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No answer after months of follow-up
You have filed, kept every receipt and tried the normal channels, and there is still no decision and no appointment you can act on. That is the case this service was built for.
Portugal · delayed residence cases
Stuck with AIMA? We escalate Portuguese residence cases.
If your case has stopped moving, an appointment was cancelled or your status is running out, we reconstruct the record and coordinate the legal route that forces a decision.
- 90 daysAIMA legal target
- 9 to 18 monthsreal Lisbon and Porto wait
- Freesupport on necessary appeals
When this is about you
Is your case stuck?
AIMA has a legal deadline of 90 days to decide a residence application, and 60 days for a renewal. In Lisbon and Porto the real wait runs 9 to 18 months. Once the deadline has passed there is a legal route that requires AIMA to decide, and that is what we run. If your appointment keeps slipping or your file has gone silent, waiting longer rarely fixes it. A legal escalation does.
Appointments keep slipping
Your biometrics or renewal appointment keeps getting cancelled or pushed, with no replacement date.
The 90 days are long gone
Your file has had no decision well past the legal target, and nothing on the portal explains why.
Your status is expiring or has lapsed
Your residence status is expiring or has already lapsed while you wait for AIMA to act.
Family reunification is frozen
A family file is waiting behind an unresolved appointment, a document request or a decision that never comes.
AIMA has gone silent
You cannot reach anyone at AIMA and the portal shows no movement at all.
Bring every receipt, portal screenshot, email and appointment record. The review starts there.
How escalation works
We rebuild the file,then force AIMA's legal deadline.
Five steps, one dedicated case team, from first review to resolution. You get a personal case manager and a lawyer: no more dealing with the bureaucracy yourself, we take care of every detail. Relovisa coordinates the case, licensed Portuguese counsel does the legal work, and the action asks the court to require AIMA to decide within the period the law already sets.
- 1 Relovisa
Reconstruct the case
ReviewWe put filings, receipts, appointments, messages and every period of silence into one verified chronology.
- 2 Licensed counsel
Test the legal grounds
AssessmentCounsel checks which deadline and which procedure apply to your filing type, and whether the record supports the action.
- 3 Case team
Complete the evidence
PreparationWe close the gaps in your file and prepare the submission, because the legal push only works cleanly when the underlying application leaves AIMA no excuse.
- 4 Licensed counsel
File and follow up
ProcedureCounsel submits the action and manages every formal communication as the court and AIMA respond.
- 5 Case team
Act on the decision
Outcome supportWe explain the result, coordinate the AIMA step it triggers, and run any necessary appeal at no extra service fee.
We cannot promise a date: AIMA's speed is not ours to control. What we can do is force the process into the deadlines the law already sets, and manage it end to end.
The question everyone asks first
Does taking legal action against AIMA hurt your case?
No. It is the ordinary remedy for a deadline the state has already missed, and it is now the normal response to a backlog this size.
It speeds things up. It does not pick a fight.
The action asks AIMA to act within the deadline the law already sets. It is a standard procedural remedy, not an attack on your application.
It is ordinary now.
With a backlog this size, escalating a delayed AIMA case has become the normal response rather than an exotic move.
You are not left alone at the end.
Court fees, document preparation, filing and follow-up are included, and any necessary appeal is supported at no extra service fee.
AIMA: complete legal support
We take the case from stuck to decided.
Court fees, document preparation, filing, follow-up and full legal support until your case is resolved, plus free support on any necessary appeal. Built for delayed decisions, biometrics appointments that never arrive, and frozen family reunification.
What the rescue fee covers
- Full chronology and evidence review
- Legal assessment of the route that fits your filing type
- Document completion and filing preparation
- Court fees for the action itself
- Court and AIMA follow-up until the case is resolved
- Free support on any necessary appeal
The rescue fee depends on your case: what has been filed, what is missing and how far AIMA has already gone. We review your file and confirm the exact figure at the consultation, before you commit to anything.
Get your case reviewedWhat we control
The chronology, the evidence quality, the filing, the communication and the follow-up, all the way to resolution.
What the system controls
Court scheduling, AIMA's response, any request for further evidence and the final residence decision.
What you leave with
A named legal route, a documented case record and the next decisions in order, including an honest stop if escalation is not supported.
Not your situation?
Two other doors into Portugal
Escalation is for a file that has already stalled. If you are earlier than that, or you only need one document handled, these are the right pages instead.
Just getting started
You have not filed yet
Then you are not stuck, you are choosing. Compare the Portuguese routes side by side and file it right the first time.
- Live on a pension or rent
- Work for an employer
- Remote income from abroad
You need one document, not a lawsuit
NIF, bank support, registrations and renewals: pay-as-you-go help that does not need the full escalation track.
See professional servicesEvidence, not decoration
Our numbers.
