Applying as a UK resident for D7 visa

Hi,

The short answer is no: a standard campsite pitch, caravan, or mobile home contract is generally NOT accepted for a Portuguese D7 visa.

Potential Workarounds & Strategic Options

If your goal is to live on a residential campsite in the Algarve for the community atmosphere and accessibility, consider the following strategies to navigate the visa requirements:

Step 1: Rent a small, cheap traditional apartment or studio in Portugal with a formal 12-month contract registered with Finanças strictly to fulfill your visa application requirements.

Step 2: Once your AIMA appointment is complete and your residence card is issued, you can move onto your preferred campsite full-time while maintaining your official administrative address...

@JohnnyPT

Thank you very much for your information. But from the bit of research I’ve done so far I will need assistance from AIMA for assistance with social care and if I do what you are suggesting then they will have my wrong address for me and the campsite I move to might end up in being in a different AIMA area? There’s so much conflicting information out there with some people saying that as long as you buy on a residential registered campsite and the campsite is happy to give you a 12 month rolling agreement then you will be ok but not if you buy on a tourist registered campsite? I had really spent the last couple of years looking into the non lucrative visa in Spain because I already have a holiday caravan there on a tourist site and usually the Spanish consulate would refuse your application but because of where it is the local council accepts the amount of money the campsite community brings into that area as long as you can provide the consulate with a minimum of 12 months of continuous campsite invoices then they accept that but only in that area. But it was when I was narrowing it down to the medical side of things such as healthcare, prescriptions and social care Portugal wins hands down. I know in the early days when I was researching Spain with an immigration solicitor that they even offered me to use their address as proof of accommodation if I chose them to assist me through the non lucrative visa process but I don’t know how? Can you advise how much I would be looking at to rent an apartment in a costal area with access to all of the services locally in case I need to use them in my circumstances. I was looking at Albuferia mainly because it was costal and again because I won’t know anyone initially that area I believe has a few gay bars which is a good opportunity for me to make friends. Thank you very much for your reply.

I know in the early days when I was researching Spain with an immigration solicitor that they even offered me to use their address as proof of accommodation if I chose them to assist me through the non lucrative visa process

In Portugal, no. Checks on false declarations – such as providing lawyers’ addresses for visa applications – are completely absurd these days, as AIMA now checks all information you provide. And false declarations lead to visa refusals.

Open-door policy is over, and the criteria for assessing visa applications are now much stricter....

But it was when I was narrowing it down to the medical side of things such as healthcare, prescriptions and social care Portugal wins hands down.

Become a resident in Portugal – even if, hypothetically, at a campsite – and to subsequently receive medical care is, in itself, ethically questionable. But as I have already told you, to prevent such abuse by those who have never contributed to the NHS, AIMA has become more careful in its assessment of visa applications. Portugal already has far too many immigrants who are abusing the system – the poor and others too. It doesn’t need any more...

I realise it may be difficult but shirley it would be a sensible idea to spend some time at some various sites/areas to experience things first hand to see if they fit your personal requirements and whilst there contact agents directly to find and view what they have available to rent/buy in your preferred areas.

@JohnnyPT

Thanks for your advice but I worked full time sometimes with a part time job on top and have always paid into the system so much so that when I had to stop working I checked my UK government pension online and it stated that I have already made enough contributions to qualify for the full UK government pension when I’m 67 but unfortunately due to 1 of my many health conditions the average life expectancy for a male with that condition is only 64.7 years and so I’m not likely to receive a penny of the UK government that I have paid fully into and I just want to live somewhere warmer with a nice beach and a more relaxed atmosphere to live out whatever rest of my life I will have. This has been my wish ever since I was 19 and I don’t know why I didn’t think about claiming my 2 previous local government pensions early on the grounds of ill health before Brexit but obviously I wish I had and I know they won’t have another vote now but if they did I’m sure the majority of people will vote to rejoin the EU because I’ve yet to meet anyone who has said that they have noticed any improvements since we left the EU. But if I ever do qualify for the D7 visa and qualify for healthcare and assistance with prescription costs etc I would hope that the UK has a reciprocal agreement with anyone from Portugal who moves to the UK because that’s the way it usually works. But even Spain from year 2-5 you can pay €60 per month to the Spanish government to then use the full Spanish healthcare system which in my experience is excellent and in November last year it saved my life but I’m so glad that I have to pay over £1000 per year for my annual European travel insurance because after a week in intensive care with only a 1 in 3 chance of surviving they done it and if I was in my local hospital I’m sure I wouldn’t have survived. Also after 2 weeks in the public hospital my insurance company transferred me to a private hospital for another 2 weeks before then flying me home on a medical flight which if I didn’t have my travel insurance it would have cost me at least £25k!

