SEF Portugal | What It Was and Why It Was Replaced by AIMA | Visas.pt

SEF (Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras — Foreigners and Borders Service) was Portugal's immigration and border control authority for over 50 years. It was responsible for issuing residence permits, managing borders, and handling immigration enforcement.

SEF was dissolved in October 2023 as part of a government restructuring following a high-profile incident in 2020 involving the death of a Ukrainian citizen in SEF custody, which triggered a public inquiry and calls for institutional reform.

SEF's functions were split across several new entities:

• AIMA (Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo) — took over immigration, residency permits, and integration services
• PSP (Polícia de Segurança Pública) — absorbed SEF's border control and law enforcement functions

The transition created a significant processing backlog, as AIMA inherited thousands of outstanding SEF cases at launch. This backlog contributed to the extended processing times seen in late 2023 and 2024. As of mid-2026, AIMA processing times have improved significantly — down approximately 31% from the peak backlog period.