# IMT - Faro Office



## JohnThomas0168

Hello

I need to swap my UK licence for a Portuguese one, and understand that the nearest IMT office is Faro.


1) Do I need to phone and make an appointment or just turn up an queue?

2) Has anyone else had a bad experience recently in doing this at the Faro Office?

Many thanks
John


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## MrBife

This place is a nightmare at the moment. Tried to renew my licence and failed (70 tickets ahead of me in the queue) gave up and paid an agency to do it for me for (€50) figuring my time was more valuable to me. You can download the form online in order to make sure you have all the right support documentation.


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## MrBife

If you have a an Android smart phone you can load an App called SIGA from Google Play. It is supposed to allow you to take an IMT ticket remotely and monitors the number being currently dealt with + the estimated waiting time. Amazing technology if indeed it worked which at the moment it doesn't because of volume of clients and general IT + government department malaise.

SIGA works nationally and for other departments as well as IMT. Once you have one the driving licence renewal is a simple online process. Even the medical check info is done by the doctor and entered online.

Th general website for IMT is here https://servicos.imt-ip.pt/login.aspx?ReturnUrl=/condutores.aspx so if you do have to go there, you can at least download the forms in advance and see the list of support documents needed.

The agency I appointed said they paid someone just to start queuing for them at about 5.45am whose job it was to get inside and take an early ticket. Then someone went with their daily bundle of applications; showed up after 9am and took over the slot.


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## Knollbrow

*IMT- as easy as 123*



JohnThomas0168 said:


> Hello
> 
> I need to swap my UK licence for a Portuguese one, and understand that the nearest IMT office is Faro.
> 
> 
> 1) Do I need to phone and make an appointment or just turn up an queue?
> 
> 2) Has anyone else had a bad experience recently in doing this at the Faro Office?
> 
> Many thanks
> John



Answers

1. No you can’t phone - i doubt they would even answer the phone - you need to join the ticketing queue. Therefore you need to be there early, before 9:00am

2. I swapped my licence in Beja and met a number of people who drove up from the Algarve saying Faro IMT was a nightmare - so my advice if you want to swap in a hurry is make a day of it - drive up (the roads are perfectly ok), take in the beautiful Alentejo landscapes, visit the town then go to an Adega for a winery tour - check out www.Malhadinhanova.pt/en/


More info

Note that to swap your licence you physically need to go to IMT for a photograph and signature. An agent can’t do that for you (obviously!)

The best plan is to drive to IMT Beja but get there early we’ll before 9:00 - leave around 7:00am to get there for it opening

Take copies of everything- Residency, NIF, etc - you’ll also need €30 for the fee

Top tip 1 - the touch screen thing that issues the tickets needs a real hard press - select IMT and option 6.

Top tip 2 - the IMT office is on the ground floor of the government building - go in and bear to the right - you will go into a darkish corridor, keep going and you will see IMT office ahead.

Top tip 3 - you can park immediately outside but it is metered - a couple of hours is €1.40 ish

Top tip 4 - be nice to the ladies working there - they are doing a difficult job and hugely busy - a smile a Bom Dia/Boa Tarde and a Muito Obrigado at the end makes everyone feel good

Top tip 5 - the new licence will be sent by post - make sure you have a secure way to receive it - I had to order up a ciaxa postal (a post box at €43!)

Top tip 6 - if you need to hire a car in the UK (or anywhere else outside Portugal) in the next 8 to 10 weeks you will have a dilemma - you will be issued with a letter from IMT to cover you for 8 weeks until your licence arrives (note: you have to surrender your uk photo ID licence) - if you need to hire a car outside Portugal then this letter will probably be of no use - do not try and use an old paper licence that you’ve kept after getting your photo ID licence - you will be immediately caught out via the rental checks as the docs have different driver IDs. Because IMT is currently so busy I think it will take a longish time for the licence to arrive - you will need to go back to IMT to get the date extended on your letter if it doesn’t come within the 8 weeks.

Simples !

Big thanks to David Cameron for all this joy


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## JohnThomas0168

Thanks, very helpful, and I will avoid Faro.

I need to get a fit to drive medical certificate first I think

As I still havent received the S1 Form from the UK, I will either have to wait or go to a private Doctor I suppose

J


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## Pgmills

Why blame Cameron? Surely the voters are to blame.......


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## Knollbrow

JohnThomas0168 said:


> Thanks, very helpful, and I will avoid Faro.
> 
> I need to get a fit to drive medical certificate first I think
> 
> As I still havent received the S1 Form from the UK, I will either have to wait or go to a private Doctor I suppose
> 
> J


Yes - what you need to get is an Atestado Medico.

What I did to get mine is as follows (there may be other ways but this worked for me):

1. Went to my local Centro de Saude (health centre) to register for a Utente Number (like an nhs number) I needed to take passport and Residency certificate - it doesn’t cost anything (other than your time).
NB: this is something you probably want to get anyway other than for just the driving licence swap - if you need to get medical help then you’ll need this - prescriptions are also cheaper with a Utente.

