Only 2 days to go! I think everyone is hoping for them to be significantly faster at processing than SEF. Only time will tell 
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I am sure the new agency, composed almost entirely of SEF personnel, located entirely within Portugal, will consider urgent efficiency its top priority!
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Hello folks, I was thinking if we, group of Golden visa applicants, can send a letter to the responsible of AIMA to shied some light on the huge delay in our applications process. I am aware that we are the least of their priorities but I believe that if we can manage to follow up directly with the AIMA representative, we might have better chances in getting accurate information. The challenge is that we don’t have alone representative as we are working with multiple law firms but if we can try to prepare a letter and then get it signed by all of us, maybe this can be work. What do you think?
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I’d sign, make it happen
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AIMA terms of reference published : https://diariodarepublica.pt/dr/detalhe/portaria/324-a-2023-223473624. (With >30 local offices…)
I would sign as well.
Very good idea.
Perhaps one of the lawyers could do that?
They aim to have approval 600K pending applications by next March: Agência que substitui SEF quer legalizar 600 mil imigrantes até finais de Março | Migrações | PÚBLICO
Wish they could deliver.
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Well at least they understand that there is a problem that needs to be urgently addressed.
The intention is good.
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AIMA has a working website: Agência para a Integração Migrações e Asilo - AIMA , some links yet to be populated.
The official communication from the Government on AIMA: Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo: O primeiro dia de um novo paradigma. Increased workforce with initially 34 offices (integrated with Lojas da Cidadão, and dedicated offices), and a mega-operation initiated to deal with the huge portfolio of pending applications by March 2024.
A Director (LuĂs Goes Pinheiro) appointed. AIMA: já está escolhido o novo lĂder da agĂŞncia que vai substituir o SEF - Expresso
Lots of other newspaper articles on the subject based on the first 2 links.
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SEF processed like 300k applications in the last year. The issue is - of those 300k, less than 1% were Golden visa applications. I won’t be surprised if AIMA does hit their goal and we are still waiting at the end of all this.
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Reading about the planned “Mega operation to recover 347 thousand outstanding issues” does instill some hope.
But only last week they still didn’t know where their headquarters would be, and there was another article with the SEF employee union president claiming staff didn’t know where to show up for work in November.
Even in a properly functioning organisation, re-orgs and mergers always create disruption that takes months to settle. The SEF → AIMA re-org… I’ll keep my expectations low.
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Most renewals will be handled by IRN, scheduling via SIGA system. Looks like there would be via personal visits at the beginning, but may be new online system will take more tasks in the future.
Renewals of ARI however seems to be kept at AIMA based on this news. So far with old system of telephone scheduling, I suppose. But hopefully slim chance of automatic renewals for 4 Q. Very slim.
Exactly my thought. It sounds like they are talking about everyone except ARI applicants. They can do hundreds of thousands of non-ARI applications per year already, but ARI approvals are 100-150 per month.
I am sure the 600k applications from Ukraine, Brazil, and various parts of Africa, will be very pleased to have their application processed!
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Oh, yes. Taking into account the simplified residence for countries with Portuguese language (so simple that EU claims that Portugal broke unified security requirements for EU), Brazilians will continue to come at the speed of 150 k per year, so new AIMA will always have reason to postpone ARI processing.
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Who says they will prioritise GV over normal residency though 
If you can just wait (another) year and a half, AIMA promises to get back to you 
Indeed always an excuse not to work on the GV backlog.
Article below says (bolding is mine):
“The promise of the president of AIMA, LuĂs Goes Pinheiro, is to promote a large effort to reduce pending issues in the first quarter of next year, with priority given to family reunification.”
If you read the rest of the article, “family reunification” is in regards to (mostly) Brazilian Community of Portuguese Language citizens.