In this webinar, John McNertney, CFP® GFP Fellow, Managing Partner, and Ryan Ahrens, CBDA®, CIO/Partner of Green Ocean Global Advisors, LLC walked through the financial planning steps Americans should take in the year or two before moving to Portugal. With Portugal's tax incentives and citizenship rules having changed significantly, the decisions you make before you become a tax resident can matter as much as the ones you make after you arrive.
Some of the relevant issues that were addressed include:
- Why Timing Your Tax Residency Matters: How your arrival date can shape your first Portuguese tax year, and why some steps — like reviewing embedded capital gains or planned asset sales — are often easier to address before you become a Portuguese tax resident.
- NHR Is Gone — What IFICI Does (and Doesn't) Offer: What replaced the Non-Habitual Resident regime, who may qualify for the IFICI incentive, and how to plan if you'll be taxed under Portugal's standard progressive rates instead.
- Retirement Accounts, Social Security & Pensions Across Borders: How IRAs, Roth accounts, 401(k)s and Social Security interact with the U.S.–Portugal tax treaty, and which questions to settle before withdrawals begin abroad.
- Keeping Your U.S. Accounts Open and Investable: Why some U.S. custodians restrict or close accounts once you have a foreign address, and how to avoid PFIC traps when investing locally in Portugal.
- Currency and Cash Flow Planning for the Move: Funding your first years in euros, managing USD/EUR exchange risk, and setting up banking on both sides of the Atlantic.
- Residency vs. Citizenship Under Portugal's New Nationality Law: What the 2026 change from a five- to ten-year citizenship timeline means for your long-term plans, and why permanent residency after five years remains an important milestone.
- Your Pre-Move Checklist: A practical sequence of steps for the 12–24 months before relocation, so nothing is left until after you land.
We hope you enjoy!
