No. of Recommendations: 17
<< I know some of you out there have taken the living overseas option. Any updates? What has your reception been like? >> InParadise,
I retired four years ago and moved to Portugal. I'll be happy to share my
experience, with the caveat that it's very specific to the conditions, time,
and place of my relocation. If I tried to recreate it again today, it would
probably be a different experience.
TLDR: I love living here and don't see myself ever returning to the US,
except to visit family. It's not about politics. I just appreciate the
quality of life here.
I'm single, a retired US citizen. Couples, families, or people still employed
(even if remotely) will have different experiences. I'm also living in
the center of Lisbon. Someone living outside a major urban area would have
a completely different lifestyle in Portugal.
Let's start with my living expenses. I'm not particular price-sensitive in
my retirement, but I appreciate a good deal. I'll convert prices of euros
to dollars even though the latter has been on a bit of a ride recently. If
we break down the costs of average living expenses for a retired US citizen
(with the help of OpenAI):
🏠 1. Housing: 30-40% (usually the largest expense, even with a paid off mortgage)
🍎 2. Food: 10–15% (includes groceries and dining out)
🚗 3. Transportation: 10–15%
🏥 4. Healthcare: 12–18%
🛍️ 5. Personal & Miscellaneous: 8–12% (clothing, personal care, household goods)
🎉 6. Entertainment & Leisure: 5–8% (travel, hobbies, streaming, events)
📞 7. Insurance (non-health): 3–6% (auto, home/renters, life insurance)
These averages are
not reflected in my retirement. I didn't move here
to live cheaply, but I'm not complaining.
HousingAfter two years of renting, I purchased a one-bedroom apartment in a
upscale neighborhood for about 65% of the equivalent cost in the US. This
actually violates my rule that I tell everyone else who immigrates:
"Don't buy anything that you can't take with you or afford to leave behind." ;-)
However I'm very happy with the purchase and the renovations that I've been
doing over the past two years. As John Goodman says in
"The Gambler", this
is my
"Fortress of Fucking Solitude".https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XamC7-Pt8N0I could have certainly kept renting. My property is an indulgence, but I got
lucky and purchased it when the US dollar was near parity to the euro (currently
at a 17% premium). I view it as a bit of a currency hedge and an inflation hedge.
My property taxes are $120 per year, with maintenance costs of $50 month.
FoodFor the same categories of groceries, I'm probably paying 25-30% less than what
I paid in the US. The quality of food also seems better. I joke with my family
that the price of wine is cheaper than the bottled water. (Since I don't drink, I
don't enjoy this particular price advantage.)
Dining out is cheaper, especially if you avoid the tourist spots. The
experience of dining out with friends is vastly superior. We often
spend a couple hours at the table in conversation without ever feeling
rushed. And a major plus for Americans: most of Europe continues to resist
our toxic tipping culture.
TransportationOne of the most positive lifestyle changes for me is no longer owning
a car. I explain to my European friends that except for a few cities
in the US, owning a car isn't optional. We need a car to go to work,
to school, to the gym, the hospital, to visit friends.
Eliminating this expense (especially in Europe with its higher fuel costs)
could save a considerable amount of money for someone on a budget. I pay
$24 per month for public transportation in the metro area, which includes
buses, light rail, the subway and ferry. I did acquire a Portuguese driving
license and I can rent a car if I want to make other trips, but so far
I've been relying on train trips. I also sometimes take my bicycle
on the train, as a form of inter-modal transportation.
HealthcareI moved to Portugal a couple years before I would have qualified for
Medicare. If I had stayed in the US, my cost for COBRA would have been
about the equivalent of my monthly rent here. My private insurance
in Portugal for the first two years was about $100 per month.
Last year I had to make a decision about Medicare Part-B. Because
Medicare (with limited exceptions) doesn't cover health care outside
the US -- despite ex-US healthcare generally being cheaper! -- I elected
to decline coverage. There will be a steep penalty if I were to return
to the US and resume Medicare-B coverage.
Strangely enough, even though I'm now of Medicare age, I'm still better
off paying for private insurance here than for Medicare coverage in the US.
It's amusing to explain to Europeans that even though I paid into the system
for the past 50 years, and would pay more for Medicare-B than
private insurancehere, I would
still continue to pay more in the way of deductibles,
copays, coinsurance, supplemental coverage, IRMAA ...
