The SNS and your health user number

The National Health Service (SNS, Serviço Nacional de Saúde) is the public healthcare network. Your user number (número de utente) identifies you within it: it is how you are registered at public units such as the health centre and the hospital, and looked up by staff.

What the user number is, and what it is not

According to gov.pt, the user number is assigned to anyone who needs care at public SNS units. A foreign person receives it the first time they go to a public unit, for example a health centre or a hospital. The body responsible is the Central Administration of the Health System (Administração Central do Sistema de Saúde).

One point causes confusion: having the number does not guarantee that the SNS covers the costs. gov.pt explains that, for the SNS to cover costs, the user number record must also have linked to it:

• an ID document;
• a Portuguese NIF (see the NIF guide);
• a full address in Portugal;
• a valid residence permit.

The same gov.pt guide for migrants says that any foreign person who feels ill or needs any kind of healthcare has the right to be seen at a health centre or hospital. The health centre registration service, for its part, is for people of Portuguese nationality or foreigners with a residence permit. If you do not have a title yet, your case may have particularities: ask at the health unit and see the guide on AIMA and the residence permit.

How to register at a health centre

1. Identify the health centre for your area of residence. gov.pt recommends giving preference to the one in your area of residence. If in doubt, you can call SNS 24 on 808 24 24 24.
2. Bring documents and information for the registration. gov.pt says you must present “some documents and information”, without detailing them. For the SNS to cover costs, the number must have ID, NIF, a full address in Portugal and a valid residence permit linked to it (see above), so it is prudent to bring all of that.
3. Ask for the user number there and then, if you do not have one yet. gov.pt says that anyone without a user number can obtain it at the moment of registering at the health centre.
4. Ask about family medicine. gov.pt lists family medicine among the health centre services, alongside nursing and, according to the migrants’ guide, nutrition, psychology, oral health and social support. The SNS page on this service does not give a waiting time for a family doctor.
5. If you will be living temporarily in another area, you can register temporarily at another centre, for up to 12 months. Your registration at the original centre is suspended during that period.

If you cannot handle the registration on your own, you can ask for help at a service point or a CLAIM, as the AIMA guide explains.

SNS 24: the line and the app

The SNS 24 line (808 24 24 24) is available 24 hours a day, and gov.pt lists it as a health contact alongside 112. 112 is the number for a medical emergency.

There is a practical reason to call before going to hospital A&E: according to the SNS, public service hospitals must give priority to anyone referred by primary care or by the SNS 24 line, within the same priority level assigned at triage. The clinical priority set at triage remains the main criterion.

The SNS 24 app and portal bring together your personal health information: vaccination record, prescriptions, allergies and test requests. They also let you record measurements (such as blood pressure), request medication renewals and have teleconsultations.

User fees

User fees (taxas moderadoras) are charges paid for care in the SNS. gov.pt says that those exempt include, among others, pregnant women, children up to and including age 12, people with a disability level of 60 per cent or more, blood donors and transplant patients. There is also exemption for economic hardship: in 2026 the household’s average monthly income cannot exceed 805.70 euros.

You can request the exemption at any time in the Citizen Area of the SNS portal. Once approved, the information is linked to your user record, and eligibility is reassessed every year by 30 September, based on Tax Authority data.

Cover for Brazilians: the CDAM (PB4)

The Certificate of Entitlement to Medical Care (CDAM, formerly PB4) comes from the social security agreement between Brazil and Portugal. According to gov.br, it lets you use the public health system in the destination country as a local. The request is made online on the gov.br portal, and the gov.br page gives up to 90 calendar days for the follow-up stage but lists the overall time as “not yet estimated”; requests are reviewed in order of arrival. Its validity in Portugal depends on the reason for travel stated on the form (6 months, 1 year or 5 years).

The Portuguese Consulate in Rio de Janeiro notes that medical care under the agreement is provided through the SNS and that beneficiaries register at the health centre for their area of residence. For more information on the agreement, the consulate names the Department of International Social Security Agreements (DAISS) as the contact. For the paperwork Brazil requires before travelling, see Documents from Brazil.

European Health Insurance Card

gov.pt states that people with legal residence in Portugal who are registered with the SNS and Social Security can request the European Health Insurance Card (Cartão Europeu de Seguro de Doença, CESD), which gives access to care during temporary stays in the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The card is valid for 3 years and is individual: each family member, children included, needs their own. It is requested online on Segurança Social Direta, with your NISS (see the NISS guide), or in person. If the card has not yet arrived and you need to travel, gov.pt mentions the Provisional Replacement Certificate (Certificado Provisório Substitutivo).