sanjayeurope

Greetings All

I have recently moved to Caldas Area - Nadadouro. I have residence permit / certificate and also registered for a private health cover. I do understand that it is important to register with Portugese National Health and get the Healthcare Number called Numero Utente. This is important simply for things like accidents & emergencies and importantly for your turn for the COVID vaccine that will be administered by SNS and your private medical practitioners and GP cannot do anything.

Has anyone recently applied for this in Caldas Area? I am struggling to reach anyone at Centro de Saude to see if they are taking any appointments to issue this number. My friends in Algarve all got this done in 20 minutes by going directly to the Centro de Saude there with passport and residence permit.

Due to Covid restrictions, it would look like the administration office is closed??

I am wondering how best to do this.

Any advise will be great.
Thanks
Sanjay

dingg

Email address is

[email protected]

You need to send them all your details and copies of documents when you request a utente number

Hth

There's a backlog so don't expect it to be done quickly

sanjayeurope

Thanks !!! will do ..

Rambling archer

Not clear from your post if you have done, but apart from phone and email, it might be worth going to the Centro Saude just to see if there are any notices on the door as to how to go about things. When you have sent in your email, follow it up after a couple of weeks if you have not heard anything.

Rambling archer

By the way, you did not say if you are pensionable age, might have an S1 from an EU country or from UK? Or if you might be employed here in Portugal and thus on the Social Security system. Every registered RESIDENT is eligible for SNS health care but a Social Security number should be applied for via the Seguridad Social office with your S1 in hand, if you have one, so that Portugal can claim for your health care from your pension provider country. Otherwise your employer sorts it out with SS for you. Perhaps you are setting up in business here, or a student? - then you get onto the system via that application. This is also necessary for you to apply for EHIC for health cover when you travel to other EU countries - this is done via your S1 provider country or Portugal depending on your circumstances - it is not direct from the SNS, but comes via the SS.

Pilotabroad

Visiting in person is normally a good suggestion but not currently a valid reason for breaking lockdown. I only say this as the local police in Caldas were out in force every day last week on the major roundabouts (approx 20 cars/bikes) stopping all vehicles checking for proof of exceptions.

Good luck and welcome to the caldas area, ask if you need any local help

sanjayeurope

Thank you

I am 54 and contemplating an early retirement : Pension still far away from both Australia & the UK.
I have all the other documents (Residency, NIF etc) so will email with copies attached & hopefully get the Utente number !

Cheers
Sanjay

spouse of scouse

Hi Sanjay, your post caught my eye. Just checking that you're aware of the rules for claiming an Australia age pension, specifically about claiming from overseas, and the residence criteria? You probably are, this is just a heads up in case you're not.

sanjayeurope

Thanks - yes I am but many years to go :

sanjayeurope

Thanks - appreciate the heads up. When will this all end !!! Exhausting..:

spouse of scouse

Yes, it's exhausting moving countries! That's good that you know about the Oz pension, luckily my husband was already getting his partial age pension when we moved to the UK (and I'm too young, can't say that very often), so he was ok. He wouldn't have been happy with not being able to claim, after working in Australia for 26 years.