The platform for obtaining residence permits in Portugal for citizens of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) came into operation on 13 March and is aimed at Portuguese-speaking immigrants with pending cases at the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) until December 31, 2022 and for those holding a CPLP visa issued by Portuguese consulates after October 31, 2022.
In a balance sheet statement, the SEF indicates that, since March 13, it has received 114,131 requests for the attribution of residence permit certificates by CPLP citizens.
Of the 114,131 requests made on the 'CPLP portal', accessible on the websites www.SEF.pt and www.ePortugal.gov.pt, the SEF issued more than 103,572 documents with payment reference, of which 97,631 were settled and resulted in the granting of 93,209 residence permits, according to that security service.
The Foreigners and Borders Service indicates that Brazilian nationals represent, so far, 86.5 percent of CPLP residence permit requests, followed by citizens of Angola, with 3.8 percent, and São Tomé and Príncipe, with 3 percent.
The SEF emphasizes that, within the scope of this process, the databases are consulted, and the CPLP residence authorization certificate is issued if the applicant is not identified as being the subject of an indication for the purposes of return or refusal of entry and stay.
That security service refers that 6043 alerts were detected, which required a more detailed consultation to assess, or not, the assignment of a CPLP residence permit.
The SEF also stresses that this new model, exclusively digital, is aimed at CPLP citizens with expressions of interest delivered by December 31, 2022 and those who hold new CPLP consular visas issued after October 31, 2022, giving access to education, health, social security, professional activity, professional training and justice, thus representing an opportunity for these citizens to regularize their situation.
According to the SEF, these residence permit concessions are automatic and "exclusively 'online', without the need for any other type of interaction with the service or physical travel to a service point".
However, in the case of minors involved in the legalization process, it is necessary to go "afterwards to a SEF service point".
The residence permit for CPLP immigrants costs 15 euros and the availability of this document in an electronic format generally takes 72 hours.
This residence permit in Portugal for CPLP citizens is granted under the mobility agreement between the Member States of the organization.
In addition to Portugal, the CPLP includes Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe and East Timor.
The residence permit under the CPLP mobility agreement is initially valid for one year, renewable for two successive periods of two years.
SEF data show that the foreign population legally residing in Portugal increased in 2022 for the seventh consecutive year, totaling 757,252, and the Brazilian community was the one that grew the most, in addition to being the most numerous.
At the end of last year, there were 233,138 Brazilians residing in Portugal.
