How Does Mobilidade Interna Work for Teachers?

Mobilidade interna is a process, regulated by Decreto-Lei 32-A/2023 of 8 May, that reassigns career teachers who cannot be given a minimum teaching load at their current placement, or who wish to request a temporary transfer. Unlike the concurso externo or concurso interno, it is not primarily about entering or changing a permanent Quadro placement; it is about matching existing career teachers to available hours each year.

Who must enter mobilidade interna?

Two groups are mandatory candidates in first priority: teachers placed in a Quadro de Agrupamento or Escola nao Agrupada (QA/QEnA) who cannot be assigned at least 8 hours of componente letiva at their base school, and career teachers bound to a Quadro de Zona Pedagogica (QZP), according to reporting on the 2025/26 process by S.TO.P.. QZP teachers being mandatory candidates connects directly to how that Quadro type works, covered in our guide to Quadro de Agrupamento versus Quadro de Zona Pedagogica.

Who can enter voluntarily, and under what priority?

QA/QEnA teachers who already have a full teaching load but wish to request a temporary transfer to a different agrupamento can apply in second priority, subject to meeting the specific requirements for that category, per the same S.TO.P. reporting. This voluntary channel is separate from the concurso interno, which we compare directly in concurso externo versus concurso interno.

How does a teacher apply?

Applications run through SIGRHE during a fixed annual window; the DGAE publishes a manual de instrucoes for the candidatura electronica each cycle, which walks candidates through registering their priority category and expressing preferences. The underlying placement logic, ranking candidates and matching them to available agrupamentos, works the same way as it does elsewhere in the recruitment calendar, described in our guide to how SIGRHE placement works.

How does mobilidade interna interact with the Concurso Externo Extraordinario?

Teachers who entered a Quadro through the Concurso Externo Extraordinario have also been the subject of specific mobilidade interna rules in recent cycles, according to material published by FENPROF, so candidates who entered through that route should check whether cycle-specific conditions apply to them, a topic we cover separately in what the Concurso Externo Extraordinario is.

Is mobilidade interna the same as being placed by graduacao profissional?

Ranking within mobilidade interna still draws on a candidate’s professional standing, but the process is organised around priority categories, mandatory versus voluntary participation, rather than a single ranked list the way the concurso externo is; the underlying graduacao profissional concept is explained fully in how graduacao profissional is calculated.

Frequently asked questions

Is mobilidade interna optional for every teacher? No, teachers in the mandatory first-priority categories, including QA/QEnA teachers below the minimum teaching load and QZP career teachers, must participate.

Does mobilidade interna change a teacher’s permanent Quadro placement? Generally no, it reassigns teaching hours or grants a temporary transfer rather than altering the underlying Quadro integration, though rules can vary by category and cycle.

When does the application window typically open? Recent cycles have opened the candidatura window in July; candidates should confirm the exact dates on the current DGAE manual for that year.

Can a QZP teacher avoid mobilidade interna? QZP career teachers are listed as mandatory first-priority candidates, so avoiding the process is not generally an option for that category.

Where can I find the exam page covering the broader recruitment system? See the Concurso Externo de Docentes exam page.