What the Portugal visa checklist asks for
The VFS Global checklist for Portugal in India lists a criminal record certificate from your country of origin. It then says the certificate must be translated into Portuguese and that both the certificate and the translation must carry the apostille of the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. Children under 16 do not need one.
Indian applicants meet this requirement with a PCC. It turns up in most long-stay files we see for Portugal:
- D1 work visa, for a job offer or contract with a Portuguese employer
- Job-seeker visa
- D2 visa for entrepreneurs and independent professionals
- D3 visa for highly qualified work
- D7 visa for people living on pension or passive income
- Study visa
- Family reunification visa
Portugal's visa files also include a criminal record authorising form. You sign it yourself, and it lets AIMA, the Portuguese migration agency, check your record. It is a form for you to fill in, so it does not pass through us and needs no apostille.
Which PCC you hold decides the route
Look at the top of your certificate. A PCC printed by the Regional Passport Office after a Passport Seva application follows one route. A certificate signed at a police station, by the SP or by the Commissioner follows another.
Passport office PCC
Straight to the MEA
₹1,000 for the apostille on the PCC. The translation and its own apostille are quoted separately.
Police-issued PCC
Home Department first
The Home Department of the same state whose police issued the certificate. Priced on quote.
No Notary + SDM for Portugal. Some countries accept a police PCC after Notary and SDM verification. For Portugal we always send a police-issued PCC through the State Home Department. That is our firm practice, so we will not offer you the cheaper route for this country.
Two apostilles: the PCC and its Portuguese translation
A common slip: an applicant gets the PCC apostilled, then pays for a translation in Lisbon after arriving, and finds the visa officer in India wanted the translation apostilled too. An Indian MEA apostille can only be added in India, so the translation has to be done here, before you apply.
We translate the full PCC into Portuguese and take the translation for its own MEA apostille. You get back:
- Your original PCC with its MEA apostille
- The Portuguese translation with a separate MEA apostille
Before we start, check that your name and passport number on the PCC match your passport exactly. The translation follows the certificate word for word. If the PCC has a spelling error, the translation will carry it, and only the office that issued the PCC can correct it.
What to send and how it runs
- The original PCC
- A clear copy of your passport (front and back pages)
- The visa type you are applying for, and your VFS checklist if you have it
- Photo on WhatsAppWe tell you whether your PCC is a passport office or police certificate, and quote the full job.
- Original to our officeDrop it at New Ashok Nagar, Delhi, or courier it from your city.
- Home Department, if neededOnly for a police-issued PCC.
- Apostille and translationMEA apostille on the PCC, Portuguese translation, then MEA apostille on the translation.
- ReturnCollect both documents in person, or we send them by Blue Dart.
We give you a time estimate with the price, before you send anything.
Getting the order right
The Portugal checklist we work from sets no age limit for the PCC. Many visa offices still prefer a recent certificate, so check your own checklist. Get the PCC once your visa type is settled, then send it to us straight away. An apostille confirms the signature on the PCC. It does not make an old certificate new again.
Questions about PCC apostille for Portugal
Can I get the translation done in Portugal instead?
For the visa file, no. The checklist wants the translation itself apostilled by the MEA in New Delhi, and that can only happen in India. Get the translation done here before you apply.
Do I send you the AIMA authorising form?
No. You fill in and sign that form yourself and add it to your visa file. It needs no apostille.
My PCC is from a police station in Punjab. Where does it go?
It goes to the Punjab Home Department first, then to the MEA. Attestation from another state's Home Department is not used. See our Punjab PCC apostille for Europe page for more.
My spouse and I are both applying. Is it one price?
Each PCC and each translation is a separate document and is charged separately. Send photos of both and we quote them together.
Can you handle my other documents for Portugal?
Yes. Birth and marriage certificates also go through the Home Department, then the MEA. Degrees need State HRD verification first. We translate into Portuguese or any other language. See marriage certificate and degree certificate.
Will the Portuguese officer be able to check the apostille?
MEA apostilles carry details the receiving office can verify. Our PCC e-apostille verification page explains how.