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Becoming a Recognised Informal Carer in Portugal

Researched and written with AI tools from official sources. How we make our guides

Who can be recognised as an informal carer in Portugal, the monthly support for main carers, rest and work rights, and how to apply to Segurança Social.

The Portugal Brief 8 min read

Becoming a Recognised Informal Carer in Portugal

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

  • You look after a dependent relative or partner at home in Portugal, without being paid for it.
  • You work, or have stopped work, to care for someone and want to know your rights.
  • You have lived in Portugal legally for at least a year.

Not for you if: you are planning care for an older parent and want the full picture of care homes, home help, and benefits. Read Caring for an Ageing Parent in Portugal instead.

If you care for a dependent family member, Portugal can recognise you officially as an informal carer (cuidador informal). Recognition is free and you ask Segurança Social, the social security service, for it. It gives you training, a named health contact, psychological support, and help to take rest. If you care full time and earn nothing, you may also get a monthly support payment of up to €590.84 in 2026, depending on household income. Segurança Social says it decides in about 20 days on average once your file is complete.

The two kinds of carer

The law recognises two kinds of informal carer. Which one you are decides what help you can get.

Main carer (cuidador informal principal)Non-main carer (cuidador informal não principal)
How you careAll the timeRegularly, but not all the time
Paid workYou earn nothing from work or from caringYou may work or be paid
Unemployment benefitYou cannot be receiving itYou may receive it
Monthly support paymentYes, if your household income is low enoughNo
Work rights (leave, flexible hours)Not relevantYes

If you are a relative. A spouse, partner, or relative up to the fourth degree (for example a child, grandchild, sibling, niece, or cousin) can be a main carer without sharing a tax address. You must show that you support each other and share resources.

If you are not a relative. You can still be a main carer, but you must live in the same home as the person you care for and have the same tax address.

Parents with shared custody of a dependent child can both be recognised as non-main carers.

Who can be recognised

You can ask for recognition if you:

  • are 18 or older
  • live in Portugal, or count as resident
  • are physically and mentally able to give care
  • do not receive an absolute disability pension, the special disability protection pension, or a dependency supplement yourself

If you are not Portuguese. You need a valid residence document, such as an EU registration certificate, a residence permit, or refugee status. Segurança Social asks that you have been in Portugal with that status for at least one year.

Who counts as the person cared for

In most cases, the person you care for must already receive one of these Segurança Social benefits:

  • the dependency supplement, second degree (complemento por dependência de 2.º grau), for people who are bedridden or have severe dementia
  • the third-person assistance allowance (subsídio por assistência de terceira pessoa)

The same benefits paid by the civil service pension fund (Caixa Geral de Aposentações) also count.

If the need is temporary. Someone who is bedridden or needs constant care for a period can also qualify. If they receive the first-degree dependency supplement, their family doctor or attending doctor sets how long the period lasts. If they receive no dependency benefit, Segurança Social's incapacity assessment service decides, based on a doctor's statement.

The person cared for must not live in a care home or other institution. So in practice, the first step is often to claim the dependency supplement for them. See Caring for an Ageing Parent in Portugal for how that works.

What recognition gives you

Both kinds of carer get:

  • a health professional as your contact person, and a Segurança Social contact
  • a care plan made with you (plano de intervenção específico) within 30 days of recognition
  • training and information on how to care
  • self-help groups run by the health service
  • psychological support from the health service when you need it, including after the person you cared for has died
  • student-worker status if you are studying
  • help to get your caring skills recognised through the adult skills certification scheme (RVCC)

If you are a non-main carer and you work, you also get rights at work. These include flexible hours, remote work where possible, five consecutive working days of leave a year to give care, part-time work for up to four years, and protection against dismissal.

If you work part time to care, you can ask Segurança Social to record extra contributions for the part-time period. This protects your future pension.

The monthly support payment for main carers

The support payment (subsídio de apoio ao cuidador informal principal) is only for main carers. It is means tested.

The two numbers for 2026. Both come from the social support index (IAS), which is €537.13 in 2026.

  • Most you can get: €590.84 a month. This is the reference value.
  • Income limit: €698.27 a month. Your household's relevant income, per adult equivalent, must not be above this.

How the payment is worked out. Segurança Social takes the €590.84 reference value and subtracts your own monthly income. The lower your income, the more you get.

