If you rent to foreign tenants, sooner or later you will get this request: “Can you, as my landlord, sign an accommodation declaration for AIMA?” The short answer: since AIMA’s notice of 29/11/2025, the accommodation declaration is signed by the applicant themselves, on the official template, on their honour. The landlord supplies the documents that prove the tenancy: the lease and the previous month’s rent receipt. This guide explains who signs, which documents AIMA (Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo, Portugal’s agency for integration, migration and asylum) asks for in each situation and what the landlord should hand over, and you can download the free owner’s declaration template in PDF and Word right now, in both versions (lease agreement and rent-free accommodation), for cases where another entity asks for one.
The essentials in 30 seconds
- For residence permit applications and renewals, proof of accommodation always includes the applicant’s own declaration, on the official AIMA template, signed by them.
- The rest depends on the situation: owner, tenant (lease in their name and the previous month’s rent receipt) or borrower (comodato contract and permanent land registry certificate).
- Anyone not named in the lease adds, on the day of the appointment, their own declaration and an AT tax domicile certificate issued less than 30 days earlier.
- What the landlord provides: the lease (or an addendum naming the real occupants), the previous month’s rent receipt and, for occupants not named in the lease, the land registry description number and the owner’s name and NIF.
- AIMA’s rule does not ask for a landlord’s declaration or a certified signature. The owner’s template below is optional.
Free download: Owner’s declaration (PDF and Word)
Optional owner’s template, not required by AIMA. PDF and Word, for a lease agreement and for rent-free accommodation. No sign-up.
Lease agreement (owner’s declaration)
Rent-free accommodation (owner’s declaration on honour)
The declarations are in Portuguese, as AIMA requires. The article below includes an English translation for reference.
AIMA does not require a certified signature on the accommodation declaration. But some documents do, such as the Termo de Responsabilidade (Modelo 4), and another entity may ask for one. Lawyers can certify signatures (reconhecimento de assinatura), with the same probative force as a notary. Aluseg’s partner lawyer does it remotely, by comparison (por semelhança): €30.75 (€25 + VAT), paid directly to the lawyer, who issues the receipt. Aluseg charges nothing.
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- Upload the signed document and your ID.
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Create my account and request certification →What is the AIMA accommodation declaration, and who signs it?
It is the document in which the applicant (the foreign national) declares to AIMA, on their honour, their address and the legal basis of their right to use the home: owner, usufructuary, tenant or borrower (comodatário). According to the AIMA notice of 29/11/2025, this declaration is always part of the proof of accommodation, for residence permit applications and renewals alike, and it must be made on the official template “Declaração de Alojamento (requerente)”, signed by the applicant.
In other words, the AIMA accommodation declaration is not a declaration by the landlord or owner. What AIMA indirectly asks of the landlord is the paperwork that proves the tenancy (the lease and the rent receipt), not a signature. The details below come from the 29/11/2025 notice and from AIMA’s frequently asked questions of March 2026, and they may change: always check with AIMA before the appointment.
What AIMA asks for, by situation
The applicant’s own declaration applies to every case. On top of it, AIMA asks for:
| Applicant’s situation | On top of the applicant’s declaration |
|---|---|
| Owner or usufructuary | Access code to the permanent land registry certificate (certidão predial permanente), or a valid paper certificate |
| Tenant named in the lease | Copy of the lease in their name and the rent receipt for the previous month |
| Tenant not named in the lease | On the day of the appointment, adds their own declaration and a tax domicile certificate (see below) |
| Rent-free use (comodato) | The comodato contract and a valid permanent land registry certificate |
| Student | Special rules: the school’s lease and an authenticated list, a certified declaration from the school, or a university residence certificate |
| Not accepted | A certificate (atestado) from the parish council (junta de freguesia) |
When the applicant is not named in the lease or in the comodato contract (spouse, children, co-occupant), they bring to the appointment:
- their own declaration, on their honour and under criminal liability for false statements, saying that they actually live in the home, with the land registry description number (número da descrição do registo predial) of the home, the basis (lease or comodato) and the full name and NIF/NIPC of the owner who let them the home;
- an AT certificate of tax domicile (domicílio fiscal), issued less than 30 days earlier, clearly showing their tax domicile.
