Canadian Representative for manufacturers in Portugal
Portugal has no ISED-recognized certification body and no recognized test laboratory of its own, but the Canada–European Community mutual recognition agreement applies to Portugal as an EU member state — and Spain, next door, currently has two recognized certification bodies and two recognized laboratories. RSP-100 section 4.1 applies regardless: an applicant with a company address outside Canada appoints a Canadian Representative, and the certification body asks for the letter before issuing the IC number.
How certification runs from Portugal
The absence of a Portuguese entry on ISED's lists is about where capacity sits, not about whether Portuguese manufacturers can certify for Canada. The MRA attaches to the EU, so any recognized EU laboratory and any recognized EU body can handle a Portuguese file.
The nearest provision is Spanish: ISED's current recognized certification body list includes two Spanish entries, and the same two organizations appear on the recognized laboratory list. For a Portuguese manufacturer that is the shortest geography in the EU, same time zone or one hour out, and worth knowing before the file is sent to Germany by habit.
The alternative, usually shortest where a US programme is already running, is to let the North American certification body handling the FCC file issue the ISED certificate from the same measurements.
Check ISED's current lists before committing a schedule. Recognitions carry expiry dates and are renewed on a rolling basis, so what matters is which named body is recognized today rather than which country had capacity last year.
Canadian Representative versus the RED authorised representative
They are different roles with different scopes. The Radio Equipment Directive's Article 11 authorised representative holds the EU declaration of conformity and technical documentation and answers to EU market surveillance authorities. The ISED Canadian Representative answers ISED enquiries about one specific certification and provides audit samples at no charge to ISED, from an address in Canada, and holds none of your technical file.
Naming the EU authorised representative on the ISED application is a predictable cause of certification-body returns. See the requirement explained.
Practical notes
Entity naming. Use the registered legal form exactly — Lda., S.A., Unipessoal Lda. — matching the CB's application and the commercial registry. Mismatches cause returns.
Before you print. The Canadian manual's required notices must appear in English and in French under RSS-Gen section 9.3.1. Portuguese does not satisfy either, and a translated manual is a new print file rather than an edit, which is why this is the most expensive item to find late. Run nine checks before you print, or have us run them: label and manual review, US$249 per IC certification number.
Fee and timing. US$499 per certified product, paid once, for as long as the product is offered on the Canadian market. No renewal, no second invoice, revisions free with no time limit. Card through Stripe clears immediately; wires from Portuguese banks arrive in one to two banking days. We invoice in US dollars. Lisbon is five hours ahead of Ottawa, so a Portuguese morning order is normally issued by the Portuguese afternoon.
Audit samples. Shipped from Portugal to ISED's laboratory in Canada at the applicant's cost, documented as a regulatory sample; we coordinate. See ISED audit samples.
There is no Portuguese certification body on ISED's list. Can we still certify for Canada?
Yes. The Canada–EU mutual recognition agreement applies to Portugal as an EU member state, so a recognized body elsewhere in the EU can issue the certificate on data from a recognized EU laboratory.
Where is the nearest recognized capacity?
Spain, on ISED's current lists — two recognized certification bodies, both of which are recognized laboratories too. Confirm current status on the lists before relying on it.
Does certifying in Spain or Germany change who needs the representative?
No. Section 4.1 turns on the applicant's company address. A Portuguese applicant needs the Canadian Representative whichever recognized body issues the certificate.
Do the manual notices have to be in French?
For Canada, yes — English and French, under RSS-Gen section 9.3.1. Portuguese does not substitute for either.
Is our EU authorised representative enough?
No. Different role, different jurisdiction, different documents. You need the Canadian Representative as well.
Sources. RSP-100, Issue 12, section 4.1. ISED recognized certification bodies and recognized testing laboratories (check current status). Canada–European Community Agreement on Mutual Recognition. RSS-Gen, Issue 6, section 9.3.1. Directive 2014/53/EU (RED), Article 11.