News

• 15 February 2022 | SEF starts to contact British nationals resident in Madeira or the Azores to provide biometric data

  ​The Immigration and Border Service (SEF) is today starting to contact British nationals resident in Madeira or the Azores under the Withdrawal Agreement, for them to schedule appointments to provide their biometric data for the new residency card.

  During this pilot project, British nationals resident on the Portuguese islands will be able, from 21 February, to go to SEF's offices in:

  - Azores: Angra do Heroísmo and Ponta Delgada;

  - Madeira: Citizen's Office in Funchal.

  In addition to providing their data for the new card, residents will also be able to update their information with SEF.

  British nationals already registered on the Brexit Portal will be notified by email, this will be done in chronological order by date of registration.

  Those resident in mainland Portugal who have already registered on the Portal will be contacted by SEF once phase 2 of the process is officially launched there. They do not need to contact SEF at this time.

  The certificate with the QR code, that can be downloaded from the Portal, continues to be an official residency document for those under the Withdrawal Agreement. It is valid until the new card is issued. Furthermore, valid EU residency documents continue to be accepted for travel purposes, until the new card is issued.

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• 28 January 2022 | SEF investigation: Couple sentenced for trafficking in human beings

  ​After an ongoing investigation of the Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) which allowed to identify the perpetrators and rescue the victim which had been subject to serious violations of her fundamental rights and personal dignity, a couple of foreign nationals have been sentenced to imprisonment for the crimes of trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation and aggravated vice.

  In addition, the investigation carried out between August 2018 and May 2019 has identified situations of abuse and direct control of the trafficked person, forced to prostitute when she was in an advanced state of pregnancy.

  The Central Criminal Judge of Penafiel has convicted the defendants to six years and four years and nine months of imprisonment. In addition, they have been convicted to pay the victim the amount of 10 thousand euros.

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• 28 January 2022 | SEF complies with search and arrest warrants in Braga

  Following an ongoing investigation since 2020 with the purpose to determine facts suggesting the crimes of assisting unlawful immigration, swindle and forgery of administrative documents, the Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) has complied, yesterday, with two search warrants, in Braga.

  During searches to a home and a company, documents which might support evidence already existing within the process have been seized.

  The main suspect has been brought before the Criminal Court of Guimarães, yesterday, for the first interrogation, and measures of mandatory weekly attendance, prohibition of exiting the national territory, and the handover of the passport to the court thereto, and prohibition of contact with the other suspects have been ordered. At the same time, the payment of the amount of five thousand euros has been established as well, as a security.

  The operation has been carried out by eleven SEF inspectors.
  

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