keeping your US accounts (I.e. Fidelity or Schwab) active and ... Read More
Drivers license exchange timeline by sponger
For those who succesfully exchanged their foreign drivers licenses for a Portguese licence, I'm curious how long it took for you to recieve your new PT license? And in which IMT office?i moved to Lisbon in January '22 and had my appointment at IMT ...
i guess it depends where you are traveling. I beleive the paper license is recognized in the US as valid. I traveled back to the US three times over the last year and was also able to rent cars in several states with the paper license. I wouldn't ... Read More
Drivers license exchange timeline by sponger
For those who succesfully exchanged their foreign drivers licenses for a Portguese licence, I'm curious how long it took for you to recieve your new PT license? And in which IMT office?i moved to Lisbon in January '22 and had my appointment at IMT ...
@sponger any news on this? 7 months and still waiting -@nushivalonupdate: in late April i received and email from IMT. Per the email, they were requesting documents that I had previously provided. What they asked for was actually required and ... Read More
Travelling outside Portugal when waiting for Residence Card by James M76
HiMy entry visa into Portugal expired on 25 January 2023 and I applied for my residence card on 31 January 2023 but it still has not been processed. Does anyone know If I can legally exit and re-enter Portugal using the waiting slip\paper as proof ...
back in early '22, I was told by my lawyers that "technically", as long as I have the paper from my SEF appointment that I would be good to travel outside the Schengen and I could use the paper upon re-entry.Having said that....I personally wouldn't ... Read More
Cost of house renovations by jamescherowbrier
Hi there, New to the forum so my apologies if this question has been answered elsewhere. Myself and my partner are looking to buy a property in Central Portugal. I spent many summers of my childhood in this incredible country and for me is a great ...
apologies to the original poster as this is mostly off topic to the question...@Andrew: how was the renovation process in terms of timing? As it sounds like most of what you did was cosmetic, were there any permits/approvals required? If so, how was ... Read More
Quick tax question regarding cash vs accrual by sponger
Hello.Quick question Portugal Portugal determine income (as a Freelancer under NHR) for services billed or collected? I had a large invoice which I invoiced a client in late December and it was paid in mid-January. I know in the US, I'm taxed on a ...
great. thanks. Read More
Quick tax question regarding cash vs accrual
Hello.Quick question Portugal Portugal determine income (as a Freelancer under NHR) for services billed or collected? I had a large invoice which I invoiced a client in late December and it was paid in mid-January. I know in the US, I'm taxed on a ... Read More
IRS question by ctomac
Hi everybody,Following our first year in Portugal we have to file our first tax return. The problem is that we have not had any taxable income in 2022. So do we have to file a return? How does this work? Do we need a "dispensa de entrega da ...
where are you from? Read More
Family reunification visa by nac25
Hi,I am waiting to get an appointment with SEF for a family reunification visa but I have spent over 90 days in Portugal already so in theory can't leave the country without the visa.My understanding is there are no appointments currently available. ...
I think you're good if you stay within the Schengen as they don't check passports. I've been to Spain a couple of times (via bus) and there is no check of any kind. you should still verify. Read More
Buying property in portugal now by sdanders43
Hi,We are coming to Portugal in September and we are considering buying a property on the silver coast that we can rent until we retire in 5 years. I was looking for opinions about the real estate market in Portugal right now.I am feeling like ...
I don’t understand the reasoning why property prices should come down anywhere in Europe, ...In Portugal the reason would be that many loans are on variable interest rates and many owners might not be able to pay the loans. As a result the ... Read More
Drivers license exchange timeline by sponger
For those who succesfully exchanged their foreign drivers licenses for a Portguese licence, I'm curious how long it took for you to recieve your new PT license? And in which IMT office?i moved to Lisbon in January '22 and had my appointment at IMT ...
@nac25 thanks. this was bugging me that i could be wrong (as I've told this to a couple of others) so i went and found the link to IMT: ... Read More
Drivers license exchange timeline by sponger
For those who succesfully exchanged their foreign drivers licenses for a Portguese licence, I'm curious how long it took for you to recieve your new PT license? And in which IMT office?i moved to Lisbon in January '22 and had my appointment at IMT ...
@sponger hi, please explain what you mean by "aren't required to do an exchange anymore...". Thanks -@Perpetual_traveleri was probably overly vague with that comment....but here is a link i quickly found about what i was ... Read More