|
Portugal: Visa application fee?:
Hi,
My husband and I are retiring to the Algarve and will be leaving the US on 9/1.
I wanted to submit our residency visa applications prior to our departure and have all of the paperwork ready to be mailed, but can't find any information on whether I should send an application fee in with this.
Does anyone know if a fee is required on this end? Or do we pay once we go the SEF office after arriving in Portugal?
Thank you in advance for your help!
Cheryl
Portugal: Transporting dogs from the US:
Hi everyone,
I am in the process of vetting transport companies so that we can make our move to Portugal in 2016. There are so many pet relocation companies online, but not a lot of 'valid', unsolicited reviews that aren't sponsored by the companies themselves. I have received a number of estimates, already and they are all pretty much in the same price range so I really wanted to check here to see if anyone has had success with transporting their pets to Portugal and if so, the company they'd recommend.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide!
Portugal: Second scouting trip to Portugal!:
Hi again! My husband and I visited the Algarve in October to see if we wanted to retire there and fell in love with everything and everyone! Now we are planning our second trip back and this time, we'd like to visit the Sintra area and towns a little closer to Lisbon. Maybe even go up the silver coast (just a little as we want to be no more than an hour outside of Lisbon).
We are still looking for a house with some land (we have 3 large dogs) and privacy and wonder if there are as many long term rentals available in Sintra as there were in the Algarve?
Are there expats in this area? Is English still widely spoken if we stay in the larger towns?
We'd appreciate any feedback/suggestions from anyone who either has lived here or can give us some recommendations on what to look for.
Thank you in advance for your help!
Costa Rica: Yet another U.S. Couple considering CR for retirement!:
Hello all,
I have been reading with interest a lot of the posts here on this forum and was hoping that I could ask a few questions ahead of our exploratory trip to Costa Rica this summer.
We are a youngish, mid 50's married couple looking to retire from the rat race of our lives here in the suburbs of Atlanta Georgia. Our kids are grown and we have grandchildren so we don't want to be too far from family. We originally went to Portugal on an exploratory trip and fell in love with the country, people and of course, the food and wine. We found it affordable and even found a few homes to rent upon our return. The only reason we haven't left yet and relocated there is the distance from our kids/grandkids.
My husband started researching closer alternatives and we came across CR. I've found in my research that I like the area of Nosaro, with its proximity to the water and healthy food and exercise. But my husband seems to favor the Central Valley area, with its cooler temps and proximity to shopping, and more modern conveniences. He also likes Dominical and Uvita as potential places to live. He says that I will tire quickly of washed out dirt roads and the 'off the grid' feeling. I don't want traffic and lots of neighbors though. I'm not trying to recreate where we live here, there. At any rate, we won't know how we'll feel until we actually hit the ground and begin exploring.
My questions to any of you are..
Is infrastructure really that horrible in the area that I like? Is it inaccessible to shops, restaurants etc?
Do you recommend we hire a tour guide if we only have a short window (a week) to explore the majority of the country?
We plan on renting when we do relocate, so we will have the time to see areas over a longer period of time once we're there. Also, we have three dogs (all German shepherds or size equivalent) so we definitely want land and privacy, but I guess we also want some access to modern conveniences.
I know I gave a lot of potentially irrelevant information, but my hope was that it would help to give me a better response from you if you reply.
Thank you for your help with us, and I look forward to your replies!
Portugal: Anyone Apply for Residency Card while in Portugal?:
I for one, cannot wait to view your revised and updated article on applying for residency Micki, although I know our situation is a little different in that we're applying while still in the US. I emailed Dina (and crossed my fingers) so I hope to hear from someone at the consulate as well. I basically told her that I'm relying on your great article for this application process. Hopefully, she'll want to give me their official instructions too. I'll keep you informed when/if I hear anything back from her as well!
Portugal: Scouting trip to Portugal...help please?:
Hello to everyone!
My husband and I are going to visit the Algarve region of Portugal next month. We are young (early 50's), very active, retired and will be bringing our 2 dogs. My questions are numerous, but I'll start with just a few now and hopefully, as I continue to read through the forum topics here, I'll discover more answers to my many others.
We are currently living in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. My husband likes to play golf and we both enjoy playing tennis, hiking, biking, and swimming. We thought the Algarve region was a good choice because of the golf and beaches. We've also heard (translated-read) that we could possibly get a home there (in Silves or Lagoas I believe) with some land (for our dogs) and for gardening. And we really want a place with privacy. That is a must. We are very social people and I know we'll enjoy the hospitality of the Portuguese people, and we'll make many new friends, but we like to have our own space and time when we get home. Is that possible in those areas? Are there other areas that we should look at when we arrive? We are looking to spend about $1500-2000 a month (USD). Should we reach out to a realtor (or two!) before our trip to arrange looking at a few places while we're there next month? If so, do you know of any good recommendations? Also, has anyone moved with their dogs from the US? How hard was that?
Our scouting trip (this October) is about a year out from when we'd actually like to relocate. Our thoughts were to come visit, spend our 'vacation' time acting a little like we live there already, and just try to get as much of a 'real' experience as possible. Then sell our house here and start REALLY living there! I'd appreciate any suggestions, comments and of course, answers to these questions that you can provide. Thank you in advance for all of your help with us!!
And I'm so glad I found your forum. Everyone here genuinely seems to want to help others and that's a great feeling when all you've got is a keyboard and a dream! :)
Saint Lucia: Expat Life in Saint Lucia:
Hi everyone!
My husband and I are considering (seriously) retiring at the end of 2015. We recently visited the Algarve in southern Portugal and fell in love with the country, the people, the food , the wine and of course, the beaches! We came home and immediately started planning on making that our next destination. I really don't have any problems with retiring there, renting for a year or so and exploring the European side of the world, however we have 4 grown children here in the U.S., 3 grandchildren and 2 dogs and honestly, I just don't know if Portugal is 'too far away' for our family to visit and see each other often. My concerns have led me to come up with a plan B, if you will, and see if there's something a little closer that meets our needs. St. Lucia has come up often and after reading the posts available here, I have a few questions that I hope you all would be kind enough to help answer for me. We are very familiar with the Caribbean and have visited many islands over the years. We love getting off the beaten path and exploring as though we lived at a particular place, like taking the buses and shopping and eating where the locals do. We've becer been to St. Lucia though so I wonder:
Are they a dog friendly island? Is it possible to rent a home or villa with some land for our dogs (German shepherds?)
Is it possible to live on a retirement income of about $1500 a month (USD)?
Can we get by without a car? I love to walk and ride bikes and wonder if it's safe to do that in St. Lucia.
We are currently living outside of Atlanta Georgia and I think the flights would be pretty direct or with one stop. We are downsizing our lives now and just want a simpler, slower pace of life but also have things to do like golf, tennis, obviously the water activities and creative opportunities (like painting, pottery, sculpting etc).
Any information you can provide would be so appreciated.
By the way, we've ruled out Panama, Costa Rica and Belize because I'm concerned with having adequate infrastructure in place wherever we go! Thank you!
| |
Login to Contact Charliegirl7
About Charliegirl7