@david,

In the healthcare post-Brexit, you are entitled to this right to reciprocity via the S1 form, which can be requested in the UK and submitted in Portugal, once you have been granted a residence permit.

The UK has a reciprocal agreement with anyone from Portugal who moves to the UK because that’s how it usually works.

That’s true, but even within the NHS, Portugal always comes off worse with these bilateral agreements with the UK...

Most Portuguese immigrants in the UK are young people, many of whom work in British hospitals. They contribute to and support the British NHS, yet make very little use of it. In Portugal, the majority are British pensioners who come to make use of the healthcare system, bringing with them all sorts of health conditions …

Everyone has their own life story. I had a relative who died of an illness at the age of 62, after a lifetime of paying into the system, and who never got to enjoy a single day of retirement; what saved her was private health insurance, given the nature of her illness. Even palliative care had to be provided privately, because in the public system she would have had to wait for a place, and there was no time to wait.

The NHS in Portugal has seen better days, but there are abuses that are pushing things to the limit – and one day it will snap… for everyone…

Here are two good examples, but there are many more. From presidential pull to secure treatment for Brazilian twins with a medicine costing the NHS 4 million euros (!) to medical tourism by pregnant women from Africa and Asia… it seems this is no longer possible, but I’m noting it here to illustrate this shameless behaviour….

https://www.portugalresident.com/inquir … nt-on-sns/

https://www.nowcanal.pt/ultimas/detalhe … -os-filhos

Thanks Johnny

ive been given so much conflicting information about retiring early and moving abroad but I think I actually nailed it yesterday thanks to you saying that I would be entitled to an S1. Well I can’t tell you how many NHS and benefit websites that I looked up yesterday until I actually found the right information. From what I found out since Brexit I would usually not be entitled to an S1 until I reach UK government pension age which for me is 67 and if I’m still here then I would get an S1. Also before Brexit I would have got to keep the care part of my personal independence payment which isn’t means tested. But here’s where it all turns around for me. Because I am still receiving contributions based employment and support allowance as this is paid to me until I reach the UK government pension age and is worked out and based on the contributions that I made when I was working. Well since Brexit this is 1 of the very few benefits that you can still export and continue to receive your payments if I move abroad. That’s only because it’s paid to me based on the contributions I made when I was working and I’ve also already paid enough into the system when I was working to qualify for the full government pension at 67. But on the back of that it means that I’m still entitled to get the S1 as soon as possible after I’ve got my visa and moved over and I’ve registered my address at the local town hall. Then also on the back of that I am also entitled to continue receiving the care component of my personal independence payment. So that makes my financial future much more secure. However if it’s correct I was previously advised that my care needs would be assessed in Portugal and then I would receive the required amount of care. I found out yesterday that that information that I received on Saturday is totally incorrect and there’s no official care offered automatically in Portugal and they expect your family to care for you. If you don’t have family apparently there’s a long wait for assistance with care and that can be around 2 years and then only the most basic of services will be provided and more often than not they will just arrange for you to be moved into a care home. But like most places with a sizeable expat community there’s lots of private care agencies that I can register with and work out the minimum care package that would meet my needs and especially as I’ve now found out that I will continue to receive these 2 benefits that this will pay for the care that I need to receive. Also now that I’ve found out this information and because it would apply whether I moved to Spain or Portugal because I’ve already got a set up in Spain it makes more sense if I move there.

Lets just hope that I move somewhere with a much better climate, fresh food and a much more outside based lifestyle I am sure that even though my medical conditions aren’t going to go away I don’t think that they will affect me to the same extent and I’m sure that I will then have a longer expected lifespan. Thanks for your advice and help. What area do you live in in Portugal and how long have you been there and do you enjoy it? Do you think that you would ever move back to the UK?

Do you think that you would ever move back to the UK?

??? I am Portuguese and I live in Portugal.

UK ? Only for very short holidays... But to be honest, I don’t even feel like doing that.

@davidritchie72
I'd get the benefit office to confirm the exact payments you can keep before committing to a home. GOV.UK separates PIP's daily living part from the mobility part: the mobility part cannot be paid abroad. NHSBSA says DWP decides entitlement to an S1 through an exportable benefit. Enough years for a future State Pension isn't the same as healthcare cover now. For your care budget, ask a local agency for a written weekly quote including weekends, travel and cover when your usual carer is away. Compare that with the payments confirmed for your move, rather than assuming the S1 also pays for help at home. The official pages to take to the benefit office are GOV.UK's "Claiming benefits abroad - Benefits for disabled people and carers" and NHSBSA's "What is an exportable benefit?". - @FadiSyoufiPCC

Do you have any experience dealing with the UK benefit system or are you just using AI?

This may be relevant   quote from GOV UK website    "  Last week the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, set out his commitment to reform adult social care  ................"     

So there should be changes to social care UK but as yet what they may be is unknown.