My child has registered for a NIF, and we have been in Portugal for over 4 years. Previously, online renewals on the SEF for dependents who only qualified for 7 days/year used the principal applicant’s NIF.
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How did you recreate your account? I feel like every step in the residency process is so difficult and now my account is lost. I have not been able to recreate it.
Thanks for that. I don’t think I can recreate the account because the account was never blocked - we can log in. The issue is we can’t create requests after logging in. I’ve tried all the main investor (my) card numbers but still isn’t working.
My lawyer actually went to AIMA today and even they were getting errors and basically just threw up their hands … the whole thing is a joke.
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I had previously lost my account; when I tried to log in, it showed a message that the account didn’t exist. After considering several options and receiving suggestions in the group, I chose “Criar Conta” to recreate the account. However, I’ve only managed to create one account for one dependent so far.
There’s no fixed procedure for everything. Gather all the cases from the group and try applying each method to your own situation. Ultimately, luck plays a crucial role.
Your situation is similar to mine before I lost my account. After recreating my account, I was able to submit a renewal request by entering the card number and NIF number of the principal applicant, and my renewal title on the system changed slightly. One thing to note is that you must register the NIF and NISS numbers with the system. In my case, the registration process for the principal applicant’s NIF and NISS took a very long time before I received a response via email.
Hi Maria,
Your message gave me confidence to try again with criar conta, and it worked this time! Thank you for this advice.
My current theory is that if you request changes to your account (such as address, NIF, SNS, NISS) then AIMA will update and this will delete your account and you must create a new one for the system to populate the new data. I have no other explanation.
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Yes, looks like that is the case.
Hi Boris,
How long after you got the payment request email were you able to pay? It has been more than 24 hours and I still don’t see an option to pay online. Did your high fee glitch get fixed?
I have no NISS and the renewal page shows a blank there. Under AT/SS Situation it shows Isento (exempt). But I submitted a certification from the AT website of no debt, just to be safe.
I got my apostilled background check this morning and hit the submit button. Wish me luck!
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Hi Neda
You submitted your request and received an email with the payment amount, right? I also submitted a renewal request and received an email within 10 minutes, and my system status changed to “pending payment”. Three hours later, I successfully paid, and now, almost 24 hours after payment, my system status is still “pending payment”. The system also noted that it might take a few more days before the document upload status changes.
Hi Maria,
How did you pay? I click on the Pagamento and I don’t see an option to pay!
I’m in Portugal. I went to the nearest ATM and selected the public payment option. Then I entered the code and the amount as instructed.
You can only pay using your own bank’s system; the payment button on the AIMA system is not directly linked to payment.
Oh, no, good thing I asked! I was waiting for the payment option to become available. Anyone knows how I can pay from outside of Portugal through Wise?
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Hello Neda,
You cannot pay through wise.
You can only pay through the Portuguese banking network.
Someone else can pay on your behalf.
And no, the glitch didn’t get fixed for me. I paid the higher fee, uploaded the documents and it took only a week after that for my sons’ renewal applications to be approved. I was notified the cards would be arriving by post. Any day now.
After I get the cards, I will request a refund from AIMA through the justice ombudsman.
Regards,
Boris
Hello Maria,
Is this for your dependent or the main applicant?
As you know – from my posts above – I have paid the higher fee for my dependents and will be requesting a refund…
Regards,
Boris
Hi Boris
Does this mean you where charged renewal fee for non- fund GVs (c.€3k)?
And if so, how will you go about getting a refund?
(I was also charged the higher fee thru the new online process)
Thanks
Hello.
Exactly. In my many – lengthy, for which I apologise – posts above, I describe exactly what happened to me and how I am planning to request the refund.
Regards,
Boris
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Hi Boris,
That’s the fee for the dependent who is the principal applicant’s wife. As for dependents under 18, they cannot be recreated since their AIMA account was lost.
After recreating my AIMA account, my title also changed slightly.
Before:
After:
Title of the principal applicant:
The principal applicant directly renewed their AIMA in October 2025 but has not yet received their card. Initially, when AIMA opened online, only accounts could be created for dependents, not for the principal applicant. It was only a month later that I was able to create an account for the principal applicant after registering for NIF and NISS on the AIMA system. However, the principal applicant’s account only has a button to select renewal, and there is no ongoing renewal process.
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Hi everyone,
Quick question: can dependents create accounts in the Portal de Renovações before the main investor’s application reaches “Concluído”, or do we have to wait until it’s completed?
Thanks in advance 
In my opinion, there’s no set rule. I managed to create an AIMA account online for one of the two dependents while the principal applicant has not received their card when renewing in person.Currently, my child under 18, who hasn’t been able to create an account yet. Just keep trying and trying, everything depends on luck.
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