In order to enter into a contract for the purchase and sale
of real estate, it is necessary to verify compliance with requirements and procedures that must be met in order to ensure legal certainty
and, consequently, the success of the transaction.

ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN VARIOUS NEWSPAPERS AND RADIO STATIONS – 08/13/2025

However, it should be emphasized once again that such success will only be possible if there is clear communication between the parties and, preferably, adequate legal support.

In this regard, both parties—buyer and seller—have a set of obligations that must be strictly complied with, under penalty of legal consequences that may affect the validity and respective resolution of the legal transaction.
These obligations include everything from the simplest, such as the delivery of documentation, to the scheduling, within the specified time frame, of the promised public deed of purchase and sale. These obligations include everything from the simplest, such as the delivery of documentation, to scheduling the promised public deed of purchase and sale within a specified time frame.

The obligations of the parties must be defined with the agreement and knowledge of both parties in the so-called Promissory Purchase and Sale Agreement, through which they undertake to conclude the future transaction, which in this case would be the purchase and sale of a property, within a certain period.

It is essential that the deadline for signing the public deed or authenticated private document is met, and both contracting parties must cooperate to ensure that this is done, otherwise we will be faced with a situation of default, which may be on the part of the creditor or the debtor, depending on who fails to comply.

Let’s look at the following example: Sara, the seller, and Tiago, the buyer (fictitious names) agree on the terms of sale of a property. Thus, on August 1, they sign the Promise Contract, where they define that the public deed should be executed within 90 days (3 months) from that date, which means that it would have to be signed by November 1.

In addition to this deadline, it is important to stipulate how the scheduling of the deed will be communicated, which in this case could be Tiago (promising buyer) communicating to Sara (promising seller) by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt, to her address, 15 days in advance.

If Tiago did not make the aforementioned communication within the established deadline, he would be in default, as he did not fulfill his obligation, resulting in the obligation to repair the damages caused to the creditor, under the terms of Article 814 of the Civil Code. In view of this breach,
Sara should notify Tiago and, under Article 442 of the Civil Code, she would have the right to take possession of the property, i.e., the real estate would remain Sara’s property.

It is important to note that if a deposit was payable, Sara would keep this amount and would not be entitled to a refund. On the contrary, if Sara were to default, for example, by failing to appear on the date of the public deed, in accordance with the aforementioned article, Tiago could demand double the amount of the deposit.

In short, the timely scheduling of the granting of the public deed is a legal obligation of both contracting parties. Compliance with this commitment is essential to ensure the stability and effectiveness of the legal transaction.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

With the collaboration of colleagues,

Catarina Menezes and Filipa Cabral

O conteúdo “The deed of sale has not yet been scheduled: what can I do?” ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

Sharing situations sometimes become very complex, and there is a need for negotiation in order to satisfy the interests of those involved in a fair way.

ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN SEVERAL NEWSPAPERS AND RADIO STATIONS – 23/07/2025

For this to happen, there needs to be a clear and simple dialog between all the parties involved throughout the process. In this process, the parties can opt for the so-called alienation of a hereditary share, which consists of an heir selling his or her hereditary share to another heir or to a third party.

In these cases, as in any other, doubts can arise, often relating to taxation, such as the payment of capital gains.

Capital gains are defined, according to article 10 of the IRS Code, as gains obtained, other than business and professional income, capital or property, which may, among other situations, result from the onerous sale of real rights over immovable property, meaning that in principle it would apply to this case. However, it does not, as changes have been made in this direction.

Thus, when an heir sold his or her share of the estate, the question arose as to whether the heir who was selling his or her share would have to pay capital gains (or “income tax”). However, the Uniform Judgment
of the Supreme Administrative Court, no. 7/2025, dated April 29, 2025, answered these questions, clarifying that the transfer of a hereditary share does not constitute, for IRS purposes, an onerous alienation of rights in rem over immovable property. Unlike the sale of a specific asset of the inheritance, such as a property, the sale of the hereditary share
does not represent the transfer of ownership of specific assets, but rather the replacement of the position of one of the heirs within the inheritance. It is therefore a transfer of the legal position of heir and not a transfer of
assets.

