NISS and Social Security

The NISS (Número de Identificação da Segurança Social) ties you to the Portuguese Social Security system: it is how your contributions are recorded and how you can claim benefits such as sickness, unemployment or parental benefit. gov.pt says that anyone who wants to work in Portugal, employed or self-employed, must have one.

Who requests it, and how

According to gov.pt, the NISS can be requested by:

• the foreign citizen, on their own behalf;
• a legal representative, on their behalf;
• an employer, on behalf of the worker it is going to hire.

Anyone with a Citizen Card (Cartão de Cidadão) need not do anything: the number is assigned automatically.

The request is online and free. In the Social Security portal, the Social Security practical guide describes the route Sou Cidadão › Atribuição de Número de Identificação de Segurança Social (NISS) › Formulário para pedido de NISS. A gov.pt news item from August 2025 adds that the request can also be made from the Ajuda or Trabalho menu, and that issuing now includes identity verification by biometrics.

When the employer makes the request

There is one condition: for the NISS to be assigned, the employer must first sign an employment contract with you and report the employment link on Segurança Social Direta. A request made this way is only for assigning the number. The company has to provide an original power of attorney or form PA-12 (Declaração de Autorização a Terceiros) and the representative’s identity document.

If you hold, say, a job-search visa, and AIMA requires a NISS before granting a residence permit that allows work (the Social Security guide gives the job-search visa, the student visa and the seasonal-work visa as examples), you may attach to the form a statement or request from AIMA explaining why the number is needed, instead of proofs you do not yet have.

Documents

gov.pt sums it up as three types of document, each in date and scanned.

1. Identification. For nationals of countries outside the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland, the practical guide lists a copy of the passport or the residence title. For citizens of those areas, the civil identity document from their country, the passport or the residence card.
2. Work situation. One of: an employment contract (translated into Portuguese), a copy of the start of self-employed activity with receipts or invoices, a company registry certificate (for members of statutory bodies), proof of a contract with a foreign company (digital nomads) or a document supporting Voluntary Social Insurance (Seguro Social Voluntário).
3. Residence permit. The residence title, a residence or work visa of the kinds the practical guide lists, or proof of an application for a residence permit (this includes the application for a residence visa and for a certificate granting a residence permit for CPLP citizens).

The Social Security guide and the gov.pt guide do not word this list identically, and both may change. Check what the form requires in your case. Note that the NIF and proof of address, which many people attach out of habit, do not appear in this list as documents for the request.

After the request

The official sources describe this stage in two ways, with different dates. A gov.pt news item of 13 August 2025 says it is now possible to request, track and obtain proof of the NISS online, with identity verification by biometrics, where before collection was only possible at the desk. The gov.pt guide, updated in September 2026, still describes a process with a letter and collection in person. Check first what the Social Security portal tells you when you submit the request. The September 2026 guide says:

• Social Security sends a registered letter to the address you gave on the form, saying the NISS can be collected at its service desks.
• You collect it with the notification letter (ofício) confirming the NISS and a valid identity document (the June 2025 practical guide requires the letter for third parties and lawyers too). Someone else may collect with an original power of attorney or PA-12 and the relevant identity documents, or a lawyer with a professional card and an original power of attorney for litigation.
• You can book an appointment on the SIGA platform, in the SigaApp, or on 210 548 888 or 300 088 888, on working days from 9am to 6pm.
• You can check the status of the request on Segurança Social Direta.

A single request with the NIF and the health user number

Foreign citizens with a Portuguese address and no Citizen Card can request the NIF, the NISS and the SNS user number in one go if they have requested or obtained a residence permit, hold the nationality of a European Union country, or are in international protection. gov.pt says that for now this is done at 12 Espaços Cidadão. The practical guide adds that you must authenticate with Chave Móvel Digital or eIDAS, and that without a CMD activation can be done with your passport. See the guides to the NIF and the SNS user number, and the desks in Service points.

Segurança Social Direta

Segurança Social Direta (SSD) is Social Security’s online channel. According to the practical guide, to log in you need internet access, the NISS and an SSD registration. Registering works like this:

1. On the Social Security portal choose Segurança Social Direta and Efetuar Registo.
2. Accept the terms and choose the account type Cidadão.
3. Enter your NISS and date of birth.
4. Choose to receive the verification code by email or SMS, among the channels Social Security has on file, and set your password.

For people who arrived on a visa, the guide gives one detail: in the identity-document field, enter the number of the document you presented when you were registered, a residence visa or the passport, in capital letters. You can also log in with a Citizen Card or Chave Móvel Digital. On the SSD, gov.pt says the contribution record is under Trabalho › Remunerações e contribuições.

Contributions

The figures below are what the official pages give, as a general rule, today.

• Employees. The employer withholds 11% of gross salary. For for-profit entities the employer’s rate is, in general, 23.75%. The company pays between the 10th and the 25th of the following month and is the one that registers the worker.
• Self-employed. Your registration with the tax authority is passed on to Social Security by the Tax Authority. The first enrolment only takes effect on the first day of the 12th month after the activity starts, though you can ask to begin earlier in the quarterly declaration. The January 2026 practical guide gives a rate of 21.4% for most self-employed workers. Payment is due between the 10th and the 20th of the following month, unless exempt. See also Work and Starting a business.

If you have several kinds of income or doubts about your classification, contact Social Security on 210 545 400 or 300 502 502, on working days from 9am to 6pm.

The agreement with Brazil

The Brazil-Portugal Social Security Agreement was signed on 7 May 1991 and, according to the Brazilian decree promulgating it, entered into force on 25 March 1995. Among other rules:

• someone working in one of the countries is, as a rule, subject to that country’s legislation;
• insurance periods completed in both countries are added together for invalidity, old-age and death benefits;
• periods from the other country also count towards the qualifying period for sickness and maternity cash benefits.

The agreement was amended by an Additional Agreement, signed in 2006 and in force since 1 May 2013; its Administrative Arrangement is dated 28 December 2015. If you plan to rely on contributions made in Brazil, ask Social Security or the INSS about your case rather than assuming they count. For a pension request with periods in both countries, see the pensions and retirement guide.