Data point: application online via lawyer done in late Aug 2025, received process number in March 2026.
You get a mail with a number like IRN-12345/2025 within 1-2 weeks of lawyer’s submission, saying your application has been “Submetido”. Then 6-7 months later it cycles quickly through the states “Verificado” and “Finalizado”, communicated by email to you and your lawyer.
This “Finalizado” signifies completion of the online phase and transition to an actual process number in a specific office. Access code is communicated to your lawyer. You can visit the justica link and use the access code to see your application status: process number (new one, not the same IRN-blah as earlier), the office it is assigned to, and the current stage of the application, starting off at “Submetido” (to be followed by “Em análise”, “Aguarda reposta”, “Para decisão”, “Concluído”)