Can a Non-EU Resident of Portugal Work in Another EU Country with an A1 Certificate?

The facts, legal requirements and warning signs of a possible scam

Videos circulating on social media claim that a non-EU citizen holding a Portuguese temporary residence card can obtain an A1 certificate and then work freely in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands or any other EU Member State.

This claim contains a fragment of truth, but it leaves out the conditions that determine whether the arrangement is lawful.

A non-EU citizen who is legally living and genuinely employed in Portugal can sometimes be sent temporarily to another EU Member State by their Portuguese employer. This is known as the posting of a worker.

However:

A Portuguese residence card does not provide unrestricted access to the European labour market, and an A1 certificate is not a European work permit.

An A1 can accompany a genuine temporary posting. It cannot turn a direct foreign job, false employment contract or paid immigration arrangement into a lawful posting.

This article reflects official information available on 8 August 2026. Immigration, notification and residence procedures differ between Member States and must always be checked for the particular destination.

The short answer

A non-EU national with a Portuguese residence permit may be posted to another EU Member State when:

The person legally lives and works in Portugal.
There is a genuine Portuguese employer.
The worker normally carries out their employment in Portugal.
The Portuguese company carries out substantial business activity in Portugal.
The company has a genuine temporary service assignment in another Member State.
The worker remains employed by the Portuguese company throughout the assignment.
Portuguese Social Security approves the applicable social-security position and issues the A1.
The employer completes the notification, labour and immigration formalities required by the destination country.
The worker receives the mandatory employment conditions applicable in the destination country.
The worker returns after the temporary assignment.

EU guidance confirms that third-country nationals may be posted where they are legally residing and working in an EU Member State. EU posting rules then apply to them. EU guidance on posting staff

But this does not mean that a Portuguese residence card allows its holder to accept any job anywhere in the EU.

What is a posted worker?

A posted worker is an employee temporarily sent by their employer to another EU Member State to perform a service.

A posting can normally arise through:

A service contract between a Portuguese company and a customer in another Member State
A temporary transfer within the same group of companies
A properly regulated temporary-employment agency arrangement

In every case, a genuine employment relationship must continue between the worker and the sending employer.

The European Commission defines a posted worker as an employee sent temporarily by their employer to another Member State in connection with a service contract, an intra-group posting or temporary agency work. European Commission explanation

The word temporary is fundamental. A posting is not intended to fill a permanent position for a foreign business while avoiding that country’s immigration and employment rules.

Why can a non-EU citizen sometimes be posted?

The legal basis is not the worker’s personal right to free movement.

A non-EU citizen with a Portuguese residence permit does not acquire the same freedom to work throughout Europe as a Portuguese or other EU citizen.

Instead, a genuine posting may take place under the Portuguese employer’s right to provide services temporarily in another Member State.

This distinction matters:

The worker remains connected to the Portuguese employer.
The permission is limited to the particular assignment.
It does not provide access to other employers.
It does not permit the worker to remain after the assignment ends.
It does not create a personal right to search for work in the destination country.

EU case law generally prevents a host Member State from requiring an ordinary work permit for a third-country national who is already lawfully and habitually employed by a genuine service provider in another Member State.

This is often called the Vander Elst principle.

However, the destination country may still require:

Advance posting notification
A Vander Elst visa or similar entry procedure
Proof of lawful residence and employment in Portugal
A residence permit for a longer assignment
Registration with immigration, labour or municipal authorities
A local representative or contact person
Employment and payroll documentation
Sector-specific licences or declarations

The European Labour Authority warns that residence procedures and administrative requirements for posted third-country nationals vary considerably between Member States. European Labour Authority report

What exactly is an A1 certificate?

The Portable Document A1, commonly called an A1 certificate, confirms which country’s social-security legislation applies while someone temporarily works in another European country.

For a genuine posting from Portugal, the A1 may confirm that:

The worker remains covered by Portuguese Social Security.
The Portuguese employer continues declaring and paying the relevant contributions.
The worker is not required to join the destination country’s social-security system for the certified period.

