[taneliv]

Do you speak Portuguese? Are you interested in learning it? I don't know how big a role it plays in making connections and friends in Portugal, and how important those are to you. It may be also more difficult to find English (or Turkish!) speakers in smaller towns compared to big cities.

How stable is the remote role? Are you more likely to be laid off (or the company to cease operations) than turmoil in Turkey? Obviously this is also very subjective speculation, but since you don't mention it, how does it figure into your plans? How well will you be able to find other similar work in Portugal? (Or elsewhere, I would assume your relocation will offer freedom of employment across EU.)

[Slaboli]

I only speak the basics of Portuguese for now, but I’m open to learning it. I do think language plays a big role in building real connections and friendships, especially outside expat circles. In smaller towns, it’s true that finding English speakers, let alone Turkish speakers lol is extremely hard. The trade-off is that rent is dramatically cheaper. In Lisbon or Porto, even tiny studios are above 1,200 EUR, while in smaller towns I can find something decent for around 700 EUR.

The remote role offers 1,100 EUR. It’s a content analyst position for YouTube ads. I don’t see it as something I would do for year, more like a starter job to enter the market. Without Portuguese, job options are mostly limited to call centers or similar roles where Turkish and English fluency is an advantage. Salaries in Portugal are generally low even highly experienced managers earn around 2,000 EUR.

As for stability, the turmoil in Turkey doesn’t affect me directly, but indirectly it does. The general atmosphere and economic situation make things feel uncertain and heavy. The remote role itself isn’t something I see as long-term stable either, so I’m aware that I’d need a plan B and to improve my language skills to expand my options. I can only work in Portugal as I just have the temporary residence, after 5 years of stay can I start working in other EU nations. Thank you for your message!

[taneliv]

Do your financial calculations take into account possible differences between Turkish and Portuguese practicalities? For example: is 1100 euro gross income or after taxes? What kind of unavoidable expenses you will have on top of rent: electricity, water, transportation, Internet/mobile, groceries, insurance and so on?

From my Nordic perspective, your budget will not leave much at all on the table at the end of the month. Groceries are probably more expensive here than in Portugal, but I still get a feeling that making the ends meet could be a real struggle. This kind of setup would be much more (financially) reasonable if you can live together with someone who is also working and then split the rent.

I suppose you took all of this into consideration already. Likewise, if you haven't already, it could be useful to search for some expat forums and ask people's opinions on anything that could be surprising in everyday life.

Either way you decide, iyi şanslar!