Let’s imagine the following situation: Ana, Beatriz and Carolina inherited a property from their parents, and Carolina decided to sell her share of the estate to Beatriz. To this end, they drew up a deed of assignment, in which Carolina’s share was assigned to Beatriz for consideration. If there is an assignment, there is no actual sale or purchase of the property, which means that by selling her share, Carolina is seeing her position as heir replaced by Beatriz, and there is no transfer of the asset, and in turn no payment of capital gains.

On the other hand, if Ana, Beatriz and Carolina sold the property in question to a third party, it would be a sale and then they would be subject to the payment of capital gains, since in this case there was already a transfer of immovable property.

In short, despite all the controversial opinions, the transfer of a hereditary share is not subject to capital gains, which brings greater security and legal clarity to heirs. This ruling has thus clarified a number of doubts, facilitating interpretation and offering greater fiscal predictability in this type of transfer.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

With the collaboration of the collegues,

Catarina Menezes and Filipa Cabral

O conteúdo “Capital gains on the ‘sale’ of hereditary shares” ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

Maria and João decide to renovate their kitchen, so they hire a company to do it, draw up the project, sign the contract and pay a deposit.

article published in various newspapers and radio stations – 09/07/2025

The contractor turns up on the day and time agreed for the work to begin and the project gets underway, but in the meantime things
start to go wrong: the supply of tiles is delayed without justification, the shelves are made of wood of a lower quality than agreed and in the end the cupboards still need to be finished with the right paint. Maria and João decide to speak directly to the contractor, but he offers no solutions and denies any responsibility. What can Maria and João do?

This could be a real situation and is just one of many in which non-compliance can give rise to a claim for compensation under Portuguese law. But what does this breach of contract mean? And when can compensation be paid?

Article 798 of the Civil Code (hereinafter referred to as the “C.C.”) states that “The debtor who culpably fails to fulfill the obligation becomes liable for the damage he causes to the creditor.” Thus, when one of the parties fails to fulfill the obligation
to which it is bound under the contract, or partially fulfills it, does so incompletely or late –
mente, it can be ordered to compensate the other party for the damage caused.

Non-performance can occur in various ways: total, if nothing is done that was promised; partial, if only part of the obligation is fulfilled; defective, if what is delivered is not of the agreed quality; and late, if it is fulfilled too late
and without justification.

So what kind of damage can compensation cover? The most common are property damages, which are losses with an immediate economic effect, such as repair costs, unexpected expenses and profits that no longer arise. There can also be non-pecuniary damage, such as the creation of emotional distress. These, however, are less common and require clear proof. Article 562 of the Civil Code states that whoever has a duty to compensate must restore the situation that would have existed if the damage had not occurred.

The way to proceed begins by ascertaining whether there has actually been a culpable breach of contract, whether this breach has caused damage to the other party and the value of the damage, whether it is pecuniary or not. At this stage, it is essential to gather all the documentation (emails, messages, photos, contracts, invoices) and witnesses if there are any. If all these elements align with the requirements of contractual liability, as set out in Article 799, the party in breach will have the obligation to compensate. The first step would be to formally contact the debtor to ask them to comply with the obligation, either by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt or by an out-of-court proposal drawn up by a lawyer or solicitor. Often, this contact allows the dispute to be resolved without resorting to judicial means (courts).

If this is not possible, you should take legal action to demand fulfillment of the contractual obligation and payment of compensation in the competent court, where you will be asked to acknowledge the breach and order the debtor to pay compensation for the damage caused.

If you are facing a situation of breach of contract, know that you are not unprotected; Portuguese law provides for mechanisms to repair the damage caused and holds the debtor responsible. The assistance of a lawyer is essential to ensure that your rights are fully exercised and that the damage is not passed on to you.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

With the collaboration of the collegues,

Catarina Menezes e Filipa Cabral

O conteúdo The liability of the debtor in the contract ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

Nationality, regulated by Law no. 37/81 of October 3, consists of the permanent legal-political link between an individual and the state, which confers on him or her the status of national, thus becoming part of that country’s legal system.

article published in several newspapers and radio stations – 02/07/2025

You can acquire nationality by birth (the so-called original nationality) or through certain legal processes, such as marriage, which consists of derived nationality, which this article will focus on.
The acquisition of nationality, whatever its origin, binds the individual to the state, which implies a certain responsibility in the actions of both parties. This means that the state will recognize a set of rights, with the national being protected by the laws and rules in force in that country, but it also recognizes certain obligations, the fulfilment of which depends on the citizen.

