Interesting…and strange…I’ve been over this with my lawyers about 10 times already and they will provide a letter signed from their side confirming my status in case I get stopped at the border for documents check.
Oh well, I’ve got no choice, so will be checking this out in about a month.
Anyhow, got some confidence in what they’re saying, since they’ll be the ones in the court in case something goes wrong 
What they might have meant is that it grants you no right to stay infinitely but you can stay for the purpose of going to the biometrics.
To be honest I’ve got no freakin’ idea how my situations should be approached: I’m an Israeli (visa waiver with EU for 90 days) and Russian (got a Schengen visa and a student visa in Spain) citizen, my wife is Belarusian (student visa in Spain), we’re living in Spain with a student visa
I assume that since we’re already in the EU and there’s no ground border between Portugal and Spain, it’s not the question of entering into Portugal, but rather of legally staying in the country while waiting for the biometrics.
No, the ground border between spain and portugal is currently closed.
well, you could say that you are entering for the biometrics appointment… just that one hasn’t been assigned yet… but you’ll be there just in case the calendar clears!
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Without having an official document that indicates the reason to travel and the permission to enter Portugal due to that reason, I think the airline will not allow the boarding…
Very stressful…
Just got my residence permit earlier this week. Probably the SEF isn’t that bad.
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Thanks for sharing your news. Looking back at your earlier post, sounds like you had your biometric interview in December… is that correct?
Yes, I had my interview in December and got my card last week.
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Congrats. Just tells me that we need to do all things sooner rather than later.
Timings update: got a biometrics appointment for end of August.
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@tsiksssooo Congrats – May I ask how you / your lawyer got it (and which SEF office)? I just spoke with my lawyer and there currently still no slots available to book…
Thanks @tedbean! Office in Lisbon. Not sure how they did it though, but I don’t think there’s any secret method…probably they were just quicker. I think it’s going to be easier from now with most of businesses and services re-openning in Portugal.
Yeah probably you have a much quicker lawyer : > I sure hope so, it’s the ultimate test of patience.
How many slots did they get for you application (i.e., number of applicants)?
Is it your first appointment to get the Biometric ? Or you do the renewal ? I am so frustrated with the little finger print process… a little thing that can be done within a day or a week (max) in other country could easily take months or even years to get done in Portugal.
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Just the 2 of us
It is first, yes. I know it’s frustrating, but also discount it for the whole situation with covid, lockdowns, closures etc. We’re living in an extraordinary time, where things that are supposed to work like a clock just don’t. I think it’s a matter of adjusting your expectations not to get too dissappointed, at least it works for me
Hi rj2002cc
May I ask how your ARI portal page looked like when you received your preliminary approval? Does it say “Aguarda Envio” with a Qr code next to it, and a Save button?
Today, my ARI portal changed from “Awaiting analysis” to “Aguarda Envio” or
Awaiting Shipping" ( or it can also mean “Awaiting Submission” in English). No idea what this “shipping” means. It seems it reverted to the initial stage or submission stage. Does anyone know?
Hi mmtravelguy
May I ask how your ARI portal page looked like when you received your preliminary approval? Does it say “Aguarda Envio” with a Qr code next to it, and a Save button?
Today, my ARI portal changed from “Awaiting analysis” to “Aguarda Envio” or
Awaiting Shipping" ( or it can also mean “Awaiting Submission” in English). No idea what this “shipping” means. It seems it reverted to the initial stage or submission stage. Does anyone know?
It should read “application accepted” as I understand.