Learn Portuguese in Portugal: Official Courses for Americans, Britons

The official way to learn Portuguese in Portugal is a Português Língua de Acolhimento (PLA) course, which the AIMA says is mostly free and open to anyone aged 16 or over whose mother tongue is not Portuguese. If you prefer an exam without a course, the CAPLE of the University of Lisbon runs the CIPLE at level A2 for 95 euros.

We read the pages named at the end on 19 October 2026. None of the AIMA, CAPLE or Camões pages carries a “last updated” date. The most recent dated item behind the facts stated here is the March 2024 strategic plan for learning Portuguese (the CAPLE page also lists its 2026 fee table, which has no date of its own), so 2025-04-01, the day this guide was first published, is the date of its information. This is a description of what the pages say, not legal advice.

What are the official Portuguese courses for foreigners?

The AIMA calls them cursos de Português Língua de Acolhimento. Its page says they were previously called Português para Falantes de Outras Línguas or Português para Todos, were created by Portaria 183/2020 of 5 August (amended by Portaria 184/2022 of 21 July), and are meant to answer the needs of migrants in Portugal who want to learn the language.

Three kinds of body run them, according to the same page: public schools, through the Direção-Geral dos Estabelecimentos Escolares; the training centers of the IEFP, the public employment and training institute; and the Centros Qualifica. The AIMA page says it does not run PLA courses itself.

Who can enrol, and what do you need?

The AIMA page says the courses are for citizens aged 16 or over whose mother tongue is not Portuguese and/or who lack basic, intermediate or advanced skills in Portuguese on the Common European Framework of Reference. Americans and Britons both qualify on this wording, since English is not Portuguese.

The question and answer page adds that the course is open “independentemente da sua situação regular no país”, meaning whatever your status in the country. Our first-year settling-in guide shows where the NISS and the residence steps come in.

How much do PLA courses cost?

The AIMA’s answer to the question “Os cursos PLA são gratuitos?” is yes, “na sua grande maioria”, though it can depend on the type of organizing body and on whether the course is co-financed by EU funds. The same PLA page says the courses can be co-financed by the PESSOAS 2030 program and FAMI 2030, the fund for asylum, migration and integration. The pages we read give no price list, so ask the school or center whether your course is free before you sign up.

What levels do the courses certify, and how long do they take?

The courses certify A1 plus A2 (basic user) and B1 plus B2 (independent user). Each path has a maximum of 150 hours, and the time it takes depends on how many hours per week the organizer teaches.

The A1 and A2 units cover daily routine, food and leisure, the body and health services, work, past and present, and communication in society, in 25-hour units. A further 25-hour unit exists for learners who use a non-Latin alphabet or another writing system. These are the AIMA’s own unit titles.

How do you find a course and sign up?

The AIMA gives three steps.

1. Search the Portal da Oferta Formativa for “Português Língua de Acolhimento” in the course-name field.
2. Contact the school, training center or Centro Qualifica to ask about enrolment, start dates, schedules and other requirements.
3. If you do not know which are nearest your home or work, email the AIMA language promotion service at lingua.portuguesa@aima.gov.pt.

The AIMA contact center answers Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., at (+351) 217 115 000, at a cost according to the tariff in force. We could not open an IEFP page dedicated to PLA courses, so for the IEFP network rely on the AIMA’s description and the Portal da Oferta Formativa.

Is there a free way to practice online first?

Yes. The AIMA’s Plataforma de Português Online is a self-study tool for adults who speak other languages, learning European Portuguese. Two levels, A and B, contain 24 functional thematic modules in text, audio, video and image, available in Portuguese, English, Arabic and Spanish. The AIMA says it is free and gives no certification. The address is pptonline.aima.gov.pt, and questions go to pptonline@aima.gov.pt.

What does a PLA certificate count for?

The AIMA says a certificate of level A2 or higher proves your knowledge of Portuguese for a permanent residence request, for long-term resident status and for a nationality request. A holder is also exempt from the language test for citizenship known as the Prova da Nacionalidade. The test options and fees are in our guide to the Portuguese language test for citizenship, and the full application is in citizenship by residence, step by step.

What is the CAPLE exam, and when does an exam make more sense?

The Camões page explains that certification of Portuguese as a foreign language is carried out by the CAPLE, a unit of the Faculty of Letters of the University of Lisbon recognized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through Camões, I.P., and by the Ministry of Education. Its six exams cover levels A1 to C2, whatever way you learned, and are for foreign citizens only. Camões says the exams are accepted for studies, an academic career, employment and obtaining Portuguese nationality, among other uses, and that they are taken through a network of more than 100 authorized centers (LAPE).

For citizenship, the CAPLE’s FAQ states: “Segundo a legislação portuguesa em vigor, o exame CIPLE (nível A2) é o nível mínimo para aquisição da nacionalidade portuguesa.” In English, under the legislation in force the CIPLE exam (level A2) is the minimum level for acquiring Portuguese nationality.

The pages do not rank the two. The course teaches you from level A1 and needs a residence title, a pending application, a visa or a NISS; the exam tests what you already know and asks for a fee. The exam’s fees, components and result process are described in more detail in the citizenship guide linked above.

Are there options for children and teenagers?

The CAPLE FAQ says there are versions of the A2, B1 and B2 exams for ages 12 to 15, and the TEJO exam for ages 9 to 11 at A1, A2 and B1. The Camões page describes Camões Júnior, a 120-minute digital exam for ages 12 to 17 that places candidates at A1, A2 or B1; candidates cannot be nationals of countries with Portuguese as an official language. For the school side, see our guide to enrolling a child in school in Portugal.

What are the limits of this guide?

It does not describe individual schools or waiting lists, because the pages we read do not publish them, and it does not cover university-level Portuguese. The AIMA’s strategic plan for learning Portuguese, with five axes, 39 measures and 68 activities, drawn up with a consultation held between 16 February and 11 March 2024, is a policy document and promises nothing about places.

Official pages read for this guide, all on 19 October 2026: the AIMA pages “Cursos de Português Língua de Acolhimento (PLA)”, “Perguntas e Respostas”, “Plataforma de Português Online” and the “Plano Estratégico” page; the Camões page on Portuguese as a foreign language certification; the CAPLE pages for the CIPLE and the FAQ.