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Portugal Country Profile
Portugal, a country with a rich history of seafaring and discovery, looks out from the Iberian peninsula into the Atlantic Ocean.
When it handed over its last overseas territory, Macau, to Chinese administration in 1999, it brought to an end a long and sometimes turbulent era as a colonial power.
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, the country located in Southwestern coast of Europe, at the west of the Iberian Peninsula. The capital of Portugal — Lisbon with a population of 550 000 (2 800 000 inhabitants in Lisbon Metropolitan Area).
Total area including the islands is 92 212 km². From the south and west is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and to the north and east — by Spain.
FACTS
- Full name: Portuguese Republic
- Population: 10.7 million (UN, 2011)
- Capital: Lisbon
- Area: 92,345 sq km (35,655 sq miles)
- Major language: Portuguese
- Major religion: Christianity
- Life expectancy: 77 years (men), 83 years (women) (UN)
- Monetary unit: 1 Euro = 100 cents
- Main exports: Textiles and clothing, wood products, electrical equipment
- GNI per capita: US $21,880 (World Bank, 2010)
- Internet domain: .pt
- International dialing code: +351
Language
Portugal could be called a country with no language barriers. Many Portuguese residents speak English, so English is widely spoken, especially in tourist areas. According to statistics, 43% of population are able to have conversation in at least one foreign language. Although, we still sure that learning of some basic phrases in Portuguese makes your visit to Portugal more pleasant.
Official language of Portugal is Portuguese. Portuguese is one of the major languages of the world (the 6th most spoken language worldwide), spoken by approximately 200 million people on four continents (namely former colonies of Portugal: Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, São Tomé e Principe, Macao, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde and East Timor). Portuguese language is considered easy to learn.
Immigration
Here is rather relaxed immigration rules, which are making Portugal home to a big and growing number of immigrants. Recently the law regarding to the legal entry, stay and departure of foreigners from national territory, was updated and simplified, so, stay here turned to be even more comfortable.
Being a resident of Portugal it is possible to live almost anywhere in Schengen countries, and visit most countries without any restrictions.
