Permanent Certificate

1. What is a Permanent Certificate?
   It’s the online service which enables the access to the day-to-day updated status of all the registries of companies registered in Register Offices (companies, cooperatives, State-owned companies and other entities with commercial registry).
2. How can I get a Permanent Certificate?
   You have to make a request for a period of one, two, three or four years. When subscribing this service you will be given, immediately, an access code to the entity’s registries.
3. Where can I ask for a Permanent Certificate?
   Through the Internet at:

   • https://www.portaldaempresa.pt; 
   • http://www.empresaonline.pt;
   • http://www.mj.gov.pt/publicacoes;
   • http://www.portaldocidadao.pt;

   or in any Commercial Register Office.
4. Who can ask for a Permanent Certificate?
   Anyone can ask for a Permanent Certificate. This service doesn’t require any type of authentication.
5. Which are the advantages of subscribing a Permanent Certificate?
   Whenever a certificate is needed you don’t have to go to a Register Office. You just have to hand out its access code to the requesting entity. All commercial registries are available online and updated day-to-day.
6. What kind of information is in a Permanent Certificate?
   The Permanent Certificate contains all the company’s registries, including the requests by transcription or deposit pending on drafting or confirmation. Regarding the latter, you are given information on the presentation and/or deposit number, plus the type of registry requested.
7. Can I print the Permanent Certificate?
   Although you can print the Permanent Certificate, it has no legal value and does not substitute its consultation online.
8. When and until when can I renew the Permanent Certificate?
   The Permanent Certificate which has expired can not be renewed. Its access code is automatically deactivated except for those whose request is pending (without confirmed payment). In these cases the Permanent Certificate can still be consulted up to a maximum of five days.
9. What if I don’t remember the Permanent Certificate expiry date?
   In order to prevent this, three notifications will be sent via e-mail to the applicant before the expiry of the Permanent Certificate: 30 days before, 7 days before and one day before.
10. When I renew my certificate will I have a new access code?
    When renewing the Permanent Certificate, its access code remains the same.
11. What is the extraction of an entity?
    The extraction of an entity corresponds to entering its data in paper onto our Commercial Registry computer-based system.
12. How long can an extraction take?
    For entities whose information is not fully computer-based, the period for the extraction will be of 2 days.
13. How much does a Permanent Certificate cost and how can I pay?
    The costs are:

    • Signatures for one year - € 25;
    • Signatures for two years - € 40; 
    • Signatures for three years- € 60;
    • Signatures for four years- € 70.

    Available forms of payment: Visa/MasterCard, ATM or e-Banking.
    
    Paying with VISA/MasterCard allows the immediate availability of the Permanent Certificate.
    
    Paying with Multibanco (ATM) or e-banking allows the availability of the Permanent Certificate in the following schedules:

    • Payments between 8:00 PM and 9:00 AM - certificate available around 1:00 PM.
    • Payments between 9:00 AM and 2:00 PM - certificate available around 6:00 PM.
    • Payments between 2:00 PM and 8:00 AM - certificate available around 1:00 AM.
14. What is the Bilingual Commercial Registry?
    It is the service which enables the access to the Permanent Certificate service in English, being possible to consult the commercial registry’s information of any Portuguese entity (companies, cooperatives, complementary groups of companies, European economic interest groupings, …).
15. Which are the advantages of the Bilingual Commercial Registry?
    The Bilingual Commercial Registry allows any interested party to consult, in English and online, the legal information of registries of any company or other Portuguese entity.
16. What is the legal value of the Permanent Certificate in English?
    Pursuant to law, it has the same legal value of a Permanent Certificate in Portuguese.
17. How can I consult the Commercial Registry in English?
    Through the Internet, requesting a Permanent Certificate in English, at the following addresses:

    • https://www.portaldaempresa.pt; 
    • http://www.empresaonline.pt;
    • http://www.mj.gov.pt/publicacoes;
    • http://www.portaldocidadao.pt;

    or in any Commercial Register Office.
18. How much does a Permanent Certificate in English cost and how can I pay?

    A Permanent Certificate in the English costs the same as the Portuguese version:

    • Signature for one year - € 25;
    • Signature for two years - € 40;
    • Signature for three years - € 60;
    • Signature for four years - € 70.

    Available forms of payment are: VISA/MasterCard, Multibanco (ATM) or e-Banking.

    Paying with VISA/MasterCard contributes to a faster availability of the Permanent Certificate in English since it’s immediately submitted to our translation services.
    Paying with Multibanco (ATM) or e-Banking submits your request for the Permanent Certificate in English to our translation services upon payment confirmation, in the following schedules:

    • Payments between 8:00 PM and 9:00 AM – request received around 1:00 PM.
    • Payments between 9:00 AM and 2:00 PM - request received around 6:00 PM.
    • Payments between 2:00 PM and 8:00 AM - request received around 1:00 AM.
19. How long does it take for the Permanent Certificate in English to be available?
    The service is made available in a maximum period of 5 working days.