Planning your move to Portugal, here are some ideas to start with.

International Transport

When you are moving to Portugal, it’s most likely that you will need International Transport, whether coming over land or by sea. Unless you are moving from an EU country you will need to get all your Importation documentation in order, and this can be complex. You will need a complete list of items, receipts for items recently purchased, customs clearance paperwork, etc.

Some people try to do this themselves, however, that can be very expensive if you get it wrong. If you arrive in customs in Portugal and your paperwork is not correct for personal goods, you might need to pay Import Duty, or IVA on newly purchased items. These can be avoided or minimized if you use the knowledge and experience of a Professional International Mover.

Employing a professional is just a smart move. They can also liaise with us to organize your Storage if you don’t have a permanent home to move straight into.

A Storage Solution

Unless you have a property to move into on Day 1 you will need somewhere safe to store your belongings. In Portugal, Self Storage is a relatively new idea. In the Central Region, there are very few, and none that offer the flexibility that we do at Fusion Discovery – Storage Solutions. Most of our clients are moving into Portugal from other countries, and Wendy and Fernando did exactly that, so we understand what you are going through.

You might be offered a garage space, but is it secure, and is it dry?  If you need to store items for some months then the garage needs to be dry, we are near the coast and it does get humid at times.

Storage Solutions has helped many clients to make the move easier. We offer a personal service to meet your needs. Read some of the Feedback we have.

Our Team can liaise with your moving company to make sure everything goes well. Our facility in Caldas da Rainha, in the heart of the Silver Coast, has easy access to trucks or containers. The warehouses are just 2 minutes from the A8 motorway. We can arrange to offload containers with a Fork Lift Truck and if extra hands are needed, we can arrange that too. We have a variety of Storage Solutions for you, including lockup self-storage, packing crates, and pallet storage. Also available is open storage for large items that don’t fit in any space. Contact us to help you plan your move.

What should you do before you arrive or when you get to Portugal? 

Find out if you need a D7, D8, D9, or any other of the many different Visas in order to come into and stay in Portugal, You will need to know how to start the process to get your residency papers. Start early. Contact your local Portuguese Embassy to get the most up-to-date requirements. You will need to book appointments early, as this can take some time. (AIMA)

When packing up make sure all your boxes are numbered, and you have a list of everything in each box. Think about when it gets to next Christmas and you are not in your new home. You will be very happy then that you know that box number 64 has all the Christmas Decorations.

Make arrangements for Pet Passports if you are bringing furry friends.

If you are bringing children of school age, you will need to get them registered in a school and they will most likely require the last school report, translated, and a record of Vaccinations. 

Getting a NIF (Fiscal Number) can be done remotely by a lawyer. If you are visiting to look at a property, then start by getting a NIF, as you will need that to open a Bank Account, Make a Rental Contract, or to buy Property.

Register at your local Health Centre (SNS), this can be complicated and each Health Centre can ask for different things. You can really only deal with this when you get here, and have your residency papers.

Planning is everything when are making an international move.