Doing business in Portugal: a day at the French Embassy

October 24, 2017

An “Entreprendre.pt” day

2 weeks ago, I spent two days at the French Embassy for the 2nd Salon de la création d’entreprise et d’emploi organized by Entreprendre.pt. In this article, I take a look back at the “Entreprendre au Portugal” conference.

These two days were packed with conferences, and I also had the opportunity to meet many new people, each as rich as the next. I wasn’t able to attend all the conferences, but I’ll share with you what I took away from them. Several points were covered in relation to doing business in Portugal: investment, taxation, employment contracts..

The “conferences” area in this beautifulembassyhall

1. Living in Portugal to benefit from tax breaks, yes or no?

The many speakers reminded us of the advantages of living in Portugal, which we are all familiar with: a high quality of life, pleasant weather, a country full of cultural and gastronomic riches, a welcoming population..

Of course, there are tax advantages with RNH(Non-Habitual Resident) status, and the message from each speaker was unanimous: it’s a plus, but it shouldn’t be the reason for expatriation. It’s important to remember this, especially as the French are the foreigners who buy the most in Portugal.

The message from each speaker is unanimous: tax breaks are a plus, but they shouldn’t be the reason for expatriation

The embassy garden overlooking the Tagus is magnificent!

With so many French people moving to Portugal, France is carrying out more and more checks to ensure that French expatriates are not “tax exiles”. Optimize has made it clear that to be considered a Portuguese resident and qualify for RNH status, vital and economic interests(bank, friends, family, real estate, professional activities) must be located in Portugal.

“Optimize Patrimoine” shared valuable retirement advice during their conference

The Portuguese tax authorities don’t take fraud lightly, and frequently carry out checks. To make sure you comply with the country’s laws and rules, it’s advisable to be accompanied by a lawyer specializing in taxation and by chartered accountants, especially as in Portugal the separation of personal and professional assets is blurred. This means that the tax authorities can deduct from your personal accounts(life insurance, personal bank accounts, etc.). If you need French-speaking contacts, lawyers or accountants, don’t hesitate to contact Villa Feria.

Optimize has also given advice on how to protect our loved ones and ensure retirement for entrepreneurs and employees. They’re in a better position than I am to talk about this, and I can put you in touch if you need their services.

Of course, our dear partners were there too!

2. Interesting investments still possible

A number of investment opportunities were also discussed by various speakers. I’d like to mention two that particularly caught my eye:

Investment in the construction of 7,000 rent-controlled homes in Lisbon to enable average households to live in the capital. An average yield of 7% is forecast for this investment. To find out more, visit the “Lisbon Affordable rent” website

Rent-controlled investment program to make housing in Lisbonaffordable

Real estate investment in Alentejo, a region full of riches and ideal for rural tourism. Property prices defy all competition, with prices per square metre below €1,000.

The Alentejo region offers great investment opportunities for the more adventurous!

In fact, for this latter project, it is possible to benefit from financial support programs, since such a project would enable a region that is still little exploited to develop. Alternatively, if you have an innovative project that helps Portugal economically and creates jobs, then you may also be eligible.

3. The tourism sector

Naturally, tourism had its place at the show, since it accounts for 30% of GDP. Alexandra Le Fahler, President of entreprendre.pt, gave us some pertinent details.

In the excerpt from an article in the newspaper l’Echo touristique“2016 was the best year ever for tourism in Portugal, and 2017 will be even better,” according to Pedro Marques, Minister for Infrastructure.

Source: IMF report, September 2017

As in all countries where tourism is growing, it has positive effects and negative aspects. Nevertheless, Portugal is a country that knows how to make decisions for the good of its people. Just look at the unemployment rate, which fell from 11% in 2016 to 9.7% in 2017, and GDP growth of 2.5% in 2017(compared with 1.6% in France).

4. Entrepreneurial stories from Portugal

Two young entrepreneurs told us their entrepreneurial stories. I have to admit that this was the most inspiring moment for me.

Sylvie Vesic began, her story touching and inspiring the audience.

Sylvie Vesic recounts her excitingentrepreneurial journey

Sylvie is the mother of two children. She left her job, where her career had been mapped out, sold her house in France and moved to Portugal in the summer of 2015. Her love affair with Sesimbra led her to invest a few months before her arrival in Portugal. She completely renovated a small building for seasonal rental. Once the apartments were ready, she rented them out with ease throughout the year. Requests poured in, and she had to turn down some reservations due to lack of availability. So she decided to invest again. After 2 years in business, she managed several rental properties and set up two companies: 123 Lisbon Flat and 123 Lisbon Horizon Investissements. In two years, Sylvie has found her place in a country that was not her own, and is happy.

Then it’s Elliot’s turn, having been guiding Lisbon with Monlisbonne for almost 5 years now, and experiencing incredible growth. He wasn’t supposed to stay in Portugal for more than three months. Elliot came to Lisbon only to learn Portuguese with a view to moving to Brazil. But meetings, ideas and the discovery of Lisbon… led him to become a guide, presenting the history of this beautiful country while inviting tourists to discover non-touristy, unusual places…

Humble, Elliot tells his story with great simplicity. What I loved about his experiences was the way he let himself be carried along by the encounters he made. As they came his way, he took advantage of them to carve out his own path. Today, it’s a real love affair between him and Lisbon. He never ceases to tell anecdotes during his guided tours.

Two different stories, yet so similar. My feeling is that they’re both about the human experience, about following your intuition(even if it may seem unconscious) and loving what you do.

The recipe for success is different for each and every one of us, but the most important thing is to find your path and follow it. Listening to them made me realize that I was on the right track!

5. Who’s next?

Senator Hélène Conway-Mouret closed the conference session by encouraging French entrepreneurs in Portugal, and supporting all actions that help French people abroad to do business in Portugal.

When I met her in the embassy garden, she insisted on a point worth noting: French people who come to live in Portugal are not tax exiles, they remain French and proud of their country, and wish to bring the richness of their culture to Portugal. It was good to hear a different message from the one we hear over and over again on TV, and I think there’s some truth in what she says.

You can read about Senator Hélène Conway-Mouret’s trip to Lisbon on her blog

In conclusion

After these two days of conferences, the desire to live our entrepreneurial story is even stronger. Thank you to entreprendre.pt and all the speakers for organizing this event, and thank you to the ambassador for welcoming us to this sublime venue.