Last year I had an elective surgery. I had three options, including one that
wasn't covered by my plan. I chose it regardless because it wasn't expensive
(by US standards) and just put it on my credit card. I was scheduled to spend
three nights at the hospital, but everything went well and I was discharged one
day early. A week later I was surprised to find the hospital had transferred
500€ to my bank account for the day I didn't use, without any request on my
behalf -- it was just automatically transferred. Now imagine trying to claw
back that refund from a hospital in the US.
In the US you never really know how much your medical visit will cost.
Here it's not only cheaper, but everything is transparent. I've never
gone to the pharmacy and paid more the $20 for my meds, which is often
partially or fully covered by insurance. I also get tax credits for
the cost of my meds, automatically reported to the IRS directly from
the pharmacy.
Personal & MiscellaneousClothing is slightly cheaper. Personal care much cheaper. Household goods
about the same or slightly higher with VAT tax.
Entertainment & LeisureMovies are cheaper and there's a great cinephile culture here.
Concerts are way cheaper. I paid $60 to see an aging Bob Dylan perform and even
less to watch The Pixies. Even better are the countless jazz and classical shows
performed locally.
Travel is as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be. Obviously travel
within Europe can be pretty cheap. Even your local barista has likely
vacationed in one or two countries each year.
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TaxesTaxes are going to be higher. I'm fortunate that I was able to take
steps prior to moving here to mitigate my future tax burden, but it
will eventually be higher than what I would pay in the US. I don't
really mind, because I have a degree of control over what I will
pay, but it's obviously a factor in anyone's decision to move outside
the US.
Everyone's situation will be different (depending on their income,
investment sources, etc.) and each European country has different
tax policies. As a US citizen, I'm taxed regardless of where I live,
but fortunately there is a reciprocity agreement with Portugal (and
most other European countries, I think) so anything I pay to Portugal
will offset what I pay to the US.
LanguageThe Portuguese language, particularly as spoken in Portugal, is quite
challenging for an English speaker. Even Brazilians who move here find
it difficult. However one of the reasons I wanted to move to a different
country was to learn a new language. My progress is slow, but I get a
lot of encouragement from my Portuguese friends. I think my reading
comprehensive is now at a pretty good level -- e.g. I regularly read
novels in Portuguese.
However most Portuguese under the age of 40 speak English fluently,
which is actually somewhat problematic when I'm trying to practice
speaking, as their English will always be better than my Portuguese.
I had an easier time when visiting Brazil, as the rate of English
fluency is much lower there.
That said, I continue to try and struggle. I recently visited the
dentist and managed to keep the conversation in Portuguese with
lots of hand gestures.
BureaucracyThis is the most maddening issue about living here. I have a
high pain tolerance (and I'm retired) so it doesn't bother me
as much, but even the Portuguese complain about it.
For example: My initial two-year residency expired in March 2025.
Even with the help of a lawyer, it took me nine (!) months after
my expiration to arrange a meeting with immigration to renew my
residency -- which in most countries could probably be handled
online. So my residency renewal was approved, right? But six
months later, I've still not yet received my renewal card. This
is problematic if I want to leave the country and return through
another country in the Schengen zone.
When I first moved here, the path to citizenship was based on
a five year residency in Portugal. Now it's being raised to ten
years. A lot of immigrants feel that this is a bit of a "rug pull".
It's certainly an annoyance for me, but I can still apply for
permanent residency after 5 years.
Social ConnectionsA large part of life is your social connections. Years ago a friend
who immigrated to the Netherlands shared an interesting observation
with me when I moved to Portugal. He said that it was likely that
over half of my friends would be other immigrants. Not necessarily
other Americans, but people who didn't grow up in Portugal.
I have found that to be true, for multiple reasons.
You tend to have more in common with other immigrants. We're
all trying to learn the language, navigate the bureaucracy,
make new friends. The people who grew up here already have their
networks established, forged over the years dating back to childhood.
It's not impossible to make local connections, but it requires more
time and effort.
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SummaryI have a lot more things that I could share, but I think this gives
a reasonable summary of my thoughts of moving here.
In the end, if you relocate to a foreign country and it doesn't work out,
you always have the option of trying somewhere else, or even moving back
to your home country.
Boa sorte!
-Rubic
