en 
"Portugal had an institution, the institution was eliminated, its human resources were distributed among several institutions", a decision criticized by several parties and organizations, the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, told journalists, who promised, that during "the next weeks" the announcement of measures for the sector, which includes a "correction also in the institutional domain", without committing to the maintenance of AIMA.
Today, the Government is meeting in parliament with parties to hear proposals on migration, as part of the review of the legislation it wants to present.
"No party today spoke out in favour of reestablishing" SEF, "as it existed", also stated the government official, faced with the possibility of a return to the previous model, in which that institution controlled borders, supervised entry and dealt with regularization of immigrants in the country, with the now-defunct High Commission for Migration responsible for the social integration policy of these communities.
Today's meetings are part of the dialogue process between the Government and parliamentary groups on a subject that currently has “serious difficulties” and that requires “effective responses” from the executive, which seeks to collect “contributions for better public policies”.
“These serious difficulties are largely the result of wrong choices and poorly executed or erroneous policies of the previous Government”, which left a “heavy legacy” in the country, with an “ill-prepared extinction of the SEF”, with “situations that are not treated and that are not regularised”, a “computer system for border control, especially the Portuguese air borders, which have been in a situation of pre-collapse” and a “process of human integration to provide housing conditions, access to services and quality of life that is also at stake”, he stressed.
In statements to journalists, the minister once again committed to presenting a package of measures within the first 60 days of his duties: “in the space of a few weeks, we will have this plan for migration”.
“Portugal needs immigrants, but Portugal needs rules that work and supervision that works, it needs to welcome them well and welcome them with humanity and integration” and “we need to take measures to speed up pending processes”, stated the government official.
Immigration quotas
At the end of one of the meetings with the parliamentary groups, Chega deputy Cristina Rodrigues said that the Government demonstrated "some openness" to establishing immigration quotas, but Leitão Amaro denied this version.
“It was certainly a mess because the Government, in none of the meetings, made a statement and not a word was said about proposals for creating quotas”, he stated, highlighting that this phase involves consultation with the parties.
Regarding the possibility of defining new entry rules and the extinction of expressions of interest, a demand from several parties, Leitão Amaro admitted that this “aspect has been mentioned” by “many actors in Portuguese society”.
The possibility of immigrants being able to apply for a work-seeking visa, even if they arrive in Portugal as tourists, has been one of the most controversial issues for critics of the previous socialist government.
“The way in which this was regulated and deregulated by the previous Government is one of the decisions that has received the greatest criticism from the actors involved in the process”, contributing to “an environment that led to the accumulation of 400 thousand pending issues”, stated Leitão Amaro, who admitted the need for an “adjustment” of entry rules.
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For the love of all that is good, invest in the IT systems in order to automate 95% of renewals and reissues (extremely low risk and requires no additional biometrics). Article 15 applications are also low risk and could be fully completed online, with document uploads by the user (only when absolutely required in the absence of an interface to obtain the data) and the ability to preschedule an appointment at any Loja/Espaço de Cidadão (or wherever) after the fee payment screen. Staffed pop-up biometrics stations/quiosques can be mobilized and set up where the greatest need is in times of extraordinary demand to collect the photos/fingerprints. In fact, the initial appointments to convert Dx visas into residence permits adds very little value (because the residence application has already been pre-approved, with only a couple updated documents needing to be furnished, along with biometrics and fees). All mailing addresses should be screened against CTT databases, real-time interfaces must be established with Portuguese banks, Finanças, Seguridade Social, SNS, IRN, EES/ETIAS, Ministry of Justice, GNR/PJ/PSP. If these interfaces can save even 50% of human effort, they pay for themselves. Only see a human in person when absolutely necessary. This is, unfortunately, the weakest link in the process today. The staff are often slow, not adequately trained, and add very little value to the process.
Someone’s going to say “oh, but what about EU data protection laws!” and bla bla bla. The applicant would give permission for AIMA to collect this data for a legitimate and specific purpose, so it’s not an issue.
Mail out the cards out within a week. Make them ALL correio registado. If returned, then charge a hefty fee to remail.
By Shrin from Lisbon on 22 May 2024, 22:06
End the "expression of interest" facility, at least for one year. Only then the pending processes can be completed. Meanwhile, beef up your manpower and IT systems. Most importantly, those who come here legally (with visas obtained from overseas consulates), should get some space (appointments) for renewals and family reunification. Else, it is clear that the illegal immigrants are preferred. Those who applied based on rules and spent a lot of money are left feeling cheated.
By Gitesh Raja from Lisbon on 23 May 2024, 04:54
Blah, Blah, Blah.
Talk is what they do best. Yes folks, there’s a problem. There was a problem before you got rid of SEF. Now there’s a bigger problem and all they do is talk.
Please stop the talk and FIX this. No more excuses Portugal.
By A V from Algarve on 23 May 2024, 08:37
Perhaps visa holders--D7 for example--could be regularized/legalized without the requirement of an in person appointment with AIMA/SEF. The application and documents of visa holders have been checked and reviewed by AIMA/SEF prior to granting the visa. An in person appointment is simply redundant work helping to clog ghe system.
By Bradley Berriman from Other on 28 May 2024, 08:30