Prepaid or postpaid?
Prepaid supports short stays and cost control; postpaid may suit regular heavy use. Identity and NIF requirements vary by brand and sales channel.
Provider and brand
Alongside MEO, NOS, Vodafone and DIGI are lower-cost brands. Ownership, coverage and offers change, so rely on official provider information and compare post-promotion pricing, 5G and hotspot rules.
eSIM and activation
Support depends on operator, plan and device. Do not assume every product from each major operator supports eSIM. Protect the QR code and check reactivation rules.
Number portability and CVP
The CVP identifies the account for porting. Customer details must match. Porting does not erase device instalments or early-exit amounts.
EU roaming and Türkiye
EU/EEA roam-like-at-home is subject to fair-use conditions. Türkiye is outside that area; roaming in Türkiye and calls from Portugal to Türkiye can be priced separately.
Mobile service: choosing and keeping your number
Temporary data or a lasting number?
A prepaid plan can be flexible on arrival; continuity matters for the number you use for bank and CMD verification. A travel data eSIM may not provide local calling or SMS. Check handset eSIM support and carrier locking, and read fair-use, hotspot and speed conditions on unlimited offers. Coverage at home and work may differ.
Test activation
Test data, incoming and outgoing calls, and text messages. Record the package start, renewal day and automatic top-up conditions. With dual SIM, confirm which line is selected for calls and data. If your Turkish or other home-country SIM remains active, check roaming and background-data costs with that operator; do not assume that all plans work alike.
Porting and account security
ANACOM explains the CVP verification code used for number portability. The new provider’s form, current account-holder details and CVP should agree. Keeping a number does not automatically erase outstanding charges under the old contract. A new number and porting an existing number are different requests. Avoid scheduling essential SMS-authenticated tasks during the transition.
- Separate local voice/SMS needs from mobile data.
- Check commitment and prepaid expiry conditions.
- Verify the CVP and account-holder match.
- Update bank, CMD, SNS and other records separately if the number changes.
- Do not share eSIM QR codes or one-time security codes.
Official reference · Checked 6 October 2026.