The main informal caregiver is considered to be the caregiver who accompanies and cares for a person on a permanent basis, who lives with him/her in a housing community and who does not receive any remuneration for professional activity or for the care he/she provides to the cared person.
Non-primary informal caregiver is considered to be the caregiver who accompanies and cares for a person on a regular basis, but not permanently, and who may or may not receive remuneration for professional activity or for the care he/she provides to the person being cared for.
Who can apply for informal caregiver status
- Spouse or unmarried couples;
- Relative or similar to the 4th degree of the straight line or collateral line of the person being cared for (Ex: children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-grandchildren, parents, uncles, grandparents, great-grandparents, great-grandparents, great-uncles or cousins);
- All who provide regular or permanent care to the person being cared for who is in a situation of dependency.
Requirements inherent to the person being cared for
- Being in a situation of dependence on others and in need of permanent care;
- Not being welcomed in a social or health response, public or private, in a residential regime.
You must also have one of the following benefits:
- Third-party assistance allowance (SPATP);
- 2nd degree dependency supplement (CpD);
- 1st degree dependency supplement (CpD), provided that, temporarily, you are bedridden or in need of permanent care;
- 1st and 2nd degree dependency supplement and third-person assistance allowance granted by Caixa Geral de Aposentações (CGA).
As of July 1st, ALL Caregivers can apply for Informal Caregiver Status recognition through the online form at Direct Social Security, in the Family Menu, although they are not covered by all the measures to support the Caregiver, provided for in Ordinance No. 64/2020, they are already entitled to recognition as Caregivers!
Conditions for the recognition of the Informal Caregiver Status
The recognition of the Informal Caregiver Status depends on:
- The applicant fulfils the generic requirements and, in situations of primary informal caregiver, the specific requirements;
- The person being cared for complies with the requirements and gives his consent.
The status of informal caregiver can only be recognized by one caregiver per household.
