In Portugal you can apply for permanent residency after five years of holding a temporary resident card, which can be the work permit (usually granted for one year the first time and then for two years after each renewal). The decision can be given in the day of the appointment, where you submit the application and have a short interview with a SEF officer. This application shall include all the mandatory documents in a full complete file. The permanent resident permit has no limit of validity. However, the resident permit must be renewed every five years or whenever there is a change in the identification elements registered therein. In the application the person shall cumulatively prove the following: having held a temporary resident permit for at least five years and a copy of the previous resident permits and certificate of time requested at SEF; during the last five years of residency in Portuguese territory, they have not been sentenced to or punishable by more than one year in prison and Portuguese criminal record (being also recommendable the criminal record from the origin country); having a means of subsistence, proof of income; having accommodation, a proof of address; demonstrating knowledge of basic Portuguese, a level 2 of Portuguese language, certified by a competent entity; non-debt declarations from the Portuguese tax authority and social security; a passport; proof of registry in the local health center. Please note that without prejudice to the application of special provisions (which depends case by case), the permanent resident permit may be canceled when the person concerned, without reasonable grounds, is absent from Portugal for 24 consecutive months or within a period of three years (30 interpolated months). The absence beyond the limits must be justified upon application filed at SEF prior to the departure of the resident from the national territory or, in exceptional cases, after his departure. Also, the resident permit shall not be canceled for citizens who are absent for periods superior to those above mentioned when they prove that during their absence from Portugal, they have developed professional or business activities or cultural or social activities.
