escalão
Published 5 November 2026, 03:36
escalão de rendimentos (income band)
The band in which social security places a family according to its income: it determines whether you get a benefit at all, how much you get, and your school benefits. It is calculated like this: the annual income of all family members is divided by the number of children entitled to abono de família plus one. There are five bands; for 2026 applications, 2025 income is used: up to €3,657.50 is the first band, up to €7,315 the second, up to €12,435.50 the third, up to €18,287.50 the fourth, and anything above that is the fifth. The lower the number, the more you get; in the fifth band you get nothing.
Where you come across it. Child benefit, after-school care, school meals, holiday camps: they all ask for a certificate showing your escalão.
You get the certificate in your Segurança Social Direta online account, but it only appears once the benefit has been granted: until you have applied, there is nothing there. The band is recalculated on the previous year's income, so it changes retrospectively.