AFPOP: Your Helping Hand Story and photos by Michael Reeve One of the pitfalls of living in—or moving—another country is finding accurate and up-to-date information about the obligations you face as a resident or citizen, and keeping current with the changes to the laws and regulations that affect you. Many people ask their friends or listen to advice from people whose opinions they value, and then trust that the answer they get is correct and appropriate for them. Sadly, this is often not the case and many find that they are not complying with the law only after it is too late and they are fined–or perhaps worse. Too often, misinformation and rumour are taken as fact, resulting in penalties for the unfortunate. So, where do you look for the correct information that affects you? It should come as no surprise that a lot of your questions have been asked many times before. The problem is that the answers are not always straightforward … easy to find … and just because one person had a particular experience, it does not mean that it will be the same for you. Laws change and practices vary from one local authority (cámara), to another. In 1987, a group of foreign property owners who lived or owned property in the Algarve created a non-profit Association with the aim of finding and providing accurate answers to essential questions. The name in Portuguese was Associação de Proprietários Estrangeiros em Portugal, or the Association of Foreign Property Owners in Portugal— known by its afpop acronym. Access to the vast quantity of information that afpop has collated is available to people who become members of the Association.* From its humble beginnings, the Association grew steadily. It soon had to find office space and an administrator to handle the enquiries … to keep the information system updated … and, as its chairman at that time lived in Portimão in the Algarve, that is where the base was located and afpop’s headquarters established. 36 Portugal Living Magazine
Over the years, we considered relocating; but, as the Internet and social media brought everything and everyone closer, email exploded and WiFi became standard, afpop members used these communication media to contact the office when the telephone or a personal visit were not options. Ultimately, the physical location of our office became less important. From the office in Portimão, afpop’s eight staff members handle enquiries from our members—with Portuguese, English, German, Dutch, Scandinavian, French, and Spanish language capabilities amongst them. Our information database is extensive, continuously updated, and—where an answer is not readily to hand or needs further research—staff know where and how to find it. Assisting members is the number one priority for afpop staff, who do everything they can to help resolve member concerns. Two of the biggest changes for the Association have been the shift in nationalities of its membership, along with a change in its geography. In afpop’s early years, more than 95% of members lived in southern Portugal and over 70% were British citizens, with German and Dutch nationals comprising the majority of the remainder. Over the years, this has altered and there now is a much broader nationality mix spread across many parts of Portugal. Whilst UK citizens still represent afpop’s largest number, Americans, Scandinavians, Irish, Australian, French citizens, and others have added to afpop’s cultural blend.
