Social Security's Portal Now Gives Relatives and Accountants Access to Only the Parts of Your Account You Choose

If an accountant or a relative handles your Social Security paperwork, you no longer have to choose between handing over your password and giving them nothing. The Segurança Social (Portugal's social security system) announced on its portal on 21 October that private users can now set customised permissions for each sub-account (subconta) on the Portal da Segurança Social, the online service many still know as Segurança Social Direta.

Sub-accounts already existed, but a sub-account could see and do everything the main account could. Under the change, each authorised person reaches only the areas the account holder chooses. The announcement names a family member, an accountant or another trusted person as typical users.

What changes

The announcement lists four points:

• Access to measure: each authorised person sees only the areas you have set, and no other information.
• Your password stays yours: the person helping you logs in with their own credentials.
• A record of activity: you can see who accessed the account and what they did.
• Immediate control: you can change or cancel permissions at any time, with immediate effect.

The settings are under Perfil > Gestão de Acessos > Gerir subcontas de utilizadores (Profile, Access management, Manage user sub-accounts) once you are logged in.

How a sub-account works

The portal's help pages set out the rules. Anyone with a main account can create sub-accounts, and a private user can have no more than three. Companies have no fixed limit.

According to the step-by-step tutorial, you enter the person's name and email address and, optionally, a mobile number. You also set a start date and, if you want, an end date. Without an end date the sub-account stays active indefinitely. You then pick the type: a standard sub-account with the same functions as yours, or a specialised one limited to particular functions.

The person receives an activation code by email, and by text message if you added a mobile number. The code lasts one hour; after that, you have to send a new one. They then activate the sub-account and choose their own password. Sub-accounts can also turn on two-factor authentication.

What this means for you

• Stop sharing your password. If an accountant (contabilista) files your quarterly self-employed declaration, or a relative checks your contribution record, give them a sub-account instead. Every action is then traceable to them, not to you.
• Grant only what is needed. Choose the specific areas the person needs, and set an end date if the help is temporary.
• Review and revoke. The same menu lists your sub-accounts and their status. From there you can change the details or deactivate a sub-account through "Consultar detalhes" and "Desativar subconta".
• If something looks wrong, the help pages say to deactivate the sub-account at once and contact Social Security if needed.

A sub-account is not the same as formal representation. To have someone represent you before Social Security, you register a request and that person must accept it. Representation runs for a set period and covers only the purposes you defined, and either side can end it.