Tasha R. Says:
How do I send some of my belongings to Lisbon or Porto?
IL Executive Editor Jennifer Stevens Says:
Hi Tasha,
Once you have a residence visa, you can bring used household goods into Portugal duty-free. The best way to do so is to hire a shipping company.
“Used” means items that have been in your possession for at least six months; mixing in new items may slow down processing in customs on arrival and incur charges.
The shipment must arrive within 12 months of your visa being issued and within four months of the issuance of your shipping documents to avoid fees.
Here are some general recommendations about shipping:
- Goods must be well packed, just as for any move.
- Don’t use manufacturers’ boxes for electronics or they will appear to be new, not used.
- Prepare a thorough inventory and label each box outside with its general contents.
- Get quotes from several international moving/shipping companies.
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- Ideally, find one that offers door-to-door service, from packing your possessions at home—or taking receipt of your boxes and furniture—through arrival and the customs process.
- Check that they will secure the customs application to bring your items into Portugal on your behalf.
- Ask if they will unpack and remove boxes at the final destination. Professional assistance cannot be overestimated with respect to this process. In the long run, it will protect not only your goods, but your sanity.
- Someone once asked on one of the Portugal Facebook groups if their shipping container could be placed in front of their apartment in Lisbon. Streets in Lisbon are narrow and hilly and a shipping container would block the street. Something to note if you want to settle in the middle of a city like Lisbon or Porto.
- Make sure your quote includes insurance for damage. It’s also a good idea to have separate damage insurance from another provider, just to be sure.
- Your items will be shipped in a container. Goods are generally priced by volume, not by weight. You can generally pay for as little as a quarter container’s load.
- When your container arrives, a customs officer will need to inspect it. You will need a customs broker to help process your shipment. This is where a shipping company will come in handy for you.
You can get much more information about shipping goods to Portugal, including a list of recommended shipping companies, in Chapter 8 of our Escape to Portugal guidebook—available on the IL Bookstore here.
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