Receive the family allowance for children and young people

To receive the family allowance for children and young people automatically, the following requirements must be met:

• the child and the parents must have a Citizen Card;
• the child and the parents must reside in Portugal;
• the child must have been born in the last 6 months;
• the child must be in the parents’ household, or must not be registered in another household;
• at least one parent must have a Social Security Direct (SSD) account;
• the parents must be in the same household or have no other registered household;
• the parents must be over 18 years of age; alternatively, if a parent is 16 or 17 years of age, they must be married to the other parent;
• the parents must be paying Social Security contributions;
• the household income must be no higher than the fourth income bracket.

If you do not meet all of these requirements, you will not receive the allowance automatically. Instead, you will need to apply through SSD.

The family allowance for children and young people is granted automatically. You do not need to apply for it.

As soon as a newborn child’s Citizen Card is created, the Institute of Registries and Notary (IRN) automatically informs Social Security that it has created the Citizen Card. Social Security then sends the parents an automatic offer of family allowance, provided that the necessary conditions are met.

Once the conditions have been verified, the parents will receive a message on Social Security Direct (SSD) containing a link to the page where they must accept or reject the automatic family allowance offer.

The father or mother simply needs to consult their SSD message box and confirm the offer by the deadline. Once the offer is confirmed, the family allowance is automatically granted, and no further action is required on the part of the parents.

If any of the conditions are not met, the parents will receive a message in their SSD message box informing them that they can apply for the family allowance through SSD.

Applying for the family allowance for children and young people

If the conditions for the automatic granting of the allowance are not met, the father, mother or another guardian of the child or young person may apply for the allowance through SSD.

To access Social Security Direct (SSD), you will need to sign in using one of the following means of authentication:

• your Citizen Card
• a Digital Mobile Key (CMD)
• your Social Security number and password.

To apply for the allowance, follow the steps below:

1. After accessing SSD, select the ‘Família’ (‘Family’) menu.
2. Choose the option ‘Abono de Família e de Pré-Natal’ (‘Family and antenatal allowance’).
3. Click on ‘Pedir e Consultar’ > ‘Pedir novo abono de família’ (‘Apply and consult’ > ‘Apply for a new family allowance’).
4. Fill in and submit the form.

How much family allowance will I receive?

The amount of the family allowance for children and young people is calculated according to:

• the age of the child or young person;
• the composition of the household; and
• the reference income of the household of the child or young person (using the income bracket to which they belong, indexed to the value of the Social Support Index).

The amount of the allowance may be higher for:

• single-parent households in which the child(ren) live(s) with only one adult – they are entitled to an increase of:
  • 50% of the amount of the family allowance for those in the first, second, third or fourth income bracket; and
  • 35% for pregnant women entitled to the antenatal allowance;
• larger families (two or more children aged 3 or under).

You may request the family allowance at any moment. Nevertheless:

• if you request it within six months from the month following the occurrence of the fact which determines its assignment (for instance, birth, attendance of the educational level required for the age), you are entitled to the allowance from that month.
• if you request it after that period, you are only entitled to it from the month following the request’s delivery.

For how long will I receive the family allowance for children and young people?

The family allowance for children and young people ends when:

• the young person ceases to be enrolled in education that corresponds to their age group;
• the young person starts a professional activity;
• the child or young person ceases to reside in Portugal; or
• the child or young person’s Portuguese residence permit expires (for those who are not Portuguese citizens).

Entitlement to the family allowance for children and young people is suspended while the young person is working, unless they have an employment contract and are on school holidays.

Entitlement to the allowance may be resumed, at the request of those concerned, once the conditions for entitlement are met again.

The suspension and resumption of the right take effect in the month following that in which Social Security becomes aware of the reasons for the suspension.