2. Made an appointment with a local private clinic (in my case Clinica Particular in Odemira ) - best to check first that they do the Atestado Medico though - They needed my new Utente Number, Residency Certificate and U.K. driving licence (as they look at the vehicle class entitlements)

3. The actual appointment cost €40 and took about 10 mins, most of which was online form filling by the doctor. My understanding is that there is also a direct electronic link between the doctor and the IMT. The blood pressure and eyesight tests took less than 2 mins - I came away with a printed letter - the Atestado Medico - which you take and hand over to IMT 

Hope that helps.

Big thanks to the voters for all this joy.

I was mistaken in thinking that history would record the root cause of Brexit as being attributable to a too confident, self serving incompetent, whose blasé referendum gamble led Europe into this utter mess. I stand corrected... it was in fact silly old us.

But looking on the bright side... the sun is shining and the continuing systemic incompetence at Westminster may give you a bit more time beyond 29 March to get things sorted out - so best of luck


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## JohnThomas0168

Thanks
That is helpful.

I am waiting for my S1 Form to arrive from the UK before I register with the health centre as I am now a pensioner. My partner however who is below pension age registered with them last week using just her passport and residency certificate and she had no problem, getting it straight away.

yes listening to the UK news this morning there will be an extension, although not yet clear for how long. What a mess!


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## Fred Said

MrBife said:


> This place is a nightmare at the moment. Tried to renew my licence and failed (70 tickets ahead of me in the queue) gave up and paid an agency to do it for me for (€50) figuring my time was more valuable to me. You can download the form online in order to make sure you have all the right support documentation.


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## Fred Said

Can you please tell me the name of the agency,
Regards


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## nububbo

Knollbrow said:


> *IMT- as easy as 123*
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Answers
> 
> 1. No you can’t phone - i doubt they would even answer the phone - you need to join the ticketing queue. Therefore you need to be there early, before 9:00am
> 
> 2. I swapped my licence in Beja and met a number of people who drove up from the Algarve saying Faro IMT was a nightmare - so my advice if you want to swap in a hurry is make a day of it - drive up (the roads are perfectly ok), take in the beautiful Alentejo landscapes, visit the town then go to an Adega for a winery tour - check out www.Malhadinhanova.pt/en/
> 
> 
> More info
> 
> Note that to swap your licence you physically need to go to IMT for a photograph and signature. An agent can’t do that for you (obviously!)
> 
> The best plan is to drive to IMT Beja but get there early we’ll before 9:00 - leave around 7:00am to get there for it opening
> 
> Take copies of everything- Residency, NIF, etc - you’ll also need €30 for the fee
> 
> Top tip 1 - the touch screen thing that issues the tickets needs a real hard press - select IMT and option 6.
> 
> Top tip 2 - the IMT office is on the ground floor of the government building - go in and bear to the right - you will go into a darkish corridor, keep going and you will see IMT office ahead.
> 
> Top tip 3 - you can park immediately outside but it is metered - a couple of hours is €1.40 ish
> 
> Top tip 4 - be nice to the ladies working there - they are doing a difficult job and hugely busy - a smile a Bom Dia/Boa Tarde and a Muito Obrigado at the end makes everyone feel good
> 
> Top tip 5 - the new licence will be sent by post - make sure you have a secure way to receive it - I had to order up a ciaxa postal (a post box at €43!)
> 
> Top tip 6 - if you need to hire a car in the UK (or anywhere else outside Portugal) in the next 8 to 10 weeks you will have a dilemma - you will be issued with a letter from IMT to cover you for 8 weeks until your licence arrives (note: you have to surrender your uk photo ID licence) - if you need to hire a car outside Portugal then this letter will probably be of no use - do not try and use an old paper licence that you’ve kept after getting your photo ID licence - you will be immediately caught out via the rental checks as the docs have different driver IDs. Because IMT is currently so busy I think it will take a longish time for the licence to arrive - you will need to go back to IMT to get the date extended on your letter if it doesn’t come within the 8 weeks.
> 
> Simples !
> 
> Big thanks to David Cameron for all this joy


hello mate

you mentioned you opened a po box.
my question is how did you manage to get it sent there , by putting the address of the po box on the imt formed filled in to exchange the driving license or is your po box mentioned on your residnecy certificate? 
IM about to send mine in to the imt and i dont wish to have it sent to the residency address i have registered.
then i suppose my next question is once you received your new plastic driving license, does this have the po box address on it or where you reside.

thanks
very much


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## MrBife

Fred Said said:


> Can you please tell me the name of the agency,
> Regards


I used Almancil Serviços website here


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## EvaC

MrBife said:


> This place is a nightmare at the moment. Tried to renew my licence and failed (70 tickets ahead of me in the queue) gave up and paid an agency to do it for me for (€50) figuring my time was more valuable to me. You can download the form online in order to make sure you have all the right support documentation.


Hello ! What agency did you use please ?


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## MrBife

EvaC said:


> Hello ! What agency did you use please ?


Almancil Servicos but I am told driving schools offer the same service


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