EU social-security forms may apply to people legally resident in the EU irrespective of their nationality. Therefore, being Indian, Pakistani, Nepali, Bangladeshi, Brazilian or another non-EU nationality does not automatically prevent someone from receiving an A1. EU guidance on social-security forms

However, nationality is only one small part of the assessment. The employment and posting must be genuine.

What an A1 certificate does not provide

An A1 certificate is not:

A European work permit
A residence permit
A Schengen visa
A foreign employment contract
Proof that the posting notification was completed
Permission to work for another employer
Permission to become self-employed abroad
Permanent residence
A route to citizenship
An automatic tax exemption
Permission to remain abroad for 24 months without immigration formalities

The A1 only determines the applicable social-security system. It does not replace labour, immigration, tax or residence procedures.

The three employment situations people frequently confuse

1. Direct employment by a company in another Member State

If a company in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands or another Member State gives the person its own employment contract and becomes the actual employer, this is normally direct employment in that country.

The worker may need:

A national work permit
A combined residence-and-work permit
A highly skilled worker permit
An EU Blue Card
A seasonal-worker permit
Another national immigration route

A Portuguese A1 cannot normally replace these procedures because the Portuguese company is not genuinely posting its own employee.

2. Remote employment while remaining in Portugal

If the employee physically stays and works in Portugal for a foreign company, Portuguese payroll, employment, tax and Social Security obligations may apply.

An A1 is not normally required merely because the employer or customer is based in another Member State.

An A1 may become relevant if the person physically works in another country or regularly works in several Member States, but the social-security assessment for multi-country working is different from an ordinary temporary posting.

3. Temporary posting by a Portuguese employer

This is the legitimate route in which an A1 may be appropriate.

The worker remains employed by the Portuguese company, which sends them abroad temporarily to complete a particular project or service.

Requirements that must be met in Portugal

The worker must legally live and work in Portugal

The worker should possess:

A valid Portuguese residence permit
Legal authorisation to work for the Portuguese employer
A genuine Portuguese employment contract
A Portuguese Social Security number, or NISS
A properly registered employment relationship
Genuine salary payments
Social Security contribution records

A residence card or NISS alone does not prove eligibility.

The worker should normally work in Portugal

The employee should ordinarily perform work for the Portuguese employer in Portugal before being sent abroad.

EU guidance states that, as a general rule, a posted worker should have been registered with the sending country’s social-security system for at least one month. Shorter periods may be considered individually.

This does not mean that paying one month of Social Security guarantees an A1.

Authorities can examine whether:

The worker actually worked in Portugal
The salary was genuinely paid
The work matched the employment contract
The Portuguese company genuinely supervised the worker
The company employed the person only to send them abroad
The worker is expected to return

A person placed artificially on a Portuguese payroll for a few weeks is not automatically a genuine posted worker.

The Portuguese employer must carry out real business in Portugal

A company registration is not enough.

The employer should conduct substantial business activity in Portugal. Authorities may examine:

Where the company has offices or operational facilities
Where its managers work
Where its customers are located
Where most contracts are performed
Where its employees normally work
Whether it has genuine turnover
Whether it fulfils tax and Social Security obligations
Whether its activity in Portugal is more than administration or recruitment

An empty company, mailbox business or company created mainly to supply workers abroad may fail the genuine-posting test.

There must be a real service assignment abroad

The Portuguese company should have a commercial contract with a customer in the destination country.

The agreement should identify:

The Portuguese service provider
The foreign customer
The work or service being delivered
The project location
The start and completion dates
The commercial price
The responsibilities of the companies
The workers required
The expected result of the service

A personal foreign job offer is not the same as a business-to-business service contract.

The Portuguese employment relationship must continue

During the posting:

The worker remains employed by the Portuguese company.
The Portuguese employer remains responsible for the employment.
The employer continues declaring salary and contributions.
The employer retains its employment responsibilities.
The assignment remains temporary.
The worker should return after completing the project.

If the destination company becomes the worker’s true employer, the arrangement may be treated as direct foreign employment.

The employer must request the A1

For an employee, the Portuguese employer normally requests the A1 through Segurança Social Direta before the posting begins.

