Visas arrive close to the flight date, a one-semester course won't get you one, and Uber cuts office staff, not drivers
Portuguese visas are issued close to the travel date: apply six months ahead and you may wait six months, says the chat
The consulate seems to issue visas close to the travel date stated in the application, people in the chat say. Someone asked how long those who applied in February and March had waited. One applicant submitted their documents on 26 March, got the visa on 17 August and flew on 16 September, a wait of almost five months. Another applied in June, got the visa in August and flew on 6 September. Some got their visa a month before departure, or even two weeks before.
“I applied on 26 March and got the visa on 17 August. My flight was on 16 September.”
Translated from RussianPortugal 🇵🇹 TravelAsk chat07.11.2026
The thread concluded that the wait depends less on the queue than on the departure date: apply six months ahead and be ready to wait six months. People complain that they apply early precisely so they can relax, yet the visa still arrives almost on the eve of the trip.
“Don't worry, I got mine a month before, and my friend two weeks before. It all depends on the departure date. If you apply six months ahead, be ready to wait that long.”
Translated from RussianPortugal 🇵🇹 TravelAsk chat07.11.2026
You cannot apply through an agency without going to the visa centre yourself: fingerprints are taken at every application if the applicant is 12 or older, even if they were taken two years ago.
“No, only in person — you have to give biometrics at every application if you're 12 or older.”
Translated from RussianPortugal 🇵🇹 TravelAsk chat09.11.2026
A student visa from Moscow won't arrive in time for a one-semester Portuguese course at the University of Lisbon, chat says
Someone in the chat asked whether they could apply from Russia for a D4 student visa — a residence visa for study — by enrolling in the second semester of the annual Portuguese course at the Instituto de Cultura e Língua Portuguesa, the institute attached to the School of Arts and Humanities of the University of Lisbon.
The answer was that for a single semester it makes no sense: by the time the consulate in Moscow has considered the application, the course will be over. At most, according to the person who replied, you might get a temporary stay visa (visto de estada temporária), but Moscow won't issue a residence visa for a course like this.
“By the time they approve you, the course will be over.”
Translated from Russianru_Portugal_pt08.11.2026
According to the institute, the course has four sessions a week of four and a half hours each, in the morning or the afternoon. The second semester of the 2026/2027 academic year runs from 15 February to 31 May 2027 and costs €1,280.
Citizens of Brazil and other Lusophone countries skip the citizenship language test, naturalised ones included
The citizenship law presumes that citizens of countries where Portuguese is an official language (Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde and others) know the language. In the chat, someone asked whether this also applies to people who got, say, a Brazilian passport through naturalisation rather than by birth.
The answer was that the law draws no distinction by how citizenship was obtained: the exemption applies to all citizens of these countries. The law used to refer to people born there (naturais), but the word was dropped in May 2026, although it is still in the citizenship regulations.
“I don't remember there being any distinction between ‘citizenships’. The citizenship regulations, article 25, paragraph 9, also presume that if you're a citizen of a country whose official language is Portuguese, you know it.”
Translated from Russianru_Portugal_pt07.11.2026
“It used to say ‘those born there’; since May the word naturais is gone. But it's still in the regulations.”
Translated from Russianru_Portugal_pt07.11.2026
That said, under the citizenship law in force since 19 May 2026, knowledge of the language is only presumed: if it becomes clear at the appointment that the applicant doesn't speak Portuguese, they will have to prove that they know it. Citizens of these countries must have lived in Portugal for seven years before applying; everyone else, for ten.
Uber is cutting staff in Portugal. On Reddit, people point out it's the Lisbon office being let go, not the drivers
On 6 November Uber Portugal confirmed to the newspaper ECO that it had begun a collective redundancy process. The company won't say how many people will lose their jobs; it has about 650 employees in Portugal in total. The cuts are part of the 10% global reduction that Uber's chief executive announced in September.
The first thing people on Reddit pointed out was that drivers are not affected: they are not Uber employees but take jobs through the app. The cuts concern staff at the Lisbon office, including customer support and IT. One commenter wondered why a company that is essentially an app needs so many people.
“For those who think this is about drivers: no! Drivers don't work for Uber, they take jobs through Uber. This is about staff at the Lisbon office, including support and IT people.”
Translated from Portugueser/portugal07.11.2026
“Drivers aren't in these figures — so why does a company that's basically an app need 650 employees? Looks like they hired loads of people in recent years and have now realised half of them are completely surplus.”
Translated from Portugueser/portugal07.11.2026
The thread then turned into an argument about IT jobs. Some predict that programmers will be replaced by artificial intelligence and warn people in IT who have taken out loans. Others reply that specialists are needed and will remain in demand, especially as they can work for a company in any country.
“IT will need a colossal number of specialists. They'll never be out of work, especially since it's a field with almost no borders: you can work for anyone, anywhere in the world!”
Translated from Portugueser/portugal08.11.2026
In a collective redundancy in Portugal, employees are entitled to compensation: 14 days' base pay for each full year of service since May 2023, with earlier years calculated under the previous rules.
Toddlers go to the pool in a swim nappy and trunks, and a swim T-shirt won't keep chlorine off, say mums in the chat
In a mums' chat, someone asked what a boy aged one to two should wear to the pool. Most parents use a special swim nappy with trunks over it; some make do with just the nappy. For girls, they recommend a swimsuit: it makes the child easier to hold and less likely to slip out of your hands.
“Usually a nappy and trunks.”
Translated from Russianpequenos_PT08.11.2026
Swim T-shirts divided opinion. Some parents put one on their child because there is a lot of chlorine in the water. Others replied that a T-shirt doesn't protect against chlorine, since the water still reaches the skin, and that such T-shirts are meant for the beach, to protect against the sun. Only a drysuit would keep the chlorine off, someone joked.
“We also used a swim T-shirt, since there's quite a lot of chlorine. But it's not essential.”
Translated from Russianpequenos_PT08.11.2026
“A full-cover suit is nice to look at and good for a number of other reasons, but the only thing that will protect against chlorine is a diving drysuit that keeps water off the body. Or a spacesuit.”
Translated from Russianpequenos_PT08.11.2026
