Are you considering relocating to Cape Verde? The easiest way to make a living here is to start your own business. It's actually very easy and quite inexpensive. If you establish your own business here, there are many benefits that you can take advantage of that are not available to visitors who attempt to relocate as individuals or job-hunters rather than business owners.
Even if you are coming to Cape Verde in the hope of finding a job, it is still better to register your own company and use this company to engage in work for any employer rather than register as a worker with a company you hope to work for (it will ave you AND the prospective employer LOTS of money in taxes!)
So here are the questions to consider to start a business in Cape Verde:
1. What are the simple steps and requirements to start a business here? What does it cost?
2. What kind of business to start? Which economic sectors are most lucrative? Or should I simply register as a company providing consulting services?
3. What are the labor laws and what steps MUST I take to avoid making costly mistakes?
4. What are the many benefits of being a business owner rather than a worker?
5. What direct financial incentives can I get when I start a business?
These are practical issues that you should know about before starting a business here. If you do it right, you may be very successful. But there is very little information available to guide investors and entrepreneurs and the dearth of whatever information that exists is only available in Portuguese.
The BIGGEST mistake most people make when starting a small business here is being unaware of the extremely restrictive (and punitive) labor laws of Cape Verde. They are among the worst in the world according to the World Bank. If you don't know your way around the labor laws, you WILL make the extremely costly yet common mistake that all foreign entrepreneurs make. The mistake is hard to detect because the cost only becomes apparent several years after you start the business. And by then, it is too late to correct. Yet, the secret to saving many thousands of dollars in labor costs is so simple once you become aware of this common mistake.
Post here if you have any questions on this topic. I'd be happy to help.