How household income is counted. Segurança Social adds up the household's income, including the person you care for. It then divides by a weighting: 1 for you, 0.7 for each other adult, and 0.5 for each child under 18.

Some benefits do not count as income. They include the social integration income (RSI), the solidarity supplement for older people (CSI), the complement of the social inclusion benefit, and unemployment benefits.

Paid monthly. The payment is made every month by bank transfer or postal order. Segurança Social reviews it every 12 months, or sooner if your income or household changes.

A top-up if you pay voluntary contributions. If you join voluntary social insurance (seguro social voluntário) and keep paying, the payment goes up by half your contribution. In 2026 that is €57.48 a month. Voluntary insurance protects you for disability, old age, and death. See Voluntary Social Insurance in Portugal.

If you stopped work to care. If you leave your job to become a main carer and do not get unemployment benefit, Segurança Social records contributions for you. It does this for up to the longest period unemployment benefit would have lasted at your age. If you do get unemployment benefit, the credit covers the rest of that period once the benefit ends.

When it is suspended. The payment stops for a while if you stop caring full time for more than 30 days. It also stops if the person you care for goes into a care home, a continuing care unit, or hospital for more than 30 days.

Taking a rest

The law gives you the right to rest periods. Your care plan sets them out. The options include:

  • a temporary stay for the person you care for in a unit of the national continuing care network (RNCCI), at a lower charge than usual
  • short, regular stays in a care home or residential home
  • home support services
  • the carer pool (bolsa de cuidadores)

The carer pool pilot. In January 2026 the government started a 12-month pilot in 18 municipalities, one in each mainland district. Day centres, activity centres, and home support services keep places for the person you care for while you are away. Each absence can last up to 7 hours in a row, up to 56 hours a month. Municipalities also run a volunteer pool for absences of up to three hours. Ask your Segurança Social contact whether your municipality is included.

How to apply

You ask for recognition first. The support payment uses its own form.

  1. Apply online or in person. Online, log in to Segurança Social Direta and go to Família, then Deficiência e Incapacidade, then Reconhecimento do Estatuto do Cuidador Informal. You can also go to any Segurança Social office or post the forms to your district centre.
  2. Send the first documents. With these, you get provisional status (estatuto provisório) straight away: - a valid identity document - proof of legal residence, if you are not Portuguese - your own statement that you are physically and mentally fit to give care
  3. Complete the file within 90 days. Send the rest to get full recognition: - form CI 12, with the cared-for person's consent and the statements on living together or sharing resources - a doctor's statement on whether the person cared for can give consent - if they cannot, proof of a court support measure (maior acompanhado) or of a court request to replace their consent
  4. Ask for the support payment, if you are a main carer. Use forms CI 2 and CI 2/1. You can ask at the same time as recognition when the person cared for is also applying for their dependency benefit. You need: - a bank document showing an IBAN in your name - a tax document showing the person cared for was part of your household when you applied
  5. Wait for the decision. Segurança Social says it decides in about 20 days on average.

The forms are CI 1 (recognition request), CI 1/1 (continuation), CI 12 (consent), CI 13 and CI 13/1 (household and income), and CI 2 and CI 2/1 (support payment).

The support payment is due from the month in which you hand in a complete request. If you miss the 90-day deadline, provisional status ends.

Your duties as a carer

You must tell Segurança Social within 10 working days about any change that affects your recognition. Examples are a new job, a move, or a change in the cared-for person's situation. You must also take part in the training offered and cooperate with checks.

Recognition ends if either of you stops living legally in Portugal, if you can no longer give care, or if the conditions stop being met.

Contacts

  • Segurança Social line: 210 545 400 or 300 502 502, working days from 09:00 to 18:00.
  • Appointments line: 210 548 888 or 300 088 888.

What this means for you

  • If you care full time and earn nothing: you may qualify as a main carer, with a means-tested payment of up to €590.84 a month.
  • If you work and help regularly: ask for non-main carer status. There is no payment, but you get rights at work.
  • Start with the cared-for person's benefit. Most applications depend on them receiving the second-degree dependency supplement or the third-person assistance allowance.
  • Ask for provisional status if you need help quickly, then complete the file within 90 days.
  • Use the support. Psychological help and rest periods come with recognition, not only the money.

This guide is general information, not medical or legal advice. Rules and amounts change; check with Segurança Social before you apply.

Sources

This guide is written from official sources and, where relevant, organisations' own websites.

Last verified October 2026. Rules and fees change; check the official source before acting.

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