In this sense, the aforementioned Nationality Law mentions in its article 1 who the original nationals are, such as the children of a Portuguese mother or a Portuguese father born in Portuguese territory or the children of a Portuguese mother or a Portuguese father born abroad if the Portuguese parent is there in the service of the Portuguese State, but it also regulates the possible ways of acquiring nationality by derivation.

With regard to this last form of acquisition, it is important to note that, as in recent years, it is once again the subject of changes, and it is important to mention what these are and the implications they may have.
In recent days, the government has made new proposals that affect the Nationality Law, tightening up the criteria for obtaining Portuguese nationality: the main changes are to the period of legal residence and compliance with the law.

Firstly, the length of legal residence required to obtain nationality has been proposed to be extended: for citizens belonging to CPLP countries (such as Brazil, Angola or Cape Verde), there is a minimum period of 7 years, while for other countries this period rises to 10 years. It’s important to note that this period only starts when you receive your residence card and not when you apply for it. For the children of foreigners born in Portugal, the automatic attribution that existed previously has disappeared.

Proof is now required that both parents have had a valid residence permit for at least 3 years and expressly wish to be granted nationality.

There are also other integration requirements, such as demonstrating command of the Portuguese language, knowledge of civic rights and duties, culture and a solemn declaration of adherence to the values of the democratic rule of law. On the other hand, the special naturalization regime for Sephardic Jews is abolished and citizenship by descent is extended to great-grandchildren of Portuguese citizens.

There are also provisions for loss of nationality as an additional sanction that can be imposed by court decision for committing serious crimes with a sentence of five years or more.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

With the collaboration of collegues,

Catarina Menezes and Filipa Cabral

O conteúdo Portguese citizenship for great-grandchildren  ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

When it comes to inheritance, heirs’ first concern is often the real estate left by the deceased and the
destination to be given to it. However, the money that the deceased owned at the time of their death also forms part of the estate.

article published in several newspapers and radio stations – 25/06/2025

In view of this recurring question, I would like to clarify the best way to guarantee correct access to this asset for all heirs.

This asset, like any other movable or immovable property, belongs to the estate and is therefore also the subject of the division process, but it is first necessary to guarantee access to it legally.

For this procedure, the law requires that a number of requirements be met so that, once they have been met, it is possible to withdraw the amount and proceed with the division in a fair and secure manner.

First of all, the heirs must report the death of the deceased to the bank and submit a written or oral request to withdraw the bank balances at the time of death and bank statements for the sixty movements prior to death. If they have information about the account number, the type of account and the names of the respective account holders, they must provide it to the bank; if not, they must request it when asking to withdraw the balances and statements. For this request, they must be accompanied by the death certificate (if foreign, it must be duly apostilled) and the notarial certificate of the deed of entitlement of heirs.

The inheritance certificate, on the other hand, consists of a notarial act formalized through a public deed which, as the name suggests, serves to habilitate/identify the heirs of a deceased person and declare that there is no one who prefers them or
competes with them
in the succession, before the division of the assets left can proceed.
If the request is made through a lawyer or other person acting as the heirs’ attorney-in-fact, the bank must be provided with a notarial power of attorney empowering it to obtain information from the respective banking institutions about the bank balances held by the deceased, either separately or in conjunction with others.

Once this request has been analyzed, the bank “blocks” the bank account, preventing unauthorized movements. However, if one of the heirs or another is the second holder of the account, they will have access to the account until the death is notified. After this, 50% of the balance, which corresponds to the deceased’s share, is “blocked”, while the other 50% remains unblocked, as it is the share of the second holder, who can freely move the money belonging to them. If all the account holders have died, the entire account is blocked.

It’s important to note that banking institutions only have to comply with the law once they know that the account holder has died, in order to prevent amounts from being unduly withdrawn by anyone other than the heirs. It is therefore a process that requires various formalities and documentation. Seeking legal support for this type of procedure can be crucial to ensure that the rights of each heir are respected and that the division takes place more quickly and fairly, within the limits set by Portuguese law.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

With the colaboration of the collegues,

Catarina Menezes e Filipa Cabral

O conteúdo “How do I access the bank accounts of people who have died?”  ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

It is up to the court to assess the repercussions of the act on the incapacitated person’s interests, taking into account the specific nature, shape and consequences of the act in question.

