Using Portugal's National Health Service (SNS) and getting your user number

Documents you need

• Identity document (passport or ID card)

  required

• Tax number (NIF)

  required

• Proof of address in the health centre's area

  required

• Residence permit or other residence document with an expiry date

  EU citizens show the EU registration certificate.

  required

Step by step

1. 1

   Step 1: Find the health centre for your address

   Primary care is organised by area: you register at the health centre that serves the address where you live. If you are unsure which one that is, ask at the reception of the nearest health centre.

2. 2

   Step 2: Get your SNS user number

   Go to the health centre's reception with your passport or ID, NIF, proof of address and residence document (residence permit or AIMA document for non-EU nationals; EU registration certificate for EU citizens). Ask to be registered in the national user register (inscrição no Registo Nacional de Utentes). Procedures vary between health centres, so call or check first.

   Foreign residents with a regular status can also request the NIF, NISS and SNS number together at some Citizen Spaces (Espaços Cidadão), including two in Lisbon.

3. 3

   Step 3: Ask for a family doctor

   With your user number you can register at the health centre and ask to be assigned a family doctor (médico de família). Family health units also include nurses and, in many places, psychology, nutrition, oral health and social work. If no family doctor is available, ask how to book appointments with the unit's team in the meantime.

4. 4

   Step 4: Use SNS 24 before going to an emergency department

   Call SNS 24 on 808 24 24 24 when you feel ill and are unsure what to do. The line provides triage, advice and referral to the right service. Clinical calls are answered 24 hours a day; administrative questions from 8:00 to 22:00. The call is charged at the rate of a call to a landline (gov.pt, 2026).

   A referral from SNS 24 or your health centre matters: since June 2022 the SNS charges user fees (taxas moderadoras) only for hospital emergency visits without prior SNS referral, and not when the emergency visit leads to admission.

5. 5

   Step 5: Know what to do in an emergency

   For life-threatening situations call 112, the free European emergency number. For poisoning, call the INEM poison centre on 800 250 250 (free, 24 hours).

6. 6

   Step 6: Order your European Health Insurance Card later if you travel

   Once you are a legal resident registered with the SNS and Social Security, you can request the European Health Insurance Card (Cartão Europeu de Seguro de Doença) from Social Security for temporary stays in other EU countries. A provisional replacement certificate is available if you need it before the card arrives.

Before you have a user number

Private health insurance

Watch out

Common mistakes

• Going straight to a hospital emergency department for non-urgent problems without calling SNS 24, which can mean waiting longer and paying a user fee.
• Registering at a health centre that does not match your address.

Tips

• Save 808 24 24 24 and 112 in your phone on your first day.
• Keep a note of your user number with your NIF and NISS; pharmacies and hospitals ask for it.
• Ask your employer whether private health insurance is part of your package.

Frequently asked questions

Editorial answers written by our team, based on the sources below.

Official links

In your plan

• Get your SNS user number at your health centreAdd to plan
• Make sure you have health cover for your first monthsAdd to plan
• Register with a family doctorAdd to plan
• Check the retirement and passive income (D7) visa requirementsAdd to plan
• Save Portugal's emergency and health numbersAdd to plan

Sources

Written and checked by HomiStart editorial against the official sources below. Next scheduled check: 6 Apr 2027.