The online route is:

Trabalho → Entrada, saída e destacamento de trabalhadores → Destacamento de trabalhadores → Consultar e pedir destacamentos de trabalhadores

A separate application is required for each worker. Portuguese Social Security—not an employer, recruiter or immigration agent—decides whether to issue the certificate.

Accident insurance must cover the destination country

Portuguese Social Security requires evidence that the worker has occupational-accident insurance valid:

In the destination country
For the complete posting period
For the worker identified by name

This may be proved through the policy and its specific conditions or a declaration from the insurance provider confirming the worker, period and territorial extension. Portuguese Social Security posting procedure

Requirements in the destination Member State

There is no single form covering every EU country. Each destination has its own notification portal, immigration process, document rules and enforcement system.

Before travelling, the Portuguese employer must check the official requirements of the particular destination.

Advance posting notification

Most Member States require the foreign employer to notify their labour authority before the assignment begins—or, in limited cases, no later than the starting date.

The notification may require:

Employer information
Worker identity and nationality
Portuguese residence and employment documents
Destination customer information
Workplace address
Type of work
Posting dates
Salary information
A1 details
Local contact-person details
Accommodation information

The customer in the destination country may also have a legal duty to verify the notification.

EU guidance provides links to the official national posting websites for each Member State. Official EU posting portal

Immigration and residence requirements

The Portuguese residence card proves residence in Portugal. It does not automatically provide residence rights in every other Member State.

For a genuine posting, an ordinary work permit may not be required under the Vander Elst principle, but the destination country may still require:

A posting visa
A Vander Elst visa
A residence permit
A residence declaration
Registration after arrival
Proof that the Portuguese permit remains valid throughout the assignment

Requirements can depend on:

The worker’s nationality
The type of Portuguese residence permit
Whether the destination belongs to the Schengen area
The length of the assignment
The employment sector
The nature of the service
Whether the worker will live or only work temporarily there

A Portuguese residence card may allow short travel within Schengen, but short-stay travel permission is not the same as permission to work.

For assignments approaching or exceeding 90 days, the employer should obtain written confirmation of the destination country’s long-stay or residence requirements before the employee travels.

A special warning about Denmark

Regulation (EU) No 1231/2010 extends European social-security coordination rules to legally resident third-country nationals in cross-border situations, but it does not apply to Denmark.

Therefore, the A1 and social-security position of a non-EU national being posted from Portugal to Denmark requires specific confirmation from Portuguese Social Security and the Danish authorities.

The same article should not automatically be applied outside the EU, such as to Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland or the United Kingdom. Separate agreements and rules may apply.

Destination-country employment conditions apply

From the first day, the Portuguese employer must generally respect the mandatory core employment conditions of the country where the work is performed.

These can include:

Minimum salary or wage
Working-time limits
Rest periods
Paid annual leave
Health and safety rules
Equal-treatment rules
Maternity and youth protections
Accommodation standards
Mandatory collective agreement conditions
Overtime and shift allowances

If Portuguese conditions are more favourable for a particular entitlement, the worker should generally retain the more favourable condition.

Travel, meals, accommodation and other posting expenses should be identified separately. They cannot simply be presented as salary to disguise underpayment.

Additional rights after 12 months

For the first 12 months, the worker is generally entitled to the mandatory core conditions of the destination country.

After 12 months, almost all mandatory employment conditions of the destination country normally apply, except certain rules concerning:

Termination of the employment contract
Supplementary occupational pensions

The 12-month period may sometimes be extended to 18 months through a motivated notification submitted by the employer.

This employment-law timetable is separate from the A1 period.

Documentation must be available

Depending on the destination, the employer may have to keep the following available at the workplace or electronically:

Employment contract
Assignment letter
Payslips
Salary-payment records
Working-hours records
A1 certificate
Passport and residence documents
Posting-notification confirmation
Accident-insurance evidence
Service contract
Accommodation information

The destination country may require these documents in its own language or another accepted language.

Some Member States also require a local representative or contact person who can communicate with the labour authorities.

