Certidão permanente (online land registry certificate)
Certidão permanente do registo predial Online land registry certificate
Registration is proved by certificates, valid for a set period and renewable. The certidão permanente makes the content of such a certificate available on a website through an access code. It is valid proof for all legal purposes, on the same terms as the paper certificate.
In practice
It answers the two questions that matter before signing: who the registered owner is, and what charges — mortgages, attachments, encumbrances — are recorded against the property. It is checked before the promissory contract and again close to the deed.
The access code is handed to the buyer or their lawyer and lets them view an always-current certificate for as long as it is valid; the period can be renewed for as long as the information stays up to date. The property's tax information sits on the caderneta predial, which is a different document, from a different body, for a different purpose: one shows who owns the property, the other what it is worth for tax.