AIMA Appointments & Portugal's Residency Backlog: How to Navigate It (2026)

Moving to Portugal means dealing with AIMA at some point. The agency that now runs immigration inherited a large backlog, and the rules for what happens if your permit expires while you wait changed materially in late 2025. This guide sets out what AIMA is, what the current rules actually say, and where to get help for your specific case rather than a general reassurance.

What is AIMA, and what did it replace?

AIMA — the Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo — is the public body responsible for immigration, residency and integration in Portugal. It was created when SEF (Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras) was abolished in 2023. SEF’s old border and law-enforcement duties were split between the police forces (PSP, GNR and Polícia Judiciária), while its administrative work — issuing and renewing residence permits, registering visa holders, family reunification, and integration support — moved to AIMA.

In practice, AIMA is who you deal with once you are in Portugal and need to:

• Collect your residence permit after arriving on a visa (such as the D7 or D8).
• Renew an existing residence permit.
• Apply for family reunification.
• Update your address, correct your card, or register changes in your status.

AIMA also runs the network of CNAIM integration centres, which offer multilingual support on documents, employment, health and housing — a useful, often-overlooked resource.

Why is there an AIMA backlog?

The backlog is the product of several things colliding at once: a disruptive handover of SEF’s caseload, staff and IT systems to a brand-new agency; a surge in immigration in the early 2020s, including large numbers of CPLP nationals and remote workers; and a bookable-appointment supply that has consistently lagged demand.

We have not verified a current queue size or typical wait time. A government statement of 14 May 2026, reporting a hearing held on 13 May 2026, gives two cumulative figures rather than one live number: 763,000 attendances and over 525,000 decisions, both since 2024 (Government of Portugal, 14 May 2026). Those are cumulative activity counts since 2024 — not a snapshot of how many cases remain open today and not a count of unique people. The dedicated mission structure set up to accelerate this work ended at the close of 2025; AIMA has continued the underlying operation since, without the special task force.

How do you actually get an AIMA appointment?

There is no single universal channel — the right one depends on your case type. Use the specific official route for your situation, through AIMA’s own channels, rather than a general-purpose workaround.

The online portal

Start at aima.gov.pt. If your case falls inside the renewal portal’s current scope — residence authorisations expiring between 1 July 2025 and 31 October 2026, ARI (Golden Visa) permits expired between 22 February 2020 and 31 October 2026, or permanent residence certificates/cards for EU nationals and their family members — use portal-renovacoes.aima.gov.pt directly (AIMA, published 1 July 2026). CPLP renewals are handled through the separate CPLP procedure below, not through this portal. Check that your permit type and expiry date actually fall inside these windows before assuming the portal applies to you; the same notice says an appointment you already hold under it remains valid.

The dedicated phone line

AIMA’s phone line is 217 115 000. It is one of three official channels for cases the renewal portal and your visa don’t already cover, alongside the contact form at contactenos.aima.gov.pt/contact-form and geral@aima.gov.pt. Choose the topic that matches your case (CPLP, residence permit, visa-linked appointment) when you get through. AIMA’s 14 July 2025 notice on concession appointments states that the appointment is booked free of charge, by the Portuguese authorities — which includes a consular booking — or by you as the applicant (AIMA, 14 July 2025). That statement is about the booking, not the permit: any fee for the residence permit itself is a separate matter, and this guide does not quantify it.

The contact form did not respond to our connection checks on 5 September 2026. If it also fails for you, use the phone or email channel above.

The CPLP regime

Nationals of CPLP countries (Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde and others) have a separate official procedure. Since a February 2025 AIMA notice, a new CPLP residence-authorisation grant requires a prior CPLP consular visa, and the permit issued is the standard uniform EU card (AIMA, 13 February 2025). That requirement is scoped to new grants, not to renewals of an existing CPLP permit. For a renewal of an existing CPLP permit, the route is AIMA’s contact form at AIMA’s published contact instructions, selecting the CPLP topic (AIMA, 16 July 2025). AIMA does not describe this route as faster than the general system — treat it as a different process with its own channel, not a shortcut.

Pre-booked appointments tied to your visa

If you entered Portugal on a residence visa (for example a D7 or D8), your AIMA appointment is confirmed at the point that visa is issued, per AIMA’s July 2025 notice (AIMA, 16 July 2025). That notice is about residence visas, so don’t extend it to every kind of national visa. Check the link — usually in the bottom-right of the visa document — for your date. If that link is broken, use AIMA’s contact form at AIMA’s published contact instructions and choose the CPLP or residence-permit (AR) topic that matches your case.

What if your permit expires while you wait?

The rules changed in late 2025, so treat older advice, including earlier versions of this guide, with caution.

Automatic extensions of expired residence documents ended on 15 October 2025, for the residence authorisations covered by article 2 of Decreto-Lei n.º 85-B/2025 — those that had expired between 22 February 2020 and 30 June 2025. Before that date, this general regime accepted the document domestically; after it, AIMA requires proof of payment for a registered renewal, which it issues as a receipt valid for 180 days from the date it’s provided (AIMA, 15 October 2025). That receipt is a domestic acceptance provision — it doesn’t stand in as proof for every other purpose.