The accompanying person does not act in their own name, but as a representative of the person they are accompanying, seeking to act in the way they believe is best for the latter. However, given the conflicts of interest that can result from a companion’s actions not being subject to any external control, it is up to the court to assess whether the act in question does not offend the interests of the incapacitated person, and whether it complies with them, as we will see below.

In a process of voluntary jurisdiction, regulated in article 1410 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the courts have been judging according to criteria of convenience and opportunity, not sticking to the letter of the law. In other words, they assess the acts that underlie the authorization requested, whether they are in line with the interests of the person accompanied, whether it is opportune and convenient for them.

Thus, when a request is made for authorization for a judicial sale, in order for the accompanying person to represent the person accompanied in this legal transaction (in the granting of the public deed of purchase and sale), all the essential elements of the deal must be included with the initial petition, namely the indication of the value of the projected purchase and sale, its correspondence to the real and market value of the property, the agreement of the other co-owners (if they are not the sole owner of the property to be sold), and witnesses must also be listed to be heard by the Court, with a view to the proper decision of the case.

Once the action has been received, the incapacitated person’s next of kin and the Public Prosecutor’s Office are summoned to contest the claim. The decision takes into account all the factors brought to bear on the case, but above all the interests of the person accompanied. For example, it would be manifestly disproportionate for an accompanying person to have real estate and not have enough money to cover the average costs that their state of health requires (for example, the usual daily medication, occupational activities, etc.) and also to cover any unforeseen costs or an increase in the costs corresponding to their day-to-day life.

Thus, the Court, based on the real interests of the incapacitated person, namely – obtaining sufficient income to support their expenses, being the holder of a savings account, intended to provide for any need that may arise in the future in terms of well-being, comfort and state of health – has ruled in favor of requests to authorize the sale, authorizing the accompanying person to represent the person accompanied in the public deed of sale. However, the companion is obliged to deposit the proceeds of the sale in a bank account to be opened specifically for this purpose, which must be co-titled by him and his companion.

More recently, there have been rulings determining the obligation to attach a current bank account statement to the special authorization process each year, with a view to safeguarding the management of funds belonging to the incapacitated person.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

O conteúdo When the incapable person is a seller ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

For many, entering into marriage is an option under the rules of Portuguese civil law, but when it comes to dissolving the marriage between two people whose residence, without the consent of the other spouse, is no longer in Portugal (e.g. A.), the question arises as to whether the Portuguese courts have jurisdiction to hear the case.

We are dealing with a multi-locational conflict, insofar as there are elements of connection with the Portuguese legal system (A.’s nationality, the place where the marriage was celebrated and the habitual residence of the spouses until the separation and the facts that constitute the cause of action for divorce) and with the legal system of the Plaintiff’s current residence.
Under the terms of Article 37(2) of the Law on the Organization of the Judicial System (Law 62/2013 of 26 August), the CPC sets out the factors on which the international jurisdiction of the courts depends. In this regard, article 59 of the CPC states that “(…) Portuguese courts have international jurisdiction when any of the connecting factors referred to in articles 62 and 63 are present or when the parties have attributed jurisdiction to them under the terms of article 94”.

According to the factors for attributing international jurisdiction set out in the C.P.C., namely in article 62, “Portuguese courts have international jurisdiction: (…) c) When the right invoked cannot become effective except by means of an action brought in Portuguese territory or when there is an appreciable difficulty for the plaintiff in bringing the action abroad, provided that there is a weighty element of connection, personal or real, between the subject matter of the dispute and the Portuguese legal system.”

However, when determining the international jurisdiction of Portuguese courts, it is also important to safeguard what is established in European regulations and other international instruments that are internationally binding on the State and which
which take precedence over other criteria (as is clear from the aforementioned Article 59 of the CPC and Article 8(4) of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic).

Therefore, in this case, consideration should be given to the application of Council Regulation (EU) 2019/1111 of June 25, 2019, with effect from August 1, 2022, and as is clear from the provisions of Article 1(1)(a) thereof, which applies in civil matters in relation to divorce.
divorce.

