AIMA's silence has a legal deadline. Most people never invoke it.
The groups are full of the same quiet panic: "submitted months ago, heard nothing", "refused over one document", "they simply don't notify you".
Almost everyone reacts by waiting longer. That is the one thing that does not help — because the law gives you a deadline to point at.
There are deadlines, and they are countable
First application: AIMA must decide within 90 days. It may extend this by 30 days only in exceptional, justified circumstances — for example a complex file — and it has to tell you.
Renewal: the renewal deadline is 60 days.
Count the days properly, from the date you submitted, before you claim anything.
Since 11 September 2026 the deadline no longer approves anything by itself
Until September, a renewal that AIMA left undecided past the deadline could be treated as tacitly approved (deferimento tácito). Law 62/2026, published on 10 September and in force since 11 September 2026, revoked that rule.
What did not change: the deadline is still a legal duty. Once it passes, AIMA is in breach — and that is what you build on.
The law has no transitional rule for residence applications. If your deadline had already run out before 11 September, whether a tacit approval had already formed is a legal question for a lawyer — do not assume it either way.
Put your demand on record
A registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, sent to AIMA's head office, that: states your case number, states the date you submitted (and the date the fee was paid), states that the legal deadline has expired, and asks for a decision.
Keep the receipt. From that point you have a dated, provable demand — which is exactly what a court needs later.
If it still does not move
Administrative courts can order AIMA to act — to schedule and to decide. This route — an action to compel the administration to perform the act it owes (intimação / condenação à prática de ato devido) — is used routinely against AIMA.
This is lawyer territory, and worth it once a delay has real consequences: a job offer lapsing, a family reunion stalled, travel you cannot take.
The three states people get stuck in
Silence (em análise). Submitted, fee paid, nothing. Common, and not necessarily bad — but it is also the state where the deadlines above start mattering.
Exigência. AIMA asks for a document. This has a deadline, and missing it can sink the file. Upload exactly what is asked, inside the window, and screenshot the confirmation. Do not send extra material nobody requested.
Indeferimento. A refusal — very often over a fixable formality rather than your eligibility. The most reported cause in the groups is a weak or mismatched address declaration from a landlord. The refusal must tell you the reasons and how and when to challenge it in court, so read the notification the day it arrives.
What to do this week
1. Count the days from submission (and note the payment date, if this is a renewal).
2. Gather proof: submission confirmation, DUC payment, uploaded files, every date.
3. If the deadline has passed, send the registered letter asking for a decision. One page is enough.
4. If there is a parallel court case already running, talk to that lawyer before filing anything new — two conflicting files help nobody.
Bottom line: silence is not a verdict. There is a countable deadline, a formal way to put AIMA on notice, and a court that can order it to decide. What there no longer is, since 11 September 2026, is approval by silence.
⚖️ General orientation, not legal advice. Individual cases differ, and immigration rules changed again in September 2026. For a refusal or a delay with real consequences, consult an immigration lawyer.
Guidance, not legal or tax advice — verify your case with official sources.