My town offers a subsidised integration course but it's a big time commitment. For those who've done one — was it worth it beyond the language, or would you have been better off with a tutor and Netflix? Curious especially from anyone whose residency path touched a language requirement.
Tariq, "the course can be the door" is exactly it. Mine was a parents' English group, and I still meet two of them every week.
Sue and I did a Portuguese course for foreign residents at the local council, twice a week for a year. Our classmates were a Ukrainian nurse, a German surfer, two Brazilian grandmothers and a very quiet Chinese engineer who turned out to be the funniest person in the room. The teacher made us all cook a dish from home for the last class, and I've never eaten so well or understood so little. If your council offers one, go. It's the cheapest social life in Portugal.
Worth it for me too, and like Aisha I'd do it again for the practical lessons alone.
I skipped the official course and took a private tutor instead, and I regret it slightly. Faster language, much less of a social life.