Not every retirement dream works out quite as expected. Sometimes, there’s an unexpected U-turn.
When Kate and Dan Morse retired to Portugal in 2018, they had done a lot of research and learned many of the ins and outs of the complicated process of being an expat abroad. Yet still they faced some challenges, and ultimately returned to the United States after three years to settle in Denver.
“It’s not as easy to be an expat in Portugal as people seem to think,” said Kate Morse, 71.
More than 10,000 Americans lived in Portugal as of 2022 — representing a small fraction of the roughly 1 million foreigners who call the country home and who represent about 10% of the country’s total population, according to migration agency Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo, or AIMA.
There are a few visa options for Portugal. The more popular options for retirees include the Portugal Retirement Visa, or D7 visa, which allows retirees to use steady, passive income such as Social Security or income from investments to fund living expenses. Another option is the Portugal Golden Visa, or D9, which allows people to make an economic investment in Portugal and potentially gain E.U. citizenship after five years.
In Portugal, the Morses lived outside a tiny village called Monte Carvalho in the region of the Alentejo, about two hours from Lisbon and 15 minutes from the border of Spain. They enjoyed a wide mix of friends, connecting with expats from France, Belgium, Germany, Holland and England.
Dan and Kate Morse on a visit to Sintra, Portugal. They lived in Portugal for three years before returning to the U.S. – Dan and Kate Morse
“There were things about Portugal we really loved — the climate was fabulous, the beauty, the land. We had 20 acres with olive trees, orange trees, fig and plum [trees]. It was beautiful,” said Dan Morse, 76.
Kate liked being able to travel throughout Europe easily, while Dan cited the economic benefits of living in a lower-cost country than the U.S. They loved hiking in the beauty of the mountains, along sheep meadows, winding through tiny stone-construction villages and seeing castles and ancient Roman roads throughout a country rich with history.
Yet despite the many positives, there were some stumbling blocks that led them to return to the U.S. They ultimately chose Denver for the cultural advantages offered by a college town, plenty of opportunities for hiking and biking, abundant sunshine and favorable taxation on retirement investments, pensions and Social Security.
“You can learn the language, and we did as well as we could. I still found it difficult trying to solve problems without being a native speaker,” Kate said.
Kate and Dan lived in an extremely rural part of eastern Portugal, where hardly anyone spoke a language other than Portuguese. The Morses agreed that if they had chosen a different locale in Portugal — such as one closer to Lisbon — it would have been easier to find people who spoke some English.
Lacking a complete grasp of the language left them struggling at times.
“When you can’t defend yourself and make yourself understood, you’re vulnerable,” Kate said. “A lot of expats are seen as a money tree to be shaken, and we were.
“It was difficult. You figure out the grocery store, you figure out the pharmacy, you shop at the markets. Sometimes people help you, sometimes they don’t,” Kate added. “But as soon as they realize you’re an expat — many, not all — try to overcharge. It’s hard being on the defensive against that.”
If they had to do it over again, the Morses said they would not have gone to such a rural part of the country due to the language barrier.
“There’s not a good relationship between U.S. banking and the Portuguese system,” Kate noted. “Even filling out a form, a Portuguese phone number doesn’t fit in the format of a U.S. phone number, and that would flag us as being out of the country. We always had to maintain a U.S. address and phone number.”
Their pensions and Social Security payments also required a U.S. address, Dan said.
The stress of managing their finances in Portugal weighed on them. “It creates friction in your daily lives,” according to Dan.
For example, they had a significant portion of their assets invested with a brokerage firm in the U.S. Once the firm realized the Morses were in Portugal, their accounts were deactivated and they couldn’t access their money until it was eventually sorted out.
“A lot of people who move overseas don’t understand all the complexities it involves, especially with finances,” Dan said.
“If we were to do it over, we would have done more homework about the management of our finances before we left,” Kate added.
Kate and Dan initially had private health insurance, but after age 70, they said they were no longer eligible for private insurance as expats.
“The public health system is decent, but it’s not the same as private insurance,” Kate said.
The COVID-19 pandemic also spurred their return to the U.S., as the lockdown phase in Portugal was more severe than in America. They said they felt very isolated in their rural village.
The language barrier also made it harder to get healthcare. Finding caregivers that spoke English was hard, and although they were in good health, the Morses worried.
“Imagine you’re 72 and you have to go to the hospital. Very few people speak English. What if you are in pain — how do you express that experience and explain that?” Kate said. “You’re ultimately very handicapped if you don’t have native-language skills.”
