biometrics-final approval is still almost a 2 year gap that soon will shrink to 1y
aima now running oct23 biometrics approvals
Are you sure? I am Jan 2023 bios, still hear nothing from AIMA…
Me too! Jan 2023!
Yes i have a paper from them saying they are processing oct23 now. So if you are earlier bio ask you lawyers to drop email to geral for an update as 90 days by law have passed
My lawyer started dropped email for me since April and I also sent several emails to ask about our situation. And it’s obvious that nothing happens, still waiting.
have they replied though?
Of course no reply…
I believe @piggy and @va.trade23 both did biometrics in Porto. I am curious because I think @piggy was among the first to pay the fee (formerly paid by DUC after final approval) at the biometrics appointment. If I have my timeline right, @va.trade23 did biometrics before this new payment system took effect and may still be waiting on final approval/DUC. Just a theory, would appreciate it if they could confirm.
It would be interesting to see if paying at biometrics increased the issuance speed of the first residence card. Not enough data points yet to confirm the theory, but it is a working hypothesis.
With this process everything is by chance…
Lady luck…
Even now im sure we all prayin they stick to the 5 year process. Even if the req is resident card in hand or not, vs 10 years…
Not sure if i am still alive by then.
Yes, it could be that taking the payment may have sped up the process, but then again I would have hoped that my final approval could have come at the same time as @piggy, and as I am yet to pay, the card issuance may have been further delayed.
Meanwhile our legal team from CRS Advogados have stopped responding to WhatsApp or phone calls for the last many months. I think they also don’t know what to say or do - if AIMA is seemingly beyond the jurisdiction of the courts, and the new government isn’t sympathetic to the situation, there’s little that can be done. The legal team shared correspondence from the court in May where the court has asked for progress after the biometrics from AIMA, and AIMA replied that they are going by chronological order of dealing with the backlog. Which is crazy, because they gave us a biometrics appointment within weeks of winning the court case (which in itself was rare!) but have now gone back to their default position of ‘processing in chronological order’. I think even the judge gave up on AIMA!
We did biometrics in Porto March 13 and paid on site. Unfortunately the stars were not aligned in our favor unlike @piggy. No cards yet!
@apsinghmd If you don’t mind, three quick questions:
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I see that you has both a primary and dependent biometrics appointment, both in March. Were either of these (or both) the result of a lawsuit?
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Did you resubmit all of you documents electronically to AIMA in 2025 in response to the change in procedure or were you still functioning off the documents from your initial application?
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Have you checked your status in AIMA’s portal?
Sorry for the questions, as I stated previously, I am gathering data points to prove or disprove a theory I have about how applications are being processed.
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Both primary and dependent appointments were received following a lawsuit.
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The fresh documents were submitted/uploaded by our attorney the evening before our appointment and the originals were given to the AIMA official the next morning at our appointment.
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The status for both myself and my wife on AIMA website is Transferido SIISEF. It changed to that the day after our appointment.
Please post your thoughts/theory!! Thanks.
@apsinghmd Thanks for the information. I’m not certain that I see a clear pattern yet, but the data is still useful.
I find it interesting that you are listed as “Transferido SIISEF.” This has previously been after final approval under the old system.
That is why it is strange that cards have not been issued because the status is consistent with final approval!!
I think another stage should be added after Stage 4: Awaiting Cards
For me it is now 3 months after paying DUC and still no news, even no news for my family DUC, and even worse, no changes in their status in AIMA portal.
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Absolutely infuriating..especially because I was given the timeline of 4-6 weeks by my lawyers, and I feel there’s absolutely no advocacy yet again. Just another black hole that turns your life upside down with planning.
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my Bio done in May, no news either
We completed AIMA appointment (accelerated by lawsuit), biometrics, and payment at AIMA Lisbon in January. Over seven months later, there’s no news.
Today, I went to AIMA in Espinho to check the status and was told our case is still “under analysis.” In other words, despite new process with biometrics and payment at the same time, and the portal status changing to “Transferido SIISEF”, we’re still waiting for the final approval result.
This is a crazy and failed system, and too many people are paying the price.
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A representative from one of the deputies, Cristina Rodrigues, emailed me to confirm the recipient of my analysis and assured that the contents were sent to the expert working group to be looked into.
“Encarrega-me a Senhora Deputada Cristina Rodrigues de acusar a receção da sua mensagem eletrónica, datada de 24/08/2025, a qual mereceu a melhor atenção. Mais se informa que o tema por V. Exa. exposto encontra-se em análise pelo grupo de trabalho competente, garantindo-se que não haverá qualquer parte prejudicada.”
I made 2 basic points - ARI is not about immigration but investment terms the retail investors signed up for, and the expected significant wait period between the applicants under SEF and new AIMA starting with their new platform soon.
I joined the recorded webinar sponsored by Nomadgate (Thanks to Thomas K. Running and the team), presented by PAIIR / Prime Legal. It gave me a hope.
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