The profile of Brazilians in Portugal is changing, as are the challenges facing the community. Although he still mostly works, he is now more qualified. Among the main difficulties of this public coming to House of Brazil from Lisbon are a confirmation of the diploma and admission to professional orders.

In 2021, 39,406 new residence permits were issued to Brazilians. Almost half (44.7%) worked (more data below).

No official survey has been conducted on Brazilians living in Portugal. Through its work with the community, including running a professional implementation office, Casa do Brasil serves as a thermometer for this public. The non-profit association was founded in 1992 by Brazilians living in the country. He works to demand egalitarian policies for immigrant communities.

In an interview with Poder360, president of the NGO Cynthia de Paula, outlined the profile of Brazilians arriving in a European country. “At the moment we feel a mixture of profiles“, these.

According to Cynthia, impeachment as former president Dilma Rousseff (RU) – in August 2016 – and the government of the President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) – since 2019 – have been turning points. Many Brazilians migrate because of “not to identify with what we are experiencing on a social and political level“Brazil is not.

Cynthia emphasized the increase in the number of qualified professionals. On the other hand, the arrival of whole families, which was very common in the past, has decreased. Migration also became predominantly female.

“The students keep coming and we are already representing a very important part of the Portuguese universities there.“, he added. Pensioners and small and medium-sized entrepreneurs are added to them.

DIFFICULTIES

As the profile changes, so do the challenges. “Portugal has a huge shortage of qualified jobs for everyone, not just for immigration. It turns out that immigration suffers for other reasons.”, Cynthia said, citing the fact that joining professional orders is one of the main obstacles.

BUT offline address book (Brazilian Bar Association) and confess (Federal Council of Engineering and Agronomy) maintains a bilateral agreement with similar organizations in Portugal. Conditions of reciprocity allow Brazilian and Portuguese specialists to register in the sister country and carry out their activities.

“Other [profissões que exigem registro em ordem] eventually people will have much more trouble getting a work permit“, – said the president of the public organization.

“Many of them are almost impossible, others are very time consuming, and others have a list of questions to get licensed to practice the profession.. In some cases, we still feel great protectionism on the part of orders, the presence and constancy of foreign specialists.”

Very high prices for the recognition of diplomas are also an obstacle for Brazilians in Portugal. According to the president of the association, the document could cost more than 500 euros.

Cynthia also mentioned an old difficulty that persists:There are social challenges, this is also xenophobia. It exists, we know it, and it cannot be denied. Not everywhere, but maybe“.

These factors contribute to the displacement of people with professional qualifications in an industry where there is a shortage of labor. “Since the service market is very high, the Brazilian community will eventually actually take this place, we just have to walk down the street and go to restaurants to understand this, it’s very clear. Civil engineering is another sector that has received many Brazilians.“he found.

The President of Casa do Brasil warned that there are many reports of poor working conditions in these areas, such as working hours, minimum wage (€705) and working without a contract.

LABOR MARKET

While there are not enough jobs for everyone and bureaucracy left for immigrants, the Portuguese labor market is also suffering from a lack of professionals.

Survey conducted by HR consulting firm ManPowerGroup Portugal showed that 85% of Portuguese employers experience some difficulty in hiring qualified professionals. Here intact research (509 KB).

The shortage of skilled labor is felt in all sectors analyzed in the study. Category “banksfinance, insurance and real estate”, the difficulty in finding a professional is more pronounced (88%); follows”Wholesale and seller(87%); “Industry and production(86%); “Bars and restaurants and hospitality(86%); «Information, telecommunication, communication and media technologies(84%); e”Construction(84%).

The positions most in demand by employers are:IT and data(26%); “Industry and production(21%); “Operations and logistics(twenty%); “Marketing and sales(19%); e”Human resources(19%).

Second INE data (Instituto Nacional de Estatística) of Portugal, the unemployment rate in the country was estimated at 5.7% in the 2nd quarter of 2022.

BRAZILIANS IN PORTUGAL

The number of Brazilians living in Portugal breaking records every year. According to the latest data, in 2021 there were 204,694 of them (29.3% of the total number of foreigners in the country). report (6 MB) Aliens and Borders Services, the Portuguese authority responsible for issuing visas and residence permits. The growth was 11.3% compared to 2020.

It is estimated that this number is much higher, since it does not take into account who has the citizenship of any country in UE (European Union), nor undocumented migrants.

In 2021 alone, 39,406 new residence permits were issued to Brazilians. Almost half (44.7%) were working. Then family reunification (31.1%), study (10.8%), residence permit (9.3%) and others (4.1%).

These numbers are expected to increase when new visa conditions approved in July, such as job search, come into effect.

With the new law, Brazilians who wish to work in Portugal will be able to leave Brazil with this visa. They will have 120 days to find a job and apply for a residence permit, renewable for another 60 days.

Today, most travel as tourists and try to regularize this on Portuguese soil. This process may take years.

The expectation of the president of Casa do Brasil with new visas is due to the improvement in migration conditions. “It’s good for everyone. it’s good for them [pessoas que migram para trabalhar em Portugal]good for the country.”

“In numbers, Portugal needs immigration, that’s a fact. Not only on work, but also on other issues: on demographics, on social security contributions, on many other things. Moreover, a country with a diverse population is much richer culturally and in many other respects.”

When the new visas come into effect, the migrant support association hopes that conditions for migration will improve. On the other hand, he muses: immigrants should not “just fill a hole in the job gap the country needs“.

“We must demand not just a visa, but that migrants have decent working conditions, this is fundamental. So that their rights are guaranteed, so that they can truly lead a decent life.“, – concluded the president of the public organization.