AIMA also checks the number of residents declared per home.
AIMA’s official template: who signs and where to download it
The template is published on AIMA’s website: Minuta Declaração de Alojamento (official PDF). You can find it, with the other forms, on the forms and templates page. The applicant fills it in and signs it: they state their address and the legal basis of their right to use the home. The landlord does not sign this template.
| Document | Who signs | Where to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Declaração de Alojamento (requerente) | The foreign national | Official template on AIMA’s website |
| Own declaration of someone not named in the lease | The foreign national | Written by the applicant, with the elements listed above |
| Owner’s declaration (lease), optional | The landlord or owner | Free template below |
| Owner’s declaration (rent-free), optional | The owner hosting without rent | Free template below |
What the landlord should hand to the tenant
To build their file, the tenant needs from the landlord:
- the lease in the tenant’s name, or an addendum adding the real occupants, if people live in the home who are not named in the lease;
- the rent receipt for the previous month, the electronic receipt issued on the AT portal (Portal das Finanças) (how to issue it);
- for occupants not named in the lease: the land registry description number of the home and the owner’s full name and NIF, so the applicant can fill in their own declaration.
Registering the lease with the AT is due by the end of the month following the start of the tenancy. Registration is the landlord’s own obligation, but it does not replace the applicant’s declaration. If the lease doesn’t exist yet, generate it online in 5 minutes, compliant with the NRAU (Novo Regime do Arrendamento Urbano, Portugal’s urban tenancy law).
The owner’s declaration: when it can still be useful
The AIMA rule described above does not mention any declaration from the landlord or owner, nor a certified landlord signature. So, for AIMA, the landlord does not have to sign any declaration: supplying the documents listed in the previous section is enough.
If another entity nevertheless asks you for a written statement that someone lives in your property, check with that entity which template it accepts. The templates offered below, in PDF and Word, can serve as a base for an owner’s declaration in those cases, in both versions (lease and rent-free). They are optional and do not replace any document required by AIMA.
What the owner’s declaration must contain
- Full identification of the declarant (landlord/owner): name, NIF (Portuguese tax identification number), ID document and address;
- The capacity in which they sign: owner of the property (state the property’s tax register article number, artigo matricial) or landlord under a lease in force;
- Identification of the person(s) housed: full name, nationality, document (passport/residence permit) and NIF if they have one;
- Full address of the property where the person lives;
- Type of accommodation: lease (with the date of the lease) or rent-free (cedência gratuita);
- Date from which the person has lived there;
- Place, date and signature.
Certified signature: when it is needed
AIMA does not require a certified signature on the accommodation declaration. Some documents do require one by law, though: the Modelo 4, Termo de Responsabilidade (statement of responsibility) is the case, a different document that can create financial obligations for whoever signs it. See AIMA’s notice on Modelo 4. Another entity may also ask for a certified signature on a document of yours.
Lawyers and solicitors can certify signatures (reconhecimento simples, com menções especiais, presencial ou por semelhança), with the same probative force as a notary, under article 38 of Decree-Law 76-A/2006 and Portaria 657-B/2006, which provides for the act to be registered online.
Through Aluseg, our partner lawyer certifies signatures remotely, by comparison (por semelhança), for €30.75 (€25 + VAT), paid directly to the lawyer.
Owner’s declaration template: lease agreement (optional)
Fill in the fields in brackets (or download the ready-made PDF/Word version). The template is in Portuguese, followed by an English translation for your reference.
