🧭 Your path

My move

Twenty-one steps, from applying to your first spring out there. Tick as you go: the page remembers you.

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0 of 21Start by ticking what you have already done.

The first thirty days

You have landed. Here is the order to do things in, because each one unlocks the next.

Day 1: trainingYour movePaid training, on site, with the other arrivals in your intake. You are never the only new person, and this is where most first-year friendships start.
Your social security numberYour moveNISS in Portugal, AMKA in Greece, Seguridad Social number in Spain. Your employer helps, and this number is what unlocks healthcare cover.
The local bank accountYour moveIt needs your tax number and proof of address. That is why the tax number is worth preparing before you leave: without it the bank waits, and so does your first salary.
Registering your residenceYour moveThe registration certificate for EU citizens, within the first months. It is the step people put off, and it blocks everything else.The detail, country by country →
Long-term housingYour moveTo be found once you are there, never from abroad: searching remotely costs almost double and takes twice as long. Your colleagues know the neighbourhoods, use them.
Phone, internet, transportYour moveA local plan costs a fraction of roaming, and the transport pass pays for itself by week two. The real prices are on your city page.The city pages →

Life there

The moment the move stops being a project and becomes a life. This is also where we stay useful.

Your first payslipYour moveDo not miss thisCheck your exemption has been applied: IRS Jovem in Portugal if you are under 36, article 5C in Greece. An error on the first payslip is fixed with one email; a year later it takes a formal claim.
Your first tax returnYour moveIt comes the following spring. In Greece the article 5C exemption must be claimed before 31 July of the year you start: that date matters. A local accountant costs little and prevents mistakes.
Actually meeting peopleTogetherOn the first Wednesday of every month, Expat Connect brings Lisbon expats together from 7 pm, and stays open until 11:30 pm for those who finish late. Free and open to everyone, placed by us or not.Expat Connect →
Bringing someone overYour moveKnow someone made for this? Introduce them. If we hire them and they clear probation you get €300 or €600 depending on their language, with no limit on how many.Referrals →
And if it is not workingWe handle itTell us before you decide anything. Nine times out of ten what goes wrong is housing or a team, and that gets fixed on the ground. We would rather help you stay than watch you leave quietly.Write to us →

🔒 Your progress stays on this device: it never reaches a server and nobody else sees it. Switching phones resets it.

Stuck on a step? Write to us, someone answers. Ask a question →

Stuck on a step?

Write to your recruiter: they will unblock what is stuck. Not a candidate yet? Send your application, and a recruiter who speaks your language calls you back within 48 hours.

Send my application

Read the full guide →

Measurement and attribution

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My move

Before you leave

The first thirty days

Life there

Stuck on a step?