Residence, work, founder, family and private-client cases across more than 30 nationalities.
Historical share of completed cases approved. Open, withdrawn and incomplete cases are not included.
Delay actions filed by our named Portugal immigration attorney to the review date.
What we count is the court ordering AIMA to act. The residence decision itself is still AIMA's to make.
The immigration lawyers and consultants on our case teams have 10+ years in the field. Every figure has a claims-ledger record with its definition and source.
People behind your case
The people who move your case forward.
Every case is led and coordinated by Relovisa. We bring in the immigration consultants, lawyers, payroll and tax specialists the route needs, while Relovisa remains your single point of contact.
One coordinated case team, built around the route you actually need.
Vlad Shipilov
FounderLeads strategy for founder, business and non-standard cases, connecting the route with the client's business, family and long-term plan.
Olia Nemirovski
COO & Chief Case ManagerLeads client and partner operations so case teams, local specialists and next steps stay coordinated from assessment to completion.
Evgenia
UK Immigration Lawyer · Specialist PartnerSupports UK immigration and Talent Visa case management where licensed legal input is required.
Vladimir
Germany Immigration Consultant · Specialist PartnerSupports German work immigration cases across process planning, local requirements and case coordination.
Daniela
Portugal Immigration Lawyer · Specialist PartnerSupports Portuguese residence matters that require legal review, representation or procedural escalation.
Petra
Portugal Immigration Consultant · Specialist PartnerSupports Portugal D2, D3, D7 and D8 cases, including clients with different income structures.
Marilia
Portugal Immigration Attorney · Specialist PartnerSupports global mobility for self-employed, founder and highly skilled cases through Portugal D8, D2 and D3 routes.
Thiago
Portugal Immigration Attorney · Specialist PartnerSupports highly qualified professionals and procedural cases involving residence delays and AIMA proceedings.
Vladislav
International Tax Advisor · Specialist PartnerAdvises on international tax structures and non-standard cross-border situations across Europe, Asia and the United States.
Thomas
Crypto & Tax Advisor · Specialist PartnerSupports clients whose move intersects with crypto assets, international business and tax planning.
Our wider specialist network60+
immigration consultants and lawyers
Local coverage for routes and services that require authorised in-country specialists.
AIMA rescue questions
Questions about escalating a stuck case.
The useful answer depends on your filing type and your actual record, so these are the things worth knowing before we look at it.
What is AIMA and what is the backlog?
AIMA is the Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo, the Portuguese agency that replaced SEF and inherited its residence caseload. Hundreds of thousands of cases are still pending. Its legal target for a decision is 90 days, and 60 for a renewal, but in Lisbon and Porto the real wait runs 9 to 18 months. That gap is why escalation exists.
How long does escalation take?
It varies. Some cases have resolved in as little as 2 weeks and most within about 3 months. We cannot promise a date because AIMA's pace is outside our control; at the consultation we give you a realistic read on your own case.
What is included?
Court fees, chronology review, legal assessment, document completion, filing, and court and AIMA follow-up until the case is resolved. Any necessary appeal is supported at no extra service fee.
Can legal action hurt my residence case?
No. The action asks AIMA to act within the deadline the law already sets, which is a standard procedural remedy rather than a fight. With a backlog this size it has become the normal response. The authority still decides your residence application on its merits.
What legal grounds do you use?
The action rests on AIMA's duty to decide within the deadline the law already sets. Once that deadline has passed, there is a formal route to require a decision. We prepare the grounds specific to your file.
Do you guarantee approval or an appointment date?
No. We improve the file, choose the supported legal route and follow it actively until the case is resolved. Courts and AIMA decide scheduling, requests and the final outcome.
Can you help if my document expired while I wait?
This is one of the most common reasons to escalate. We review your exact status, address any lapse as part of the filing and press for a decision. Bring the details to the consultation so we can advise precisely.
Can you escalate a frozen family reunification case?
Yes. Family reunification is explicitly within the scope of this service, and frozen reunification files are one of the most frequent reasons clients escalate. We review the main applicant's status, the family filing and the appointment history before we recommend action.
How much does AIMA rescue cost?
The initial 30-minute consultation is €40 and is applied to the package if you proceed. The rescue fee is case-specific because the file, the legal route and the work already completed differ. We confirm the exact figure at the consultation, before you commit to anything.
I only need a NIF or a renewal. Do I need this?
No. For smaller pay-as-you-go Portugal tasks that do not need the full escalation track, see our professional services page instead.
Bring the full record
Send us your case. We will tell you if we can move it.
Describe where your AIMA case is stuck and when it stalled. We assess whether a legal escalation applies, what it involves and what it costs. If escalation will not help, we say so.
Get your case reviewed30 minutes · €40, applied to your package if you proceed.
You leave with a named legal route, a documented case record and the next decisions in order.