Much of the information and most of the resources in english give information that is relevant to Americans, but there is a lack of information geared to the Canadian immigrant to Portugal. Canada is a completely different country than the USA, and Canadians will have a different experience moving here.
These things may sound obvious, but here are some differences that even most immigration lawyers and relocation specialists don’t know.
| USA | Canada |
| VFS Global Americans apply for visas = through a private, for profit entity called VFS Global | Embassies and Consultes Canadians apply for visas directly through a consulate or embassy, which is run directly by the government of Portugal (or France or Germany etc) |
| Document Certifications are extremely difficult Getting some types of documentation required for immigration from state governments United states can be convoluted. The United States refuses to sign the Hague Convention, so most documents you submit to Portugal need to be translated, and the translation must then be certified by an apostille, which is like a notary but for international documents. This is an arduous process and greatly complicates many simple government processes. Most lawyers and relocation specialists will falsly advise Canadians that they are required to translate and apostille documents, but there are no apostille services in Canada, it’s not required! | Document Certifications are easy The documentation situation for Canadians is much easier. Canada has signed the “Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents”. This means that there is no need to translate, notarize, or apostille you documents. For example, when the the Portuguese government asks for your driving record, you can just go online and order a certified driving record and hand it to them directly, no fuss, no trouble, no translations, no certifications, and the Portuguese government will accept them. |
| Taxation The United States is the only country in the world, apart from Eritrea, that uses a Citizen-Based Taxation (CBT), whereas Canada, Portugal, and the rest of the world use residency-based taxation and have signed tax treaties to prevent double taxation. | Taxation Canadian taxation is different, and It is hard to get advice from Canadian or Portuguese tax professionals on cross border tax issues such as contributing to RRSPs, TFSAs, filing income tax in both countries, and avoiding Canada’s infamous exit tax. |
| Banking The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a US law passed in 2014 that requires all global financial institutions to report information on American citizens to the IRS. Foreign banks must identify, document, and report U.S. citizens and U.S. tax residents. Noncompliance results in a 30% withholding tax on U.S.-source payments. Over 100 countries have been forced to sign FATCA agreements, often against their will under intense pressure. Many international banks choose to avoid U.S. clients entirely to reduce cost and legal exposure. | Banking Because most Portuguese do not know the difference between Canada and the USA, they may treat a Canadian trying to open a bank account in Portugal with trepidation, regardless of whether you do it remotely, from within Portugal, or through an immigration service. There is a workaround however, and you can open a bank account in under a week if you are able to make the trip to Toronto. |
| Push vs. Pull motivation The United States is currently undergoing a transformation that is motivating a large percentage of their country to look for safe havens to relocate to. This type of immigrant is more concerned with leaving the USA and may pay less attention to the destination. For most Americans the toughest choice is to leave the USA, whereas the toughest choice for Canadians is whether to give Portugal a try. It’s a different mindset. | Push vs. Pull motivation Canada has remained stable to date, so there is less pressure to leave and the average Canadian will take more time to choose the correct destination. In essence, most Canadians are not moving to Portugal because the are feeing Canada, they are moving to Portugal because Portugal is an attractive destination to them. This changes the emotional quality of the experience completely, I believe in a good way. |
| American Environment for Immigrants The media is currently full of videos and images of masked, heavily armed gangs violently tearing apart families and forcing people who have lived in the USA for decades into unmarked vans, and sending them to horrible places with no legal recourse or due process. An American immigrant to Portugal will have a much higher tolerance for mistreatment they might receive as an immigrant themselves. | Canadian Environment for Immigrants Although Canada has recently lowered it’s immigration quotas, Canada treats immigrants with respect, calling them “New Canadians” rather than “Illegal Aliens” and showing a sense of pride when an immigrant chooses Canada. Canada’s solid foundation of multiculturalism and a civil and just society makes Canadians uniquely sensitive to anti-immigration attitudes they will invariably encounter in Europe. Other immigration resources may attempt to normalize European xenophobia, but I will be upfront in saying how jarring it can be to a new arrival, specifically from Canada. |
In summary, I think that as much as anyone’s motivation and experience moving to another county is a highly individual and unique, there are certain peculiarities that apply to the average Canadian. I sincerely hope that this site will prove useful to my fellow Canadians considering makig the move, and make things easier for those who do move here.