Eddie5425

Hi All,
We bought a house last year in Portugal Castelo Branco and everything after that came to a halt with hip transplants and covid.
We are now stuck with applying through Vfs Global for a long stay visa so as to move to Portugal in October and apply for residency. If you've had to use Vfs you may know the nightmare they and their website are.
We fly over the beginning of August for a week as we could not fly as planned in February or April due to covid and work makes early August the only possibility. We retire end September.
We have a ferry booked for early October if we get a Vfs Global appointment and a long stay visa fine. If not under Schengen rules we will have approximately three weeks left of the 90 days. We do not want to just overstay. We will in effect be homeless if we have to return to the uk.

Has anyone applied for a extension to the short stay visa with SEF is it difficult or problematic?
Thanks in advance for any help.

Eddie

RichardHenshall

Have you misunderstood how the Schengen rules work? If you spend one week in Portugal (Schengen) in August, then you have approximately 83 days remaining between the second week of August and approximately the beginning of February. Only the days actually spent in Schengen count towards the limit. I'm assuming from your tone that you haven't been spending significant periods elsewhere in the Schengen zone in the last six months.

Eddie5425

Hi Richard,
We understood the clock started ticking from the date you first arrived whether or not you left or not. So I've got from August until February to use my 90 days if I read you right.
It may give me time to get an appointment with Vfs and fly back and get a long term visa.
The only time i spent significant time in the EU was the eighties working in Holland.

Thanks for that a weight off my mind

Kind Regards
Eddie

Rambling archer

Richard H is quite right - it is only the dates actually spend in the Schengen area, but remember to count those days carefully - eg as soon as you set foot off the ferry (France or Spain) you start counting, then days spent here in PT, then days travelleing back to UK. And again on your next trip out.

Also since you will be retiring in September before your final move in October, it would be as well to get in touch with the Pensions Service in the UK, specifically as non-residents (eventual) of the UK to understand your situation with regards to health care in PT and claiming your S1s, and GHIC for health care in Europe. This might give you a leg up ... https://www.gov.uk/guidance/living-in-portugal and https://www.gov.uk/international-pension-centre

Eddie5425

Thanks Rambling Archer,
For the advice and links.
I used one of the Schengen visa calculators and only inputted one set of dates when I added the October visit Bingo. Though t it all seemed a bit odd.
I've never really known us out of the EU always thought it a good idea. I suspect the Tory Grandies think it craps their style for want off a better expression.
David Cameron was trying to keep them happy with the vote. I knew Boris went to the Caribbean to see the real people in charge and thank those who really paid for his election after the election. The holiday accommodation paid for it turns out by others who want to keep in with the right people. I've worked for them as a gardener over the years now I want away from them amongst normal people.
They have made the move harder for us and others at the last minute hence the rant.
Sorry.

Thanks again
Eddie

Red Eric

It has indeed hit ordinary people like you and yes, I agree, it was driven by those types.

Hope you manage to get things sorted despite all the new difficulties. It's hugely more complicated now, even in Portugal, which has some of the lowest requirements for Brits post Brexit.

Do update on your progress if you have time and inclination.

Lou71

I agree with you, my thoughts on Brexit are completely unprintable on this forum but I hate it and really do sympathise with those who could not get out of the UK before the trap door slammed shut and are now struggling to meet the very stringent, third country criteria.

Unless you can obtain an EU passport or you can afford a golden visa (like the tory backers you mentioned) it is very, very difficult for many people to relocate although Portugal is one of the easier places - low minimum income requirement and free health care for all residents. A lot of people are finding Spain very difficult now.

Goods luck with your plans.

m2m2012

Do you have ancestry from another EU country? If so, you might be able to get a EU passport from them. 17 countries offer EU citizenship to grandchildren, great-grandchildren, or sometimes even more distant descendants of European citizens.

Eddie5425

All my lot where born and raised within site of the river Tyne, Garth Heads or Forth Banks so no luck there.
Regards
Eddie