Thousands of Swedes have been fleeing Scandinavia for Portugal in the last two decades in a major exodus driven by Sweden’s “political correctness”, research has found. The study “Heading for a Better Life? Why Swedes Move to Portugal” reports that “disenchantment with Sweden”, “political correctness” and “a perceived collapse of the Swedish welfare system” are the main reasons behind the mass migration of Swedes from their country to Portugal. The trend has intensified in the last few years, with the number of Swedes moving to Portugal quadrupling in the last ten years.
According to data from Portugal’s Institute for Statistics (INE), 4,900 Swedes lived in the country in 2019. By contrast, only 1,000 of them were based there in 2000.
Algarve and Lisbon are the most popular destinations for Swedes migrating to Portugal, according to the latest data. And this number is expected to keep rising as more Swedes pick Portugal as their new home.
Some respondents to the study said they were “simply fed up” with the need to “voice ‘correct’ political phrases every now and then”. While one respondent said Swedes are “under some sort of opinion control”, another one complained that “you can’t talk about the actual problems; instead, a lot of pseudo-problems are debated”.
Among the main reasons “frustrating” respondents are an increasing level of criminality and violence in Sweden, the decreasing quality and accessibility of health care, decreasing quality in the school system and bad infrastructure, the study found.
Divorce and children moving away from home were “tipping points” for almost all respondents who decided to take the jump and settle down in Portugal. Others cited losing a job or losing a relative for leaving their native Sweden.
All those reasons have pushed a growing number of Swedes to escape their country for Portugal where almost respondents to the study said “climate” and “food” were the main reasons for choosing the southern European country. They all agreed that the Portuguese people’s “friendliness”, “politeness”, and “welcoming mentality” were major factors in their decision to travel to Portugal.
According to the study published in the Nordic Journal of Migration Research, the attractive cost of living was an important factor for low-income earners, while for others beneficial tax regimes were a significant factor in choosing Portugal over other destinations.
It says: “The findings in this study indicate that it is not the wider middle class who are leaving Sweden for Portugal, and although a few of the emigrants are very wealthy indeed, the majority of the respondents are to be found on the lower level of the social hierarchy. Poignantly, the majority of this latter group does not move to get a better life; they move to get a life.”
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The majority found that overall quality of life played a key role in their decision, with many citing the high degree of security, low crime rates, and robust healthcare system.
More than one million immigrants lived in Portugal in 2021. Among them, around 40,000 Britons became Portuguese residents in 2021, securing the second largest nationality group position for another year, Portugal’s Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) said.
According to SEF, there are now 714,123 UK citizens living in Portugal, which is 7.8 percent higher than the previous year, marking a continual increase for the sixth consecutive year, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com.
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The Portuguese Chamber in the UK found that the demand from Britons to become Portuguese residents also remained high in 2022, with a particular interest in the country’s D7 visa, also known as the passive income visa.
The Chamber said: “There is a tidal wave of people wanting to move from the UK to Portugal right now. As such, we are packing the upcoming Moving to Portugal show with property, financial, legal, and other experts, providing a one-stop-shop for information, advice, and guidance.”
Neighbouring Spain also recorded a rising number of British residents, with the number of British nationals living in Spain reaching 313,975 in 2021, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com.
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