Separately, and on a different footing, AIMA’s notice of 17 October 2025 addresses the underlying right of residence for non-EU citizens who had not requested a renewal. It splits into two cases (AIMA, 17 October 2025):

• Cards that had already expired by 30 June 2025 — the period ran to 15 April 2026, a date that has now passed.
• Cards expiring after 30 June 2025 — six months from the card’s own printed expiry date.

There is no single blanket “six months from your card” rule covering everyone: which case you fall in depends on your card’s dates. Anyone whose period has closed, and who has not since renewed, needs to check their situation directly with AIMA.

Putting the pieces together:

Question	Current official position
Is my expired card itself still accepted domestically?	Check the card’s dates against article 2 of Decreto-Lei n.º 85-B/2025, which covers residence authorisations that expired between 22 February 2020 and 30 June 2025. Under that provision, since 15 October 2025 it is AIMA’s proof of renewal payment, not the card alone, that carries domestic acceptance. A card outside those dates is a different question — take it to AIMA.
Do I have a right to remain?	A separate question from whether a document is accepted. AIMA’s 17 October 2025 notice sets the periods for non-EU citizens who had not requested a renewal — both cases are set out in full above; read them against your card’s dates rather than assuming one applies.
Do I have proof I can show a landlord, bank or employer?	Under the provision above: your expired card together with the 180-day payment receipt, once you’ve registered and paid for a renewal.
Can I travel internationally on this basis?	Domestic acceptance of an expired card or a renewal receipt does not establish admission at a foreign border. AIMA’s March 2026 FAQ says it does not issue travel declarations and advises travelling with your residence title (AIMA FAQ, page 11) — check your passport, residence title, destination country’s requirements and your carrier before you fly.

Practical steps:

• Register and pay for your renewal as soon as you’re eligible, so you have the 180-day proof of payment rather than relying on the card alone.
• Keep every document together — the expired card, the payment proof, your process number, and any AIMA correspondence.
• Check the receipt’s 180-day window. If it has lapsed, or is about to lapse before your case resolves, contact AIMA.
• Travel documents: domestic acceptance doesn’t establish foreign border admission — confirm your passport, residence title, boarding requirements and re-entry requirements for Portugal directly before you fly.
• If your residence-right period or your 180-day receipt has already run out, contact AIMA or a qualified lawyer promptly to confirm your individual status.

Does the manifestação de interesse route still work?

No. The manifestação de interesse (“expression of interest”) was a mechanism — built on Articles 88/89 of the immigration law — that let some people already in Portugal regularise their status, often after entering on a tourist stamp and finding work.

Decreto-Lei n.º 37-A/2024 revoked the manifestação de interesse provisions effective 4 June 2024. That is the operative date — not a later 2025 law, and not merely a “tightening” of the rules. No new manifestações have been accepted since.

Two groups from before that date continue under transitional arrangements, and they are not the same group:

• Cases already lodged before 4 June 2024 continue to be processed under the transitional rules preserved by Decreto-Lei n.º 37-A/2024.
• A further, narrower group — people already registered with and contributing to social security before 4 June 2024, with a view to completing 12 months of contributions — falls under a transitional provision, article 3(2)(b), added to Decreto-Lei n.º 37-A/2024 by Lei n.º 40/2024. That article is one transitional provision, not the whole test of who qualified. Lei n.º 61/2025, article 4, added a 31 December 2025 deadline specifically to that group. That deadline does not apply to every manifestação case lodged before 4 June 2024, and it has now passed.

If you fall into either transitional group, your case’s exact status depends on which group you’re in and whether any applicable deadline was met — this is genuinely intricate, and it’s one area where a consultation with an immigration lawyer is worth the cost. If you are only now considering a manifestação de interesse, it no longer exists as a route into residency; ask a lawyer about the visa options that remain, including whether any statutory exception to the ordinary visa-first requirement applies to your situation.

What documents do you need to bring?

Requirements vary by case type and by which official channel scheduled your appointment, so work from two things: the category your case falls under, and the notice or portal message tied to your own appointment. That notice is what actually controls what you must bring. AIMA’s page on the general residence-authorisation regime under article 77(1) is one worked example of a documented list, useful for seeing the shape of one; it is not the list for every category. If your checklist asks for a NIF, see our guide to getting a NIF. Confirm the exact requirements for your category before the appointment.

How long does an AIMA appointment really take?

We have not verified a current median wait time or typical processing time for an appointment or a decision. The dated public reporting on this topic describes case-processing activity in cumulative terms, like the May 2026 figures above, not a current wait or a promise for how long your specific case will take. Plan for genuine uncertainty, and build slack into your housing, work and travel plans instead of assuming a quick resolution.

If your case is complex — a document outside the windows described above, a refused or unresolvable appointment, family reunification, or an appeal — consider professional help:

• An immigration lawyer (advogado) or a solicitador can judge your specific case and pursue a formal remedy, such as a judicial route, where the law provides one.
• The free CNAIM / AIMA integration centres for general guidance and multilingual support.

Keep your records, and get your specific situation confirmed with AIMA or a lawyer rather than relying on this guide, or any general summary, to settle your individual status.

What should you do next?

• If you are still choosing a route in, read the Portugal D7 Visa guide.
• Once resident, sort your healthcare early — see Healthcare in Portugal.
• Getting around while you settle in? See Getting Around Portugal.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Immigration rules, decrees and AIMA’s own procedures change frequently — always verify your specific situation at aima.gov.pt or with a qualified Portuguese immigration lawyer before acting.