How to prepare a Resume to Work in Portugal

This is a short guide to help you. How to prepare a resume to work in Portugal.

The key focus of your Portuguese resume should be to persuade the employer to invite you for an interview. Therefore, your Portuguese Resume / CV is a marketing tool, which should be adapted to the market in which you intend to use it.

Portuguese Resume / CV standard format but it is very important to mention whether or not you hold a driving license.

A Portuguese resume / CV is usually in reverse-chronological order (ie, most recent first).

Emphasise all the professional training you have received, from seminars to full courses.

List all your former employers, including tasks and responsibilities performed.

Work permits in Portugal

• EEA citizens are free to move and work wherever they want to, within the EEA (including Portugal).
• You must apply for a residence permit. This is valid for five years and should be issued within six months of your arrival.
• Contact the Portuguese embassy in your home country for more information.

The application procedure in Portugal

• Speculative applications, especially for recent graduates, are an important route to employment in Portugal.
• Working in a holiday or a temporary job in the tourist sector can be a good stepping-stone to more permanent work.
• Networking is very important in Portugal – use your personal contacts!

The application letter in Portugal

• Application letters can be either typewritten or hand-written.
• The application letter is short and simple, the style conventional.
• In Portugal, try to emphasise your skills and qualifications for the job in your letter.
• The use of application forms is widespread in Portugal.

Dos

• Use your personal contacts!
• Be prepared for several interviews.
• Be open, the entire application process in Portugal is open.
• Provide examples to illustrate your achievements.
• Ask for clarification if you don’t understand the question

Don’ts

• Sit until invited when at a job interview.
• Send copies of diplomas to the employer. However, bring them to the interview in Portugal.
• Go over the top – stay calm and stick to the facts.
• Criticise former employers.
• Be surprised when applying for a senior appointment, that graphology is used in the selection.

Management culture in Portugal

• The Portuguese are known to be formal.
• Leadership and authority are based on personal loyalty.
• Employees in Portugal have little power or responsibility; ‘They do as they are told’.
• Meetings in Portugal are meant for discussion and to give instructions, not for decision-making or delegation.
• When meeting friends, men embrace and pat each other on the back and woman kiss both cheeks.
• Long lunches and restaurant dinners are a part of the Portuguese working day.