How Long Can You Stay Outside Portugal Without Risking Your Residence Permit?

Getting your residence permit is one thing. Keeping it means not spending too long outside the country. Many people on a D7 or D8 travel a lot, so it helps to know exactly where the limits sit and what you can do about them.

What the law says

The Portuguese foreigners law (Lei 23/2007, article 85) says a residence permit may be cancelled when the holder is absent from the country without relevant reasons for:

• Temporary residence permit: six consecutive months, or eight months in total (adding up shorter absences) over the whole validity of the permit.
• Permanent residence permit: 24 consecutive months, or 30 months in total within any period of three years.

Note the wording: the permit may be cancelled. It is not automatic, but it is a real risk, and the cancellation decision means the card is taken back.

Short trips add up

The eight-month limit counts every absence over the validity of your permit. A winter abroad, a long summer and a few shorter trips can reach it without any single absence looking long, so it is worth keeping a simple record of your dates.

You can justify a longer absence

The law allows absences beyond these limits to be justified. The request should be made to AIMA before you leave, or in exceptional cases afterwards. The permit is also not cancelled if you can show that during your absence you carried out professional or business activity, or cultural or social activity. Typical examples are work obligations, illness, studies or a family emergency, and in each case you need proof: a medical certificate, an employer letter, a school letter.

Practical steps

• Keep a log of the dates you leave and come back, plus boarding passes or passport stamps.
• If you expect a long absence, write to AIMA before you leave and keep your email and any reply.
• Keep the evidence of any justified reason with your permit documents, in case you are asked at renewal.

Do not mix this up with other rules

• Tax residency: the 183 day rule decides where you are taxed. It is a different test from the immigration limits above.
• Schengen 90/180 rule: this limits short stays of visitors. Time you spend legally on a residence permit does not count towards it.

If the permit is cancelled

The person concerned is notified with the reasons, and the decision can be challenged before the administrative courts. If you are in that situation, or you are planning a long period abroad and want to be sure, we can look at your case before you travel.

General information based on the current foreigners law. Practice can change, so check your own situation.