Sector-specific requirements may apply

Additional rules may apply to:

Construction
Road transport
Temporary agency work
Agriculture
Health and care work
Security services
Regulated professions
Industrial installation
Maritime and aviation work

Professional qualifications, health-and-safety cards, sector registration or licences may be required even when the posting itself is lawful.

Four different legal clocks

Several time limits are often mixed together online:

Time limit

What it concerns

Before departure

A1 request, posting notification and immigration checks should be completed

Short-stay period

Entry and residence rules depend on the destination, nationality and Schengen status

After 12 months

Expanded destination-country employment conditions generally apply

Up to 18 months

The core-condition period may sometimes be extended through notification

Up to 24 months

Ordinary maximum period for a posted-worker A1

Beyond 24 months

An A1 extension requires agreement between the relevant authorities or the worker may enter the destination’s social-security system

An A1 valid for 24 months does not automatically provide immigration permission for 24 months.

A1 extensions are not automatic. EU social-security guidance

One A1 is not permission to work anywhere in Europe

An A1 issued for a particular posting is not an open European work document.

It normally relates to:

A particular worker
A particular employer
A defined period
A defined employment situation
One or more identified countries

If the destination, employer, project or working pattern changes, the Portuguese employer should ask Social Security whether the certificate must be amended or replaced.

Someone who regularly works in two or more Member States may fall under different social-security rules from someone temporarily posted to one country.

Does the A1 prevent foreign taxation?

No.

Social Security and tax are separate.

An A1 determines the applicable social-security system. It does not determine where the worker must pay income tax.

There are no single EU-wide income-tax rules for posted workers. The answer depends on:

The tax treaty between Portugal and the destination country
The number of days spent there
Who the real or economic employer is
Which company bears the salary cost
Whether the Portuguese employer has a permanent establishment abroad
National payroll rules

The widely repeated 183-day rule is not an automatic exemption. Several conditions normally have to be satisfied together.

A worker may owe tax in the destination country even when staying fewer than 183 days. The Portuguese employer may also need foreign payroll registration, VAT analysis or permanent-establishment advice. EU guidance on tax during postings

What about a non-EU self-employed person?

This area requires particular caution.

An A1 for a self-employed person only concerns social-security coverage. It does not itself give a non-EU national the right to provide self-employed services throughout the EU.

The destination country may decide that:

The person has no right to work there independently.
A self-employment residence permit is required.
The person is actually an employee rather than genuinely self-employed.
The arrangement represents disguised employment.
The individual cannot rely on the same posting rights as an employee of an EU-established company.

Opening an activity in Portugal, obtaining a NIF or NISS and applying for an A1 does not create a general right for a non-EU national to work independently throughout Europe.

Common social-media claims: fact or fiction?

“A Portuguese TRC lets you work anywhere in Europe.”

False. It permits residence—and, depending on the document, employment—in Portugal. It is not an EU-wide work permit.

“Anyone with a NISS can get an A1.”

False. A NISS is only a Social Security identification number.

“One month of Portuguese Social Security guarantees an A1.”

False. Prior coverage is relevant, but the complete employment and posting arrangement must be genuine.

“An employer or agent can sell an A1.”

False. Only the competent Social Security authority can issue it.

“The same A1 allows work in every EU country.”

False. The certificate reflects a particular social-security situation. Every destination also has separate notification and immigration requirements.

“A direct job offer can be converted into a posting.”

Not simply by inserting a Portuguese company. If the foreign company is the real employer, ordinary immigration and work-authorisation rules may apply.

“No destination-country registration is necessary.”

False. Most Member States require advance posting notification and may require immigration or residence formalities.

“Portuguese wages are sufficient everywhere.”

False. Mandatory salary and working conditions in the destination country must normally be respected.

“An A1 means no foreign tax.”

False. Tax and Social Security are separate.

“An A1 allows a person to remain abroad for two years.”

False. It may confirm Social Security coverage for up to 24 months, but it does not provide two years of residence permission.