Portuguese template:
DECLARAÇÃO DE ALOJAMENTO
(Nome completo do declarante), portador do (documento e n.º), contribuinte fiscal n.º (NIF), residente em (morada), na qualidade de (proprietário / senhorio) do imóvel sito em (morada completa do imóvel), inscrito na matriz predial urbana sob o artigo (n.º), da freguesia de (freguesia), concelho de (concelho), declara, sob compromisso de honra, que (nome completo do alojado), de nacionalidade (nacionalidade), titular do (passaporte/título n.º), reside no referido imóvel desde (data), ao abrigo de contrato de arrendamento celebrado em (data).
Por ser verdade e me ter sido solicitada, passo a presente declaração, que assino.
(Local), (data), assinatura
English translation (for reference only):
ACCOMMODATION DECLARATION
(Full name of the declarant), holder of (document and no.), tax number (NIF), residing at (address), in the capacity of (owner / landlord) of the property located at (full address of the property), entered in the urban property tax register under article (no.), parish of (parish), municipality of (municipality), declares on their honour that (full name of the person housed), of (nationality) nationality, holder of (passport/residence permit no.), has lived at the said property since (date), under a lease agreement entered into on (date).
As this is true and has been requested of me, I issue this declaration, which I sign.
(Place), (date), signature
Rent-free template: the owner’s “declaration on honour” (optional)
When the person lives in the property without paying rent (a family member, the spouse of a tenant still on an old lease, a friend you are hosting), the right document does not mention a lease: it is a declaration of rent-free accommodation on honour (declaração de cedência gratuita de alojamento, sob compromisso de honra). For AIMA, an applicant living under a comodato presents the comodato contract and the permanent land registry certificate. This template is for when another entity asks the owner for a declaration on honour:
Portuguese template:
DECLARAÇÃO DE ALOJAMENTO (cedência gratuita)
(Nome completo do declarante), portador do (documento e n.º), contribuinte fiscal n.º (NIF), residente em (morada), na qualidade de proprietário do imóvel sito em (morada completa do imóvel), inscrito na matriz predial urbana sob o artigo (n.º), da freguesia de (freguesia), concelho de (concelho), declara, sob compromisso de honra, que (nome completo do alojado), de nacionalidade (nacionalidade), titular do (passaporte/título n.º), reside no referido imóvel desde (data), a título gratuito, por cedência do declarante e sem qualquer contrapartida.
Por ser verdade e me ter sido solicitada, passo a presente declaração, que assino.
(Local), (data), assinatura
English translation (for reference only):
ACCOMMODATION DECLARATION (rent-free)
(Full name of the declarant), holder of (document and no.), tax number (NIF), residing at (address), in the capacity of owner of the property located at (full address of the property), entered in the urban property tax register under article (no.), parish of (parish), municipality of (municipality), declares on their honour that (full name of the person housed), of (nationality) nationality, holder of (passport/residence permit no.), has lived at the said property since (date), free of charge, by permission of the declarant and without any consideration in return.
As this is true and has been requested of me, I issue this declaration, which I sign.
(Place), (date), signature
Note: these are templates for information only, not legal advice. AIMA’s rules may change: the applicant should check the current requirements in the official sources (notice of 29/11/2025 and forms and templates).
Risks for the landlord: what are you signing?
- Do not declare facts you do not know. Only declare people who actually live in the property, from the real date. For the own declaration of someone not named in the lease, AIMA itself refers to criminal liability for false statements;
- Consistency with the lease and with the AT. If someone lives in the property and the lease doesn’t mention them, put things right first: register the lease and, if necessary, add an addendum naming the actual occupants;
- Overcrowding. AIMA checks the number of residents declared per home, and declaring 6 people in a one-bedroom flat (T1) can raise habitability questions;
- Never sign a blank declaration or one without the address filled in;
- Don’t confuse a residence declaration with being a guarantor. It does not make you liable for the tenant’s obligations towards the State. The Modelo 4 (Termo de Responsabilidade) is a different matter: it can create financial obligations, and should only be signed by someone who understands them.
