The Institute for Social Security, based in Lisbon, Portugal, is a public institute under the Ministry of Social Security but with its own  administrative and financial autonomy, and assets. It was created in January 2001 with the aim of establishing a coordinated administration mechanism for all social benefits.

Areas of Intervention

• Children and young people
• Children at risk of social exclusion
• Homeless
• Older people 
• People with addiction
• People with physical disabilities
• People with mental disabilities
• Public Health
• Social justice
• People who are socially vulnerable
• People in situations of difficulty or precarity
• Victims of domestic abuse
• Gender equality
• Migrants
• Social Integration
• Beneficiaries of minimum income
• Poverty
• Recipients of care

Responsibilities/ Services

• Providing social services
• Transformation of care models
• Issuing of guidelines and policies for the district’s councils
• Capacity building and training
• Training of social welfare workforce
• Research and development
• Conducting inspections
• Child protection
• Assistance in cases of energy poverty
• Financial support
• Social insurance
• fostering cooperation with non-governmental organisations and the promotion of social volunteering.
• Research/ identifying and monitoring of social problems