I’ve Forgotten My NIF Number, What Do I Do?

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Originally published in Jan 2022 & last updated on September 9, 2023
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It can be easy to forget your NIF number, particularly if you spend an extended amount of time outside of Portugal. When you’re not using something every day, your brain simply pushes it to the back of your mind.

Obviously, this can be an issue in Portugal where the NIF number is used for so many different purposes — you might be asked for it at the supermarket or when signing up for broadband, a mobile phone contract, or utilities. And, you’ll most likely want to use it given that if offers certain tax benefits.

According to Kathleen Lo, from Bordr, ‘if you are in Portugal, you can go to a Finanças office to request a copy of your NIF. If you are abroad, please get in touch with the Portuguese embassy or consulate nearest you.’

Get a NIF with Bordr.com for just $140.

Apparently, our brains struggle remembering more than seven numbers and given that the NIF number is nine, this makes it a little harder to remember. Rather than try to remember all nine digits at once, most people split it into three groups e.g. 123-456-789.

Don’t forget to memorise it in Portuguese, since you’ll be giving it out verbally in shops and supermarkets.

Written by

James Cave is the founder of Portugalist and the author of the bestselling book, Moving to Portugal Made Simple. He has visited just about every part of Portugal, including Madeira and all nine islands of the Azores, and lived in several parts of Portugal including Lisbon, the Algarve, and Northern Portugal.

You can contact James by emailing james@portugalist.com or via the site's contact form. This article includes contributions from Kathleen Lo, co-founder of Bordr.io.

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  1. Hello there,

    I forgot my big number can I get my nif number Online. If I can get that in my email how much does it cost and what is the process.

    Regards
    Bhatta

    Reply

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