Editorial Policy

The Research Desk

Relocate Handbook content is produced by the Relocate Handbook Research Desk — a specialist research team focused exclusively on cross-border relocation between specific corridors: US and UK to Portugal, Spain, and Mexico.

Our researchers have direct experience navigating international moves — including visa applications, tax residency transitions, healthcare enrollment, and banking setup in multiple countries. This first-hand knowledge shapes every guide we produce: we know which details matter because we have encountered them ourselves.

The Research Desk operates editorially independent of any commercial partnerships. Affiliate relationships, where they exist, never influence our analysis or recommendations.

Our Mission

Relocate Handbook exists to give expats the comprehensive, independently researched information they need to make confident decisions about moving abroad. We cover the topics that are too important to get wrong — visas, taxes, banking, healthcare, and the practical realities of life in a new country.

Every guide is designed to be the single most reliable resource on its topic — sourced from primary legislation and institutional data, not recycled blog content.

Source Standards

We maintain a strict two-tier source policy. No exceptions.

Tier 1 — Primary Sources (required for all regulatory claims):

1. Government legislation and official gazettes (Diário da República, BOE, Federal Register)
2. Government agency websites and portals (SEF/AIMA, Segurança Social, IRS.gov, HMRC)
3. Treaty texts and bilateral agreements
4. Court rulings and regulatory decisions

Tier 2 — Institutional Sources (supporting analysis and context):

1. Big 4 advisory firms (Deloitte, PwC, EY, KPMG)
2. Major financial institutions with published research
3. Established news organisations (Reuters, Bloomberg, FT, national papers of record)
4. International bodies (OECD, WHO, World Bank, EU Commission)
5. Professional associations and bar associations

What we never cite:

• Competitor relocation blogs or guides
• Forums, Reddit threads, or social media posts
• Anonymous or unattributed sources
• SEO content farms or aggregator sites
• Personal blogs (including expat blogs)

Every factual claim in our guides links to or cites its source. We include a numbered references section at the bottom of every guide.

Research Methodology

Each guide follows a structured five-step research process:

1. Scope definition — We identify the specific regulatory framework, jurisdiction, and time period. Every guide targets a defined relocation corridor and topic.
2. Primary source collection — We gather current legislation, official guidelines, and government publications. All regulatory claims must trace to a Tier 1 source.
3. Institutional cross-reference — We verify interpretations against Tier 2 institutional analysis: Big 4 tax guides, OECD data, financial institution research.
4. Adversarial review — Every research output undergoes adversarial review to check for false conclusions, bad sources, scope errors, and unverified claims.
5. Editorial review — The Research Desk reviews the final article against 70+ editorial checks covering accuracy, source quality, completeness, and clarity.

Editorial Independence

The Research Desk independently researches and writes every guide. Companies, service providers, and advertisers cannot pay for favorable coverage, influence our recommendations, or review content before publication.

We may earn commissions when readers use affiliate links to services we recommend. This revenue supports our work and keeps our guides free. Affiliate relationships never influence which services we recommend, how we rate them, or what we write. If a service isn't worth recommending, we won't include it regardless of whether an affiliate program exists.

Updates, Verification & Corrections

Relocation rules change. Tax laws get amended. Visa requirements shift. We commit to:

• Verification cycle: Published guides are reviewed against current legislation on a regular schedule. The "last verified" date on each article reflects the most recent check.
• Material changes: When legislation or policy changes affect a guide's accuracy, we update the article and note the change.
• Correction policy: If we get something wrong, we fix it promptly. Corrections are noted in the article.
• Sunsetting: If a guide becomes outdated beyond reasonable update (e.g., a visa programme is discontinued), we mark it clearly rather than leaving stale content live.

If you find an error or outdated information, contact us at research@relocatehandbook.com.

What We Don't Do

• We don't provide personalized legal, tax, or financial advice. Our guides are educational.
• We don't guarantee outcomes — immigration and tax decisions depend on individual circumstances.
• We don't accept payment for coverage or reviews.
• We don't publish content we can't source to a Tier 1 or Tier 2 source.
• We don't cite competitor blogs, forums, or social media as sources.

Affiliate Disclosure

Some links in our guides are affiliate links. When you click these and sign up for or purchase a service, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

Affiliate links are always identified. Our recommendations are based on independent research and editorial judgment. We regularly review affiliated services and will remove recommendations that no longer meet our standards.

Contact the Research Desk

For corrections, inquiries, or press: research@relocatehandbook.com