Portugal Forum

AnalogKid84
Joined 2016
Posts: 19

5 years ago

Working on Type 1 Visa? ... Weird First SEF Meeting

5 years ago

I came to Portugal in January 2018 on a Type 1 Visa, sometimes known as a "passive income visa." This morning I went to the Santarém SEF office for my first "título" application, under Article 77.

My interviewer asked me what type of activity I was doing in Portugal. I said, "Residência." She replied along the lines of, "No, you must have some other type of activity. Student, work, etcetera." So I answered work, since I have been doing some work since coming here, and my understanding is that I am not precluded from doing so with my type of visa. (For what it's worth, Belion Partners' web site agrees with me.)

She then proceeded to make a stink because my visa was not issued for work purposes, and she insinuated that I would have trouble being approved for a título. She asked for some papers related to my work registration. I didn't have them on me because I shouldn't have needed to -- a fact I tried to politely point out to her.

She continued to make some fuss; then she talked to a colleague. I couldn't hear their conversation, but she ended up taking my photo and fingerprints, accepting an €83 application fee payment, and telling me that SEF would look at my application package, do some further research and send me something in the mail in 60-90 days probably telling me to return to Santarém to complete the process and pay the remainder of the fee (I guess the total must be more than €83).

So I'm completely flabbergasted. First, it seems like she was leading me to misstep and say something I shouldn't say. Second, was I wrong? I'm quite sure having a Type 1 visa doesn't mean I can't work -- and again, at least one law firm seems to agree. Third, what should I have said? Should I have lied to her and said I wasn't doing any work? That would seem counterproductive, since any coordination between SEF and Finanças would reveal me -- to my own detriment, apparently -- to be someone who reports income and will pay taxes. What would have been the right way to respond to this scenario? I'm worried that if it doesn't screw up this título issuance, it may still come up in the future when I try to renew.

Thanks for any input.

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Contribute
Help others in Portugal by answering questions about the challenges and adventures of living in Portugal.