Checklist: before the AIMA appointment
- Declaração de Alojamento (requerente) on AIMA’s official template, filled in and signed by the applicant;
- If the applicant is an owner or usufructuary: the access code to the permanent land registry certificate (or a valid paper certificate);
- If a tenant named in the lease: the lease in their name and the rent receipt for the previous month;
- If not named in the lease: their own declaration (with the land registry description number and the owner’s name and NIF) and an AT tax domicile certificate issued less than 30 days earlier;
- If living under a comodato: the comodato contract and a valid permanent land registry certificate;
- Do not bring a parish council certificate: it is not accepted;
- Check AIMA’s current requirements before the appointment.
Good practice for landlords with foreign tenants
- Name all occupants in the lease (or in an addendum): the free Tenancy Agreement Generator has fields for this;
- Register the lease with the AT by the end of the month following the start of the tenancy;
- Issue the electronic rent receipt every month, so the tenant always has the previous month’s;
- Keep the land registry description number and your full name and NIF at hand, for occupants not named in the lease;
- Assess the applicant’s solvency as you would anyone else’s: the Solvency Calculator works with income from any source;
- Keep a copy of everything you sign.
Frequently asked questions
Am I obliged to sign the accommodation declaration?
AIMA’s rule does not ask for any declaration from the landlord: the accommodation declaration is signed by the applicant. What the tenant needs from you is the lease, the rent receipt for the previous month and, if some occupants are not named in the lease, the land registry description number and your full name and NIF.
Does the accommodation declaration need a certified signature?
For AIMA, the rule does not mention a certified landlord signature. A certified signature is required for other documents, such as the Modelo 4 (Termo de Responsabilidade), or may be requested by another entity. In those cases, lawyers and solicitors can certify the signature, with the same probative force as a notary.
How much does it cost to certify a signature?
Through Aluseg’s partner lawyer, who certifies remotely, by comparison (por semelhança), it costs €30.75 (€25 + VAT), paid directly to the lawyer.
What proof of accommodation does AIMA accept?
It depends on the situation. An owner or usufructuary presents the access code to the permanent land registry certificate (or a valid paper certificate). A tenant named in the lease presents the lease and the previous month’s rent receipt. Someone living under a comodato presents the comodato contract and the permanent land registry certificate. In every case there is the applicant’s own declaration. A parish council certificate is not accepted. See the table by situation.
Can I declare someone who is not on the lease?
Only if the person actually lives in the property. AIMA provides that someone not named in the lease presents their own declaration and a tax domicile certificate. For that they need the land registry description number of the home and your full name and NIF. The correct approach is also to add the real occupants to the lease with an addendum.
Can I declare rent-free accommodation?
For AIMA, a person living rent-free presents the comodato contract and a valid permanent land registry certificate. If another entity asks for a declaration from the owner, state explicitly that the accommodation is free of charge, so that it is not read as an undeclared lease; the rent-free template above does exactly that.
Another entity asked me for a declaration that the tenant lives in the property. What should I do?
If another entity asks you for a written statement, check with that entity which template it accepts. The owner’s declaration templates on this page, in PDF and Word, can serve as a base, but AIMA does not require them.
I’m a tenant and my landlord won’t sign. What can I do?
AIMA does not ask for a declaration from the landlord. Ask for the lease in your name and the rent receipt for the previous month. If you are not named in the lease, ask for the land registry description number of the home and the owner’s full name and NIF, to fill in your own declaration. Send this page to your landlord. And if you are looking for a home, a complete tenant dossier (documents, income, ID) greatly improves your chances with landlords.
Leases in order, receipts up to date
A foreign tenant needs two things from the landlord’s side: a lease that names them and the previous month’s rent receipt. Fix it at the source: → create an NRAU-compliant tenancy agreement with every occupant named. In the Aluseg app, on paid plans and after connecting Portal das Finanças once, the Modelo 2 (lease registration form) is filed with Finanças and electronic rent receipts are issued automatically, every month.
Are you a tenant? Prepare your application with the free digital Tenant Dossier: gather your documents and income once and share a link with every application.