In this regard, Article 3(a)(iii) of the same Regulation states that: “In matters relating to divorce, legal separation or marriage annulment, jurisdiction shall lie with the courts of the Member State: a) in the territory of which: (…), iii) the habitual residence of the respondent is situated, (…)”

Thus, even if the spouse (A.) lives abroad, it is enough for R. to be habitually resident in Portugal for the Portuguese courts to have international jurisdiction to decide the special action for divorce without the consent of the other spouse.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

O conteúdo Divorce in Portugal non-resident ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

There is said to be “property in common, or co-ownership, when two or more people simultaneously hold the right of ownership over the same thing”, under the terms of the rule contained in Article 1403(1) of the Civil Code.

Article published by Portuguese Times, Correio dos Açores, Voz de Portugal (Montreal) and Correio da Manhã (Canada) – May 2024

This acquisition in common is often preceded by a property sharing process following the dissolution of the marital relationship, either by the death of one of the spouses or by divorce, where if there is no agreement on the property to be shared, it is awarded to the heirs or ex-spouses in proportion to their shares, and they become joint owners, assuming that “the rights of the consorts or joint owners over the common property are qualitatively equal, although they may be quantitatively different; the shares are, however, presumed to be quantitatively equal in the absence of any indication to the contrary in the constitutive title. “, under the terms of paragraph 2 of the same rule.

This is often the case in the Portuguese legal system when assets are awarded in proportion to their shares to the heirs in an orphanage inventory process, which used to be compulsory, when the heirs were minors at the time of the opening of the succession and, due to their inability to pay the fees to the heirs, they became owners of the assets in exact proportion to their shares, thus becoming co-owners following the award.

It is not compulsory for co-owners to remain in this indivision, but they can request a division, which can be done either amicably or under the terms of the law of the case.

In fact, any co-owner who wishes to “… put an end to the indivisibility of the common property may request, in a proper action for the division of the common property, in confrontation with the other consorts, that, once the respective shares have been fixed, the common property be divided in substance or adjudicated or sold, with distribution of the respective value, when it is considered indivisible …”. The procedural rules for dividing the common property are contained in articles 925 to 929 of the CPC and must be registered, in accordance with the provisions of article 3(a) of the Land Registry Code.

Thus, if there is no dispute as to the co-ownership and shares relating to the assets identified in the initial petition, nor any other evidentiary acts or other steps are requested or ordered by the Court, including an attempt at conciliation, the shares are fixed and a conference of interested parties is held with a view to the award and, in the absence of agreement between the interested parties present, the award is made by lot.

It follows from the law that if the property is indivisible, it can be awarded to one of the parties by agreement, with the remainder being paid in cash. In the absence of an agreement, the property will be sold, and the consorts can bid for the sale, thus putting an end to this system of co-ownership. the co-ownership regime existing between the consorts.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

O conteúdo An end to co-ownership ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

The question came from a fellow countrywoman of ours, who lives in Canada, following the death of her father in that country, as a widower and with assets in Portugal, which is easier to apply Portuguese law to the succession opened by her father’s death or the succession law of the Province of Quebec.

ARTICLE PUBLISHED BY PORTUGUESE TIMES, CORREIO DOS AÇORES, VOZ DE PORTUGAL (MONTREAL) AND CORREIO DA MANHÃ (CANADA).

It is well known that when a Portuguese citizen dies in Canada, namely in the Province of Quebec, and had property(ies) located in Portugal and also money deposited in bank accounts in Portugal, the question arises as to whether Portuguese law (the law of nationality) applies to regulate the succession or the law of the place of last residence.

According to Article 21(1) of Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 4, 2012, the law applicable to the succession as a whole is the law of the State where the deceased had their last habitual residence at the time of death. When the place of death occurred at the deceased’s last habitual residence, specifically in the province of Quebec in Canada, it is important to consider the legal nature of that country. This is because, as Canada is a state made up of several provinces, each of which has its own legislation in terms of succession, under Article 36 of the European Regulation, the law applicable to this succession is the law of the province of Quebec in Canada, as Canada has no internal conflict of laws rules. However, the State of Canada (to whose law of succession the EU
the EU Regulation refers to) comprises several territorial units (Provinces and Federated Territories) which each have their own legal rules on succession.

