Required Documentation

The form is available in the AIMA’s website at Modelo 1 and in the Impressos e Minutas section.

A valid passport.

A valid residence visa corresponding to the purpose of stay in Portugal.

Such evidence may be one of the following: 

• Entry stamp in Portugal in the passport;
• Entry stamp in another Schengen Area State, together with the ticket evidencing travel to Portugal within the period of validity of the visa;
• Declaration of Entry*, issued by PSP or GNR (the Portuguese civil police force and the military security force), if entry into Portugal took place through an internal border without a passport stamp.

*Note: Applicants who, after entering Portugal through an internal border without a passport stamp, stay in hotel accommodation are not required to present a Declaration of Entry. Proof of the hotel reservation will suffice.

A criminal record certificate issued by the country of nationality or by the country in which the applicant legally resided for more than one year before arriving in Portugal must be presented, duly legalised.

Documentation proving the applicant's residential address in Portugal must be presented.

For this purpose, a declaration on honour must be submitted, stating the residential address and the legal basis on which the applicant occupies the property (for example, owner, tenant, subtenant, usufructuary or borrower under a loan for use agreement). The declaration’s template is available in the AIMA’s website at Minuta Declaração de Alojamento and in the Impressos e Minutas section.

The declaration must be accompanied by documentation corresponding to the applicant's situation:

• For owners or usufructuaries:
   
  • Land Registry certificate or the access code for the permanent certificate; or
  • Loan for use agreement, together with the Land Registry certificate or the respective access code.
• For tenants:
   
  • Lease agreement and the most recent rent payment receipt.
• For students living at university residences:
   
  • Declaration issued by the higher education institution confirming that the student lives in that residency.

Proof of enrolment issued by the University.

A document proving payment of the tuition fees required by the University.

Proof of healthcare coverage during the stay in Portugal. For this purpose, one of the following documents may be submitted:

• Registration with the portuguese National Health Service (Sistema Nacional de Saúde - SNS); or
• Valid health insurance.

Means of subsistence correspond to the financial resources that make it possible to meet essential living expenses during the stay in Portugal, namely food, accommodation, healthcare and hygiene.

In the case of students, the most common forms of evidence are:

• Scholarships;
• Bank account with a financial institution operating in Portugal. Wherever possible, statements showing regular transactions over the previous six months should be submitted.

The Católica student card can be associated to a bank account with Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) if the student wants to. To open the account, after arrival in Portugal, the following documents must be presented:

• Valid national identity document or passport;
• Portuguese Tax Identification Number (NIF);
• Proof of accommodation.

Students who do not have bank statements or who are unable to demonstrate their own means of subsistence may submit a Term of Responsibility, available in AIMA’s website at Modelo 4 – Termo de Responsabilidade and in the Impressos e Minutas section. This document must be signed by a Portuguese national or by a foreign national lawfully resident in Portugal, with the signature formally certified, and must be accompanied by proof of that person's means of subsistence. The purpose is to demonstrate that the responsible person has sufficient resources to meet the student's subsistence and accommodation expenses during their stay in Portugal.

For further information on admissible forms of evidence, please consult the information made available in AIMA’s website.

Researchers must present one of the following documents:

• Employment contract;
• Services agreement;
• Scientific research grant;
• Hosting Agreement with a higher education institution or scientific research centre.

Where the legal relationship takes the form of an employment contract or services agreement, the following documents must also be presented:

• Proof of registration with the Tax Authority (NIF); and
• Proof of registration with the social security system (NISS).

Means of subsistence correspond to the financial resources that make it possible to meet essential living expenses during the stay in Portugal, namely food, accommodation, healthcare and hygiene.

In the case of researchers, the following documents may be submitted as evidence:

• A bank account with a financial institution operating in Portugal. Wherever possible, statements showing regular transactions over the previous six months should be submitted.
• Employment contract and payslips for the previous three months;
• Services agreement, declaration of commencement of activity and receipts relating to the previous six months.

For further information on admissible forms of evidence, please consult the information made available in AIMA’s website.

The following documents must be presented:

• Employment contract OR services agreement compatible with teaching activity;
• Invitation letter issued by an educational or vocational training institution;
• Proof of registration with the tax authorities (NIF);
• Proof of registration with the Social Security system (NISS).