Help to open a business in Miami

[vbarba]

Hi
I need a little help:
I'm from Portugal and I want to open an IT business in Miami and would like to know what the firststeps to take, since everything is different.
Is there any Portuguese community in Miami?
I've been two times in Miami and I loved it.
Thanks for your help

[Mario]

Hi vbarba,

I don't know of a Portuguese community, but there are some Brazilians in Miami and also in Pompano Beach. In regards to opening a business, follow this link, which gives you advice. I'm not sure how current it is.

http://miami.about.com/cs/business/a/aa041302a.htm

[vbarba]

Hi Mario:

Thank you for your answer.

Do you have a attorney trust and cheaper for me to have a meeting and tell me everything that I must do?

Thank you for your help,

Vasco

[Largo]

Ola, I'm from Portugal as well, moved here about a year ago or so.

I don't know of any Portuguese communities in Miami, but I did meet a girl who's half Cuban, half Portuguese, and she told me that indeed there is one in Fort Lauderdale. I haven't checked it out yet though, so I can't say how big or small it is. There is a Portuguese grocery store called Seabra's in Pompano Beach that also sells Brazilian stuff but I've never been there as it is very out of the way for me.

The Brazilian community here is very big, there are Brazilians everywhere.

About the business, it all depends on how you're coming here as, I mean, are you on a tourist visa, resident (greencard), work visa, etc.? I know you can start a business in the US as a foreigner as long as you spend a certain amount, I can't recall exactly how much but I think it's something like a million dollars or something.

Ja agora, que tipo de negocio pensas em abrir?

[vbarba]

Olá Largo:

Obrigado pela resposta.

Eu sou engenheiro civil e engenheiro informático, com 25 anos de experiência. Tenho empresa própria acerca de 20 anos e tenho trabalho mas as coisas não estão fáceis e as empresas vão fechando ou tendo cada vez menos dinheiro.

Acho que existe uma possibilidade de abrir negócio com 25.000 USD mas ainda estou a analisar informação que solicitei à embaixada.

Não há green cards até 2013 ou 2014. A única possibilidade é abrir negócio ou uma empresa daí me contratar e como sou especializado tenho algumas hipóteses.

O que eu quero é saber de algum solicitador/advogado de confiança aí (e que não seja muito caro) para me ajudar.

Obrigado uma vez mais

[Mario]

Hi Vbarba,

Unfortunately I don't know of any lawyer that can advise you for a small fee.

[Mario]

This is a link for Business Attorney that work with Brazil, maybe they can help.

http://miamiinternationalbusinessatt....com/brazil-2/

[coach]

Hi vbarba, I highly recommend you start by contact SCORE Miami http://scoremiami.org/. Orginally the acronym for “Service Core of Retired Executives”, SCORE is now “Counselors to America’s Small Business”. It is a free consulting service that is a government agency.

Also, contact the Beacon Council. www.beaconcouncil.com That is an organization working to support the business climate of Miami and Dade County. Includes assistance to minority-owned businesses.

This is the website for the Miami arm of the SBA http://www.miamidade.gov/sba/. Small Business Administration.

And lastly, the Brazilian American Chamber of Commerce of Florida. http://www.brazilchamber.org/

Those should really get you started.

[Angie in The Roads]

Hi vbarba! Hope you found the help that you need to check into your new venture. If not, you may send an e-mail to lisa.landy@akerman.com, attorney, and if she cannot help you, she will at least be able to give you some hints and refer you to some of her colleagues who may assist you. I worked with her for about 10 years, highly professional, easy going and great as a professional and individual to work with. If you need a CPA, who is also another professional that may guide and refer you to an attorney in their team, you may contact eileen@aegarcia.com, also extremely effective and efficient. Good luck!