Brits living in Portugal triple as expats leave UK for work – ‘I’m so much happier’ | Travel News | Travel

Traditionally seen as a place to retire in the sun, Portugal is no longer just for British pensioners. Younger families, entrepreneurs and remote workers are swapping the UK for the sun-soaked towns of the Algarve in search of a better quality of life.

The number of Brits living in Portugal almost tripled between 2014 and 2024, according to figures from the Portuguese immigration authority (AIMA), now at 48,238. Christina Hippisley, manager of the UK’s Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, says she is seeing far more people in their 40s and 50s making permanent moves with school-age children, many of whom already run businesses they can operate remotely.

“What I’m seeing most is families with kids who might be 8, 9, 10, they’re already in their 40s or early 50s, they’ve already got an existing business, and they can run it from wherever, and they’re fed up with England, and they just want the kids to have sunshine for six years. It’s always about the kids.”

She says when they began running the Moving to Portugal Show in 2017, attendees were largely looking for second homes and nearing retirement. “Now, their focus is much more on Portugal as a destination to live, do business and raise a family,” she says.

“Post-COVID, I think people are re-assessing and when you speak to people now, it’s much more they want a work-life balance. I want a better life for myself. I don’t want to stress.”

Salaries may not be comparable with Britain, but international schools, healthcare and the climate are all major factors, she says. Perhaps the biggest attraction is the pace of life. Christina says they even joke about noticing a change in people’s demeanour when they log on to work.

“I heard someone the other day saying, ‘Oh, he’s got his Algarve voice on’. People are still on the Zoom calls, but they sound so much more relaxed.”

That search for a relaxed lifestyle drew Jen Mahaffy, originally from Northern Ireland, to Portugal. After 15 years working in banking in Scotland, the 42-year-old moved to the Algarve with her children after a holiday changed her perspective on the country.

“I always thought of it as being a place where people go to play golf or older people come to retire,” she says. “But my first day here, I just knew that I had to come back.”

Three and a half years later, she is still based in an Algarve town near the luxurious Val de Lobo resort, working as the Sales Director for global real estate company, Engel and Volkers, and co-hosting a podcast about life in Portugal with her friend Claire Wood-Wooley. She says her life has transformed outside of work, too.

“In the UK, it was very often that you meet friends, you go for dinner, and you have drinks. Whereas here, we go for a walk to the beach or go and play a game of padel… more of my social time is in a more wholesome way.”

Jen says her estate agency is seeing a “surge in younger people moving to the area”, especially with different visas on offer. A common route is the D7 visa, which allows non-EU residents to live, work, and study in Portugal if they have a stable income.

Claire, originally from Yorkshire, moved to a traditional Portuguese village 15 minutes away from the luxurious Val de Lobo resort after the pandemic, when she was made redundant from Virgin Atlantic.

“I suddenly realised I couldn’t be in England the whole time,” she says. “When I visited, I was struck by this feeling of, ‘This is an amazing life. I want this life.”

The 51-year-old now runs her UK interior design business remotely from the Algarve and says daily life naturally centres around the outdoors.

“I’m just so much happier. You know how in the UK when the weather’s amazing, everybody’s out, everybody’s in beer gardens, everyone’s so happy and making such plans. Well, it’s kind of like that, but all the time.”

Portugal is also positioning itself as a hub for entrepreneurs, particularly in the Algarve, where investment in tech infrastructure and connectivity has grown in recent years.

Paul Stannard, chairman and founder of Portugal Pathways and Portugal Investment Owners Club, says international investors view Portugal as “one of Europe’s standout growth stories”, pointing to political stability, infrastructure development and tourism.

That is the case for Matt Banks and Patrick Queen of SIPs Eco, which manufactures off-site, affordable, energy-efficient homes, and is looking to bring their builds to Portugal.

They saw a market gap to address housing demand, since their buildings can be built much more quickly than traditional homes, with no need for foundations.

“We’ve always been in and out of Portugal as a family for years,” said Matt. “There’s a lot of development out there and a lot of opportunity, and a lot of people who want to move out.

“In Portugal, there’s a big drive for house building away from the coast as well. We can do that very easily and very quickly.”

For people looking for an alternative to Dubai, Jen points out that it has warm weather, an international community, and it is quieter and closer to home.

“For one, it’s closer to the UK, so if you miss your friends and family, you can get back and forth really easily,” she says. “It’s a much gentler pace of life. We don’t really do traffic or high-rise. It’s a peaceful place to live.”