What is SAPA?
Updated: 21-04-2026
What is a Support Product?
A support product is defined as any product (including devices, equipment, instruments, technology and software), especially produced or generally available, to prevent, compensate, monitor, alleviate or neutralise disability, activity limitations and participation restrictions.Who is SAPA for?
For any person with a disability or disability who needs support products to eliminate/mitigate limitations in activity and restrictions in their participation due to their disability/disability situation.Who finances the support products?
Public bodies:
Health (ACSS, I.P.), Education (EduQA, I.P.), Social Security (ISS, I.P.) and Employment/Training (IEFP, I.P.).
How to request support products under SAPA?
When the need for support products is indispensable to the curriculum, in the context of pre-school education and primary and secondary education, the prescriptions and attributions of the products are carried out at the level of CRTIC - Technology, Information and Communication Resource Centres for Special Education, which operate at national level in several school clusters.
In the field of Health, the prescription must be made by Local Health Units (ULS). These units finance the support products they prescribe, after functional medical evaluation and family partner.
To request support products through the ISS, I.P., with the District Center of Social Security of the area of residence, or at SCML if residing in the municipality of Lisbon, the person with a disability or incapacity will have to be assessed by a specialized prescribing entity, and consequently be in possession of a prescription issued by one of these entities. You can obtain information about the documentation to be submitted and the respective procedures in the SAPA Practical Guide available online, from the service desk or Social Security inclusion desk.
Support products for training and employment are prescribed by a multidisciplinary technical team at the Resource Centres of the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional, I.P. or by the Centro de Formação Profissional de Alcoitão, provided that the support products in question are not the responsibility of the training entity and/or employer. The funding is carried out at the Employment Centre of the area of residence of the person with disabilities where you should request information on the documentation to be submitted and respective procedures.
Can any Support Product be funded through SAPA?
No, no. Only Support Products on the Approved List annexed to the Order No 11077/2025 of 19 September.
How can I order a support product?
By means of a prescription made in a prescribing centre
Where are requests made?
Depending on the situation of the person, the request can be made:
In Health , Local Health Units
At school, through CRTICs
In the Employment Services
Social Security, through its District Centers
What are the criteria for prescribing support products under SAPA?
Prescription criteria, regardless of the funder, are always preceded by a functional assessment, where people's needs and skills are identified in a biopsychosocial model (interaction between biological (genetics, body), psychological (mind, emotions) and social (environment, culture, socio-economic context)Is the prescription form a mandatory document for process instruction for SAPA funding?
Yes, yes. It is a mandatory document issued by the prescribing authority, without which there is no eligibility for funding.Do I need to present the Multipurpose Medical Disability Certificate (AMIM) for the financing of support products under SAPA?
No, no. The assessment of the need for a support product should be carried out regardless of the degree of disability and/or incapacity in order to compensate for and mitigate activity limitations and participation restrictions arising from the disability or incapacity.Can I purchase a support product and request reimbursement from SAPA funders?
In the investigation of processes for financing support products under SAPA, receipts for previously purchased support products are not accepted, except for the repair of support products under the terms defined by the funder.
With the publication of Law No º 2/2020 of 26 March 2020 for 2020, it was possible to obtain reimbursement under this system, in accordance with the provisions of Article º(3) of Article 391 of the EO, which reads ‘Financing shall take the form of reimbursement whenever the support products are previously purchased in accordance with a prescription issued by a prescribing authority, justifying the urgency of the purchase, as well as in cases of repair of the support products’.
Note: The ISS, I.P. and IEFP, I.P. have internal procedures for this reimbursement that you should consult in the respective entities.
You can consult the procedures of IEFP, I.P. at:
https://www.iefp.pt/documents/10181/190915/Produtos+apoio_pagamento+por+reembolsos;
You can consult the procedures of the ISS, IP at:
Will I be able to get financing for glasses through SAPA?
The glasses/lens of graduation and/or correction usually used are not covered by this financing system.How to request the prescription of the support product “Products with fixation system, single use”, commonly referred to as “diapers”?
The ‘Fraldas’ Support Products may be financed by the Instituto da Segurança Social, I.P. only if they are prescribed by a Multidisciplinary Team with a Nurse, in a Specialised Prescriptor Centre recognised by the ISS, I.P. It may also be financed through the National Health Service (SNS).
NOTE: As part of the financing of support products through health, and for better clarification, you should request specialized information on the purchase/refund of this product, through the email: Ajudatecnicas@acss.min-saúde.pt
Can I request repair of a support product?
Yes, yes. As defined by the funder, with presentation of the prescription sheet with reference to the respective ISO codes of the approved list (corresponds to the ISO code of the product to be repaired).Can I request works to make my home accessible through SAPA?
No, no. SAPA only funds products and does not fund services associated with the rehabilitation of housing or other spaces.How does the Support Product Monitoring Commission (CAPA) work?
The CAPA was created by Joint Order No º 3128/2013 of the Secretaries of State for Employment, Deputy to the Minister for Health, Basic and Secondary Education and Solidarity and Social Security, published in the Diário da República, 2.ª series, of 27 September 2013.
February 2013, with the aim of centralising information on the physical and financial implementation of donors in the financing of support products. When the CAPA was created, an email address (ProductsdeApoio@inr.mtsss.pt) was also created in order to centralize the reception of questions related to the SAPA thematic area.