While there are usually more appealing places to pay taxes than Portugal, Portugal does have a few tax schemes which, in certain cases, may make moving to Portugal an attractive proposition. Capital is everything when you’re a startup and so the promise of matched funding offered by the 200m fund could be very alluring. There are many reasons that startups fail, but one of the simplest is that they run out of money. Portugal recognises dual citizenship, so it’s an ideal country for those that want a second passport. After 5 years of living here, you can apply for permanent residency as well as a Portuguese passport. There’s also the D2 or “entrepreneur visa”, which isn’t aimed at startups but at anyone from outside the EU/EEA/Switzerland that wants to launch a business in Portugal.īoth allow you to move to Portugal and give you have the freedom to move within the Schengen area.
Portugal has a tech-specific startup visa for those that want to launch their startup in Portugal or open an office for an existing startup here. It’s considered one of the safest countries in the world too. It has great weather, a low cost of living, a large international scene including a growing startup scene, and the Portuguese are incredibly welcoming of foreigners as well. There’s always somewhere that’s less complicated, and has a more enticing tax system, but Portugal is just a great place to live. The main reason to move to Portugal, regardless of whether you’re launching a startup, moving for a job, or retiring here, is always lifestyle. The following are just a few of the main reasons to launch or move your startup to Portugal. The second problem, bureaucracy, is perhaps the bigger issue as startups need to be able to move quickly without constantly getting tangled in confusing red tape - especially if they want to compete with startups in other countries that won’t be facing the same hurdles.īut, despite these challenges, there are a few reasons to look into launching your startup in Portugal. Then, there are the tax and bureaucracy issues. It’s where the talent pool is located and, even in an age where remote work is possible, that is still important. Even though it’s one of the most expensive places in the world to live, and companies have to offer salaries of $100k or more just to get applications from developers, it’s still the place to have your startup. It’s hard to compete with places like Silicon Valley, after all. Even many of the touted most successful Portuguese startups often have their main business address registered outside of Portugal. What’s much more common is that companies will open an office in Portugal, usually Lisbon, but keep their HQ elsewhere. Scared off by high taxes and confusing bureaucracy, many international founders have stuck to more familiar places like London and the original Silicon Valley.
There are startups here as well as accelerators, particularly in Lisbon, but a quick look at the founders’ names shows the scene is much more local than international. But despite the obvious comparisons to San Francisco, and despite the potential the country has to offer, Portugal has jet to become the Silicon Valley of Europe that it once promised to become.
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