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Applying for a University Grant (Bolsa de Estudo) in Portugal

Who can get a state study grant for university in Portugal, how much it pays, how to apply by 2 October, and what to do if you are refused.

Applying for a University Grant (Bolsa de Estudo) in Portugal

Last verified: September 2026.

Who this is for

  • Students starting or continuing a degree, master's, or CTeSP course at a Portuguese university or polytechnic.
  • Residents with permanent residence, long-term resident status, EU residence rights, or international or temporary protection.
  • Families on low or modest incomes who need help with fees, rent, and living costs.

Not for you if: you are moving here on a student visa and need the permit itself. Read "Getting the D4 Student Visa for Portugal".

A study grant (bolsa de estudo) is state money for higher education students from low and modest income households. You do not pay it back. For the 2026/2027 year you apply online by 2 October 2026, or within 20 working days of enrolling if you enrolled before that date. A first answer should come within 30 working days. The limit most people ask about: your household's income per person must be €12,353.99 a year or less.

A new system is starting

The grant rules are changing in two steps. A new law sets up a new way of working out grants, but it only applies in full from the 2027/2028 year.

For 2026/2027, most of the old rules still apply. Three things are new this year:

  • a larger monthly housing payment for grant holders who live away from home;
  • a clearer test of who counts as living away from home;
  • a one-off incentive grant for new students from the lowest-income families.

The grants are run by the higher education institute (Instituto para o Ensino Superior, IES), through the dges.gov.pt website. Your own university or polytechnic's social services office (Serviços de Ação Social, SAS) checks your application.

Who can apply

The law lists who can receive a grant. You must be enrolled at a Portuguese higher education institution and be one of these:

  • a Portuguese citizen, or a family member of one;
  • an EU citizen with permanent residence rights in Portugal, or who works here as an employee or self-employed person, or a family member of one;
  • a non-EU citizen with a permanent residence permit or long-term resident status;
  • a stateless person;
  • a person with international protection (refugee status or subsidiary protection) or temporary protection;
  • a student in a humanitarian emergency, under the rules for such students.

Some other non-EU students can also qualify. That happens when Portugal has a cooperation agreement with their country, or when their country gives Portuguese students the same treatment. Ask your SAS office if you think this applies to you.

You also need to meet all of these conditions:

  • you are enrolled for at least 30 ECTS credits this year (fewer is allowed if you are finishing the course);
  • you do not already hold a qualification at the same level, or higher;
  • if you studied last year, you passed at least 36 ECTS credits, or all of them if you were enrolled for fewer;
  • your household's income per person is €12,353.99 a year or less;
  • your household's savings and investments were €128,911.20 or less on 31 December 2025;
  • your tax and social security are up to date, or you are keeping to an agreed payment plan.

Income counts every person you live with who shares your home or money. It is last year's income, divided by the number of people in the household. Pay, self-employed income, rents, pensions, benefits, and interest all count. If you work while you study, higher limits apply to you.

How much you can get

The starting figure is a "reference grant" of €5,908.43 a year, plus the tuition fee you actually pay, up to the maximum fee at a public university. Your household's income per person is taken away from that. What is left is your grant. If the answer is small, you get a minimum grant instead: 125 percent of the fee you pay, with a cap. For a master's degree, the fee part has a different cap.

These are the extra payments for 2026/2027:

  • Living away from home. Grant holders who live away from home get a housing payment of 30 percent of the social support index (IAS). That is about €161 a month. You can use it for a student residence or a private room.
  • No room in a residence. If you asked for a residence place and did not get one, the housing payment rises to a fixed amount for the town where you study. It is €500 a month in Lisbon, €419 in Porto, €340 in Braga, €338 in Coimbra, and €346 in Faro. The same applies where your town has no student residence.
  • Incentive grant. This is a one-off €1,074.26, paid on top of any grant. You get it if you start higher education for the first time this year and your family was on the first band of child benefit (abono de família) on 31 May 2026.
  • Disability. If you have a disability of 60 percent or more, your grant rises by 60 percent.

The old €40 monthly travel top-up for students living away from home ends this year. The new housing payment replaces it.

Who counts as living away from home

From this year, you count as living away from home automatically if your permanent home is 50 km or more from your campus. The distance is measured between the postcode of your home and the postcode of your campus.

If the distance is less than 50 km, your school can still accept you as living away from home. It looks at public transport, travel time, your timetable, and any disability or other personal reason. You explain your reasons in a signed statement.

How to apply

  1. Get your login. If you applied through the national university admission process and said you wanted a grant, use the link in the email confirming your admission application. If you applied for a grant before, use your old login. Otherwise, go to your school's SAS office with your identity card and ask for a user code and password. The grant login is not the same as your admission login.
  2. Fill in the form. Log in to the BeOn portal and complete the grant form. You must authorise access to the tax and social security records of everyone in your household.
  3. Upload your documents. The portal tells you which documents to send once the form is complete. You cannot submit until every document is uploaded.
  4. Tick the housing box if it might apply. The form asks whether you want a housing payment if your grant is refused because your income is too high. Answer yes if you live away from home.
  5. Submit and keep checking. All letters and decisions arrive in your personal area on BeOn. A message counts as delivered on the fifth day after it is sent, even if you have not opened it.

If you already had a grant last year, you only update your details. If your course, school, and household are the same, the same amount can be renewed automatically, and checked afterwards.

Deadlines for 2026/2027

  • Main deadline: 2 October 2026.
  • Enrolled before 2 October: you always have 20 working days from the day you enrolled. For example, if you enrolled on 28 September 2026, your last day is 27 October 2026.
  • Enrolled after 2 October: you have 20 working days from enrolment.
  • Late applications: accepted from 3 October 2026 to 31 May 2027, but the grant is paid only from the month after you apply.
  • Housing help if your grant is refused for income: apply by 31 October 2026.

After you apply

Your school's social services office studies your application. You should get a draft decision within 30 working days. If you disagree with it, you can reply with more information or documents. If you do not object, the final decision comes within 5 working days.

Some new students get a quick, temporary grant while their file is checked. This applies if you entered through a national or school admission process and your family was on the first, second, or third band of child benefit on 31 May. The temporary amounts are about €2,954, €1,343, or 125 percent of the maximum fee.

Grants are paid in 10 monthly instalments, by bank transfer, into the account you gave on the form.

If you are refused

  1. Read the reason in your BeOn area.
  2. Make a complaint (reclamação) within 15 working days. The answer is due within 15 working days.
  3. At a public university or polytechnic, you can also appeal to the rector or president. At a private school, you appeal to the IES.
  4. You can also take the decision to court.

If your only problem is a tax or social security debt, sort it out and send proof. If you do this during the draft decision stage, you get the grant in full. If you do it later, you get the grant from the month you settle the debt.

If money runs out during the year

Your SAS office can give emergency help to students whose money situation becomes very serious during the year. The limit is €1,611.39 a year and there is no deadline to ask. The decision is due within 10 working days.

If your household changes, or its income changes a lot, you can ask for a new assessment. You must also tell the school about changes that would lower your grant. Any money paid by mistake must be paid back. False information can cost you your enrolment for one to two years.

For how the IAS works across other benefits, read "What Is the IAS, Portugal's Social Support Index?".

Sources

This guide is written from official Portuguese and EU sources and, for prices and contact details, the providers' own websites.

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

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