Senior PHP Developer

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Senior PHP Developer based in Brazil.

This is an opportunity for an experienced PHP developer to strengthen and modernize a critical legacy platform while preserving business continuity. You will work on API capabilities, security, observability, testing, and incremental modernization within an enterprise environment. The role requires a pragmatic engineering mindset, with a focus on safely refactoring existing code rather than rebuilding everything from scratch. You will design and implement REST APIs, improve monitoring and error tracking, and introduce stronger engineering practices around reliability and quality. Working closely with client stakeholders and a multidisciplinary delivery team, you will contribute to an agile development lifecycle and demonstrate progress at the end of each sprint. This is a strong fit for a technically experienced developer who enjoys solving complex legacy challenges and delivering measurable improvements incrementally.

Accountabilities:

• Design and implement feature- and resource-oriented REST endpoints that integrate cleanly with the existing legacy PHP codebase.
• Create and maintain OpenAPI/Swagger specifications and machine-readable API documentation where applicable.
• Implement secure authentication and authorization for public-facing endpoints, including session-based authentication, request validation, and rate limiting.
• Identify, troubleshoot, remediate, and refactor critical issues in the legacy codebase that could affect API development or system stability.
• Implement structured application logging, including relevant logs and correlation/request IDs, to improve troubleshooting and operational visibility.
• Establish application performance and error monitoring, including proactive alerting for critical issues and potential service degradation.
• Develop unit and integration tests for new API endpoints while applying a strong testing mindset to existing legacy functionality.
• Work closely with the client team to introduce changes incrementally and avoid disruption to existing functionality or ongoing feature development.
• Participate in peer reviews to maintain code quality and share technical knowledge across the team.
• Take part in Agile ceremonies, contribute to sprint planning and delivery activities, and demonstrate completed work to client stakeholders at the end of each sprint.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives involving API architecture, observability, security, testing, and phased platform modernization.

Requirements

• Solid professional experience developing and maintaining legacy PHP applications, including procedural PHP and light object-oriented programming.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively within existing codebases, with a pragmatic approach to refactoring rather than rewriting systems from scratch.
• Strong experience designing and implementing REST APIs, including API versioning strategies and technical documentation.
• Hands-on experience implementing authentication, authorization, request validation, and rate limiting within existing applications.
• Strong MySQL knowledge, with the ability to safely work with established database schemas and queries while avoiding regressions.
• Practical experience implementing structured logging and error tracking within PHP applications.
• Familiarity with application performance monitoring, error monitoring, alerting, and related observability practices.
• Strong testing mindset, particularly when working with legacy code and introducing new functionality without compromising existing behavior.
• Working knowledge of CI/CD and continuous delivery practices, including Git, GitFlow, and incremental software delivery.
• Experience working within Agile or similar project delivery methodologies as part of a broader engineering team.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to investigate complex technical issues and determine practical solutions.
• Strong communication and teamwork skills, with confidence collaborating with engineers, product or project teams, and client stakeholders.
• Fluent English communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Exposure to Spec-Driven Development, API specifications, and machine-readable API contracts is a plus.
• Hands-on experience with agentic software development lifecycle practices is desirable.
• Experience with observability tools and security or compliance best practices is an advantage.

Benefits

• Health insurance.
• Dental insurance.
• Meal and food allowance.
• Childcare assistance.
• Extended paternity leave.
• Access to gyms and health and wellness professionals through Wellhub/Gympass and TotalPass partnerships.
• Profit Sharing and Results Participation (PLR).
• Life insurance.
• Access to a continuous learning platform and internal development resources.
• Partnerships with online learning platforms.
• Language learning platform.
• Discount club with access to partner offers.
• Free online resources dedicated to physical, mental, and overall well-being.
• Pregnancy and responsible parenting course.
• Additional employee benefits and professional development opportunities.
• A collaborative environment focused on continuous learning, inclusion, and career development.
• Dedicated health, well-being, and inclusion support throughout the employee experience.