Guides
Using a Loja do Cidadão in Portugal
How to visit a Loja do Cidadão: booking online, taking a queue ticket on your phone or at the kiosk, what to bring, and what you can do online instead.
Bureaucracy
Immigration
AIMA Extends Renewal Certificates Again as April 15 Deadline Looms for Hundreds of Thousands of Immigrants
Portugal's immigration agency AIMA has quietly announced another extension to the validity of renewal certificates for residence permits, just days before the current documents were set to expire on April 15. The move, first reported by Diário de...
Disasters
The Arithmetic of Abandonment: Why 90% of Storm Kristin Victims Still Wait for Reconstruction Aid
Four months have passed since Storm Kristin tore through northern Portugal in late November 2025, killing 23 people and causing an estimated €850 million in damage. The government announced emergency reconstruction funding within days. Yet as of...
Guides
Understanding Portuguese Bureaucracy and the Documents You Need
The numbers and documents you need after moving to Portugal, in the order to get them, which office issues each one, and what each costs.
Living in Portugal
Getting a NIF in Portugal: The Complete Guide for Expats in 2026
If you're moving to Portugal, buying property, opening a bank account, signing a rental contract, or starting a job, you will need a NIF — Portugal's Número de Identificação Fiscal , or tax identification number. It's one of the first things any...