How long can you be outside Portugal without losing your residence permit?

Checked on 2026-10-25

Portugal's immigration law says a temporary residence permit can be cancelled if you are away without good reason for six consecutive months, or eight months in total during its validity. For a permanent permit the limits are 24 consecutive months, or 30 months within three years. Longer absences can be justified to AIMA.

Key facts

What	The law says	Source
Temporary permit	Can be cancelled after 6 consecutive months, or 8 non-consecutive months, away during the permit’s total validity, without acceptable reasons	Lei 23/2007, art. 85.2(a)
Permanent permit	Can be cancelled after 24 consecutive months away, or 30 non-consecutive months within 3 years	Lei 23/2007, art. 85.2(b)
Longer absence	Must be justified by a request to AIMA before you leave, or in exceptional cases after you leave	Lei 23/2007, art. 85.3
Work or activity abroad	Not cancelled if you prove professional, business, cultural or social activity during the absence	Lei 23/2007, art. 85.4
If cancelled	You are notified with the reasons and the card is taken; you can challenge it in the administrative courts	Lei 23/2007, art. 85.5 and 85.7

The limits

The law says a residence permit “may also be cancelled” when the holder is away from Portugal without acceptable reasons for longer than these limits:

Temporary residence permit: six months in a row, or eight months in total (not in a row) over the permit’s whole validity period.
Permanent residence permit: 24 months in a row, or 30 months in total (not in a row) within a three-year period.

These limits apply “without prejudice to special provisions”, so special provisions in the law can apply instead.

How to protect your permit

If you need to be away longer, the law says you must justify the absence with a request to AIMA before you leave Portugal. In exceptional cases you can do this after you have left.

The permit is not cancelled when you prove that during your time away you carried out a professional, business, cultural or social activity.

If it is cancelled

The cancellation must be notified to you with the reasons, and your residence card is taken. The minister responsible for migration decides, and can delegate this to AIMA’s board. You can challenge the decision in the administrative courts, but the challenge does not suspend the cancellation while the case runs (non-suspensive effect).

Other reasons for cancellation: a removal or expulsion order, a permit obtained with false documents or statements, serious criminal acts, public order or security reasons, or EU restrictive measures (Lei 23/2007, art. 85.1).

Sources

Lei n.º 23/2007, de 4 de julho (immigration law), art. 85 (consolidated text as amended up to Lei n.º 62/2026, PGDL Lisboa) checked 2026-10-25

Change history

2026-10-25: Page created

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