The Citizen's Card is a physical identification document that contains a chip (smartcard), allowing the Portuguese citizen to be identified before any public or private entity, in person or digitally.
The Citizen's Card has replaced several other documents, aggregating in a single card the numbers of:
- civil identification
- fiscal identification
- National Health Service (SNS) user
- social security identification
- The Citizen's Card has also replaced the voter's card (and respective number), and to vote you just need to present your Citizen's Card.
The Citizen's Card is the official identification document with legal value in Portugal and in European Union countries, and as a travel document in the Schengen area. For more detailed information, please visit the website https://www.autenticacao.gov.pt/web/guest/o-cartao-de-cidadao.
You can only do the Citizen's Card if you are already a Portuguese Citizen.
You can only do and pick up the Citizen's Card if you have an APPOINTMENT!
You can request the Citizen Card to be sent to your address. To do so, you must bring an express post envelope + SIgnature sticker.
To make an appointment you have to do it through the online appointments: Online appointments
Citizen Card Request
- For a Renewal:
Bring your Citizen's Card or Identity Card with you.
You must present the Citizen's Card or Identity Card that you have.
- If it is the 1st time you are going to make the Card, if it has been lost or stolen:
Bring with you at least one valid Portuguese or Canadian identification document (ex: Canadian driver's license)
If it is the first time to make the Citizen's Card, it is mandatory to bring the Portuguese Birth Certificate/Birth Certificate, together with an identification document
The inexistence or loss of any of these documents does not prevent the request of the Citizen's Card.
Fee: see article 3 and 4 of the TABLE OF CONSULAR FEE LIST
Change of Address
Online
To perform the service, the user needs
- Active Mobile Digital Key and respective PINs
Or - Citizen's Card and respective PINs, the Citizen's Card application installed on his computer and a smart card reader.
Neste consulado
To change your address, you must go to the Consulate with your Citizen's Card together with the PINs for using the Card (authentication PIN and address PIN).
Address changes are charged and must be scheduled in advance:
Fee: See article 12 of the TABLE OF CONSULAR FEE LIST
PUK recovery
If you lose your PIN code card and are in possession of your Citizen Card (ordered after April 16, 2018) you can request PUK recovery.
- Change of address is a charged act and has to have prior appointment:
Online Appointments
Fee: See article 15 of the TABLE OF CONSULAR FEE LIST
Citizen's Card pick up
You must keep the PIN until the end of the card's validity.
The Citizen's Card can be cashed by yourself or by a third party.
It can only be withdrawn by a third party (someone other than the user), upon authorization signed by the user at the time of the request.
Minors under 12 years of age, if they cannot attend the Consulate, the Citizen's Card can be picked up by the father, mother or legal representative.
The user has 1 year after the issuance of the Citizen's Card to collect it. If he does not pick up the Citizen's Card at the Consulate after one year, the whole process has to be repeated and a new payment made.
The collection is done exclusively by appointment only (Citizen card collection).
Citizen's Card Renewal Online
The service for renewing the citizen's card online is available through the Portal eportugal.gov.pt -https://eportugal.gov.pt/servicos/renovar-o-cartao-de-cidadao
People with Portuguese citizenship who are 25 years old or older, who need to change their last names (if they are already registered in the birth certificate), address and contacts, can renew their Citizen's Card through the Internet, provided that one of the following conditions applies
- if the validity of the card is about to expire or if it has been expired for less than 30 days
- because of loss, destruction, theft or robbery (the card to be replaced must be valid for more than 60 days. The new card maintains the validity of the card to be replaced).
- If you have lost your Citizen's Card, or if it has been destroyed, stolen or robbed, you need to cancel the card before you can renew it online.
To perform the service, the user needs
Active Mobile Digital Key and respective PINs
Or
Citizen's Card and respective PINs, the Citizen's Card application installed on his computer and a smart card reader.
Legislação Útil
Law 7/2007 of February 5
Law 32/2017, 1st June
Ordinances 285, 286, 287, 290/2017 of September 28
For more detailed information, please visit the website www.cartaodecidadao.pt
