How can you check that a Portuguese dental clinic is properly registered?
In Portugal, no clinic can operate without being entered in the register of the Entidade Reguladora da Saúde, the Portuguese health regulator, and the registration certificate must be displayed in a place visible to the public. From France, this register can be consulted on the regulator’s website, ers.pt. For that you need the legal name of the entity and the number of the establishment.
Three different numbers, and they are not the same
Whoever looks for the registration of a Portuguese clinic almost always stumbles in the same place: there is more than one number and they are not interchangeable. There is the registration number of the owning entity, there is the registration number of the establishment where the person is received, and there is the operating licence number of that establishment.
In this case, the entity is the Instituto AreLuna Medicina Dentária Avançada, Lda, whose company tax number (NIPC) is 516562240 and whose entity registration number is 37630. The establishment where dental care is provided is the one at Rua de Júlio Dinis, 194, 4050-327 Porto, with registration number 161637 and operating licence 21593.
It is the number of the establishment that counts, and not only that of the entity. The licence is granted by type of care and by address: the same entity can have one establishment licensed for one type of care and another that is not yet. That is why the address is part of the check, and not a detail.
Where it can be consulted
The register is kept by the Entidade Reguladora da Saúde, the health-sector regulator in Portugal, and it is published on the site ers.pt. The regulator explains itself, in its frequently asked questions addressed to providers, that registration is compulsory and that the registration certificate must be displayed in a place visible to the public.
That opens two paths, and it is better to take both. Before travelling, the provider is looked up in the register published by the regulator. Once on site, the certificate is looked for on the wall, where it should be. The two must say exactly the same thing.
Whoever prefers to ask, asks. A clinic that does not reply in writing with its legal name, the registration number of the establishment, the number of the licence and the full address is, in any case, replying.
What to do with the numbers once obtained
The step that almost nobody takes is the most useful: comparing. What appears in the register — legal name, address, postcode, type of care licensed — must match what is written on the website and on the quote. An address that does not coincide, a different street number, a postcode the wrong way round: none of this is insignificant.
In the event of a discrepancy, it is the register that prevails, because it is the one subject to verification. And it is worth asking the clinic where the difference comes from before making any appointment.
The same goes for the name: the trading name used on a website may not be the legal name entered in the register. That is not an irregularity, but you need to know which is which, otherwise the search returns nothing and leaves the false impression that the provider is not registered.
What the register says, and what it does not say
The register says that the establishment legally exists, that it is identified with the regulator and that it is licensed for a specific type of care. It is not an assessment of the quality of the treatment, it is not an opinion on the team and it is not a forecast about the case of whoever is reading.
For the particular case, there is no shortcut: it depends on a prior individual assessment and diagnosis. The register serves to know who you are talking to, which is the first step and not the last.
Frequently asked questions
Is the clinic obliged to display its registration certificate?
Yes. According to the Entidade Reguladora da Saúde, the registration certificate must be displayed in a place visible to the public, in the establishment itself.
And if the clinic has several addresses?
Each establishment has its own registration and its own licence. The check is made on the address where the treatment will be provided, and not on the company in general.
Since when has the Instituto AreLuna existed?
Since 2002. The Instituto AreLuna states more than 24 years of clinical activity in Porto. Seniority does not replace registration: both can be checked, and they are independent of each other.