Warning signs of a possible scam

Be extremely cautious if a promoter, recruiter or company:

Calls a Portuguese residence card a “European work permit”
Guarantees an A1 before reviewing the case
Demands a large payment to a personal account
Offers to place the worker on payroll without real work
Says one payslip is enough
Refuses to identify the Portuguese employer
Refuses to identify the destination customer
Cannot explain the service being delivered
Cannot provide a written assignment
Says no destination-country notification is needed
Says the worker can arrange documents after travelling
Promises unrestricted work throughout the EU
Says the worker can change employers after arrival
Promises two years of residence based only on the A1
Pays less than the destination country’s mandatory wage
Counts travel or accommodation as salary
Pays salary in cash
Asks the worker to return part of their salary
Keeps passports or residence cards
Asks the worker to sign blank or false documents
Uses workers in jobs unrelated to their Portuguese employment
Repeatedly replaces workers to disguise a permanent foreign position

A professional-looking office, company registration or social-media following does not prove that the arrangement is lawful.

What should a worker verify before paying or travelling?

The worker should obtain:

The Portuguese company’s full name, NIPC, address and directors.
A valid commercial-registration certificate or access code.
A signed Portuguese employment contract.
Confirmation that the employment is registered with Social Security.
Genuine payslips and bank salary payments.
Evidence that the employer carries out real business in Portugal.
The destination customer’s full company details.
A written assignment identifying the project, location and dates.
Confirmation of a genuine contract between the two companies.
The authentic A1 issued by Portuguese Social Security.
Accident insurance covering the destination.
Confirmation of the destination-country posting notification.
Written immigration or residence guidance for that country.
The applicable destination-country wage and collective agreement.
Details of accommodation, travel and return arrangements.
Written information about tax and payroll obligations.
Contact details for the destination country’s labour authority.

Workers should never hand over their original passport or residence card to a recruiter. Copies should be securely marked with their purpose and date wherever possible.

Example of a genuine posting

A worker has been legally employed for a Portuguese engineering company and normally works in Portugal.

The Portuguese company wins a four-month contract to install equipment for a customer in another Member State.

The Portuguese employer:

Retains the employment relationship
Continues paying the salary
Continues Portuguese Social Security declarations
Requests the A1
Extends accident insurance
Notifies the destination authorities
Completes the necessary immigration procedure
Pays the applicable destination-country wage
Keeps the required documents available
Returns the worker after the project

This may qualify as a genuine posting.

Example of a potentially unlawful arrangement

A person pays a promoter to be added to the payroll of a Portuguese company.

The person does little or no work in Portugal and is sent abroad almost immediately. The foreign business selects the worker, supervises everything and effectively fills a normal vacancy.

There is no clear temporary service, no credible Portuguese business activity and no confirmed posting notification.

The worker is told that the A1 makes the arrangement legal.

Calling this a posting does not make it one. Authorities examine the reality behind the documents.

Possible consequences

An artificial or unlawful arrangement can lead to:

Labour inspections
Financial penalties
Unpaid wage claims
Foreign payroll and tax assessments
Social-security contribution disputes
Rejection or withdrawal of permits
Loss of the claimed posting exemption
Termination of the assignment
Immigration complications
Unsafe or exploitative accommodation
Withheld salaries
Loss of money paid to recruiters

The worker may carry the greatest personal risk, even when an employer or promoter designed the arrangement.

The rule everyone should remember

An A1 certificate follows genuine employment. It does not create genuine employment.

A lawful posting has:

A real Portuguese employer
Real work and Social Security coverage in Portugal
A real temporary service in another Member State
A continuing Portuguese employment relationship
Portuguese Social Security approval
Destination-country notification
Correct immigration documentation
Destination-country wages and employment protections
A planned end date and return

If the arrangement exists mainly on paper, the A1 is not a passport to European employment. It may become evidence of a much more serious problem.

Before paying anyone or travelling, verify the case through:

Portuguese Social Security
Your Europe – Posting staff abroad
European Commission – Posted workers
The official posting, immigration and labour authorities of the destination Member State

One careful verification before departure can prevent years of financial loss, exploitation and immigration uncertainty.