In such cases, the rule for determining the relevant territorial unit is laid down in the EU Regulation itself, in particular in Article 36 thereof, from which it follows that, since Canada’s legal system is complex and does not have a legislated system of internal conflict-of-laws rules that determine the territorial unit whose rules are applicable, the law in principle applicable to the succession of the deceased is the habitual residence at the time of death. The rules of succession in the Province of Quebec are set out in the so-called “Chapitre CCQ-1991 Code Civil du Québec”, made available online in the so-called “LegisQuébec” (the equivalent of the electronic Official Gazette) by “l’Editeur Officiel du Québec”, and (consultable online on the Official Website of the Province of Quebec, Canada, at: https://www.legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/fr/
showdoc/cs/ccq-1991).

Pursuant to these conflict rules, succession to real estate (successions portant sur des immeubles) will be governed, in accordance with the lex loci rei sitae principle, by the internal law of the place where the assets are located and succession to movable property (successions portant sur de meubles) will be governed by the internal law of the place of last residence of the person making the succession, pursuant to article 3098 of the C.C.Q..

Thus, the Canadian law of the Province of Quebec (the Code Civil du Québec C.C.Q.) applies to the succession of the movable assets of his estate, regardless of where they are located, and to the succession of the immovable assets of his estate located in that Province; and Portuguese law, by reference to Canadian law, applies to the succession of the immovable assets of his estate located in Portugal.

The rules of succession laid down in Canadian law, which applies to the succession of all the movable and immovable assets of the estate located in the Canadian province of Quebec, mean that when the author of the succession dies without a will or any other provision of last will, for example as a widower with children, only his children are his sole heirs and are called to the succession, the result of the application of Canadian law, for the purposes of calling and qualifying for inheritance in the specific case, is the same as that which would result from the application of Portuguese law.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

O conteúdo Which law is easier ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.

Portuguese nationals who are abroad, and even non-Portuguese nationals, often need to present documents issued by the foreign authorities of the countries where they are for various purposes.

ARTICLE PUBLISHED BY PORTUGUESE TIMES, CORREIO DOS AÇORES, VOZ DE PORTUGAL (MONTREAL) AND CORREIO DA MANHÃ (CANADA).

The country of Camões and the Communities has citizens all over the world. According to data from the Emigration Observatory, the country has seen more than 1.5 million citizens leave in the last 20 years. As a result, there are an estimated 2.1 million Portuguese spread around the world, which is why it is necessary to make it easier to validate public documents from other countries. The Portuguese authorities have therefore adopted measures to recognize and accept documents issued by foreign authorities more widely and efficiently.

One of the main initiatives in this regard is Portugal’s accession to the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, the Convention Relating to the Abolition of the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Acts, through the Apostille, which is a formality through which the authority of a country certifies the authenticity of public acts (documents) issued in the territory of a signatory state and thus must be presented in the territory of another state signatory to the same Convention and accepted, facilitating the validation of public documents between signatory countries. For example, a Portuguese citizen living in the United States of America can validate documents by affixing the Apostille to the document state he is in to put the apostille on his specific document.

Therefore, through the apostille, documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, powers of attorney, foreign court decisions, among others, can be authenticated in a simplified way, making the process faster and more accessible for citizens and foreign residents in Portugal.

However, in countries that are not signatories to the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, the process of validating foreign documents is no longer done through the apostille. Generally, documents are legalized through specific authorities, such as Portuguese consulates or embassies in those countries, since document authentication is the consular act of recognizing the authenticity of a foreign document, giving it legal value before the institutions of the country that the consulate represents.

Until May 12, 2023, Canada was not a signatory to the Hague Convention, so a Portuguese resident in Canada had to go to the Portuguese Consulate and request the authentication of the foreign document. By joining the Hague Apostille Convention, Canadians will benefit from a simplified and cost-effective method for having their public documents accepted in signatory countries.
Thus, as of January 11, 2024, Canadian public documents will have a certificate called an “apostille” attached to them. This certificate allows the documents to be presented in the 125 member countries of the Convention. To do so, the applicant must clearly identify the country of destination of each document they intend to send. Canadians will no longer have to go to the consular post closest to their residence when they want to authenticate a document, and the cost of doing so will be much more affordable.

Judith Teodoro,

Lawyer

O conteúdo Apostille ⚖️ aparece primeiro em Judith Teodoro.