A Portuguese criminal record certificate costs 5 euros online and lasts 90 days
A criminal record certificate in Portugal costs 5 euros online, is valid for 90 days, and there is a dedicated form for people living abroad. Costs, channels and timing explained.
It costs 5 euros, you request it online on the criminal record portal, and the document is valid for 90 days from the date it is issued. There — that is the answer most people are hunting for, so it goes first.
The rest of this guide covers the details that usually wreck an application: when you actually need one, what to do if you have no Chave Móvel Digital, what changes if you live abroad, and why the Portuguese certificate almost never travels alone.
What is the criminal record certificate for?
It is the document stating what does (or does not) appear on your criminal record in Portugal. It shows up in nearly every serious administrative process: Portuguese citizenship applications, some residence procedures, public sector competitions, applications to regulated professions, licences and hiring in certain sectors.
Here is the bit that trips people up: the certificate is issued against a purpose that you declare when applying. It is not a generic document that works for everything. You state what it is for — citizenship, taking up a role, a specific competition — and the certificate is issued with that purpose printed on it. If you later need one for something else, the safe move is to request another. It costs 5 euros; it is not worth risking a refusal.
How much does it cost and how long does it take?
Online it is 5 euros. Requested by post with international delivery, it rises to 8.25 euros including postage. The electronic request is the standard and fastest route: you log in to the portal, authenticate, state the purpose, pay, and the certificate is issued digitally with a code that lets whoever receives it verify authenticity online.
Validity is 90 days from issue. That deadline is the classic trap: people pull the certificate at the start of a long process, the process drags, and by the time they finally hand in the file the document has expired. The practical rule is simple — the criminal record should be one of the last documents you request, not one of the first.
How do you request it online?
Through the Ministry of Justice criminal record portal or the public services portal. Authentication uses a Cartão de Cidadão (with PIN and card reader) or the Chave Móvel Digital, which is the more comfortable route because it only needs your phone.
And if you have neither? There is a specific online form for people resident abroad — Portuguese or foreign — who hold neither a Cartão de Cidadão with PIN and reader nor a Chave Móvel Digital. It exists precisely to solve the case of someone outside the country who cannot authenticate the usual way.
In person, there is also the consular network. Several Espaços do Cidadão inside consulates provide this service, including Berlin, Boston, Brussels, Geneva, London, Luanda, Luxembourg, Madrid, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Toronto and Zurich.
What about the criminal record from your home country?
This is the part that catches half of everyone out. The Portuguese certificate only covers what happened in Portugal. In a citizenship process, for instance, the authority will normally also ask for a criminal record from your country of origin and from countries where you have lived — and that foreign document has to be legalised to count here.
That is where the Hague apostille comes in, costing 10.20 euros and turning a foreign-issued document into one Portugal recognises. Without that legalisation (or consular legalisation, for countries outside the Convention), the foreign certificate is just an attractive sheet of paper. Start it early, because issuing times vary wildly between countries and are entirely outside your control.
Quick questions
How much does a Portuguese criminal record certificate cost?
5 euros for the online request. By post with international delivery it is 8.25 euros, postage included.
How long is a Portuguese criminal record valid?
90 days from the date of issue. Request it close to when you will hand it in, not at the start of the process.
Can I request it if I live outside Portugal?
Yes. There is a dedicated online form for residents abroad without a Cartão de Cidadão with PIN and reader or a Chave Móvel Digital, and several consulates provide the service in person.
Do I need a criminal record for Portuguese citizenship?
Yes, and the Portuguese one usually is not enough on its own: the one from your country of origin is typically required too, properly legalised. Check the exact document list before you start, because it shifted with the revised citizenship requirements, including the language test and the civics test.
Where do you apply?
On the Ministry of Justice criminal record portal or the state public services portal, authenticating with a Cartão de Cidadão or Chave Móvel Digital.
Image: Threeohsix / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
