CONSTITUTION OF THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLICSEVENTH REVISION [2005]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREAMBLE
Fundamental principles
Art. 1 - (Portuguese Republic)
Art. 2 - (Democratic state based on the rule of law)Art. 3 - (Sovereignty and legality)
Art. 4 - (Portuguese citizenship)
Art. 5 - (Territory)
Art. 6 - (Unitary state)Art. 7 - (International relations)Art. 8 - (International law)Art. 9 - (Fundamental tasks of the state)Art. 10 - (Universal suffrage and political parties)
Art. 11 - (National symbols and official language)
PART I - Fundamental rights and duties
TITLE I - General principles
Art. 12 - (Principle of universality)
Art. 13 - (Principle of equality)
Art. 14 - (Portuguese abroad)Art. 15 - (Foreigners, stateless persons, European citizens)Art. 16 - (Scope and interpretation of fundamental rights)
Art. 17 - (Regime governing rights, freedoms and guarantees)
Art. 18 - (Legal force)
Art. 19 - (Suspension of the exercise of rights)
Art. 20 - (Access to law and effective judicial protection)
Art. 21 - (Right of resistance)
Art. 22 - (Liability of public entities)
Art. 23 - (Ombudsman)
TITLE II - Rights, freedoms and guarantees
CHAPTER I - Personal rights, freedoms and guarantees
Art. 24 - (Right to life)
Art. 25 - (Right to personal integrity)
Art. 26 - (Other personal rights)
Art. 27 - (Right to freedom and security)
Art. 28 - (Remand in custody)
Art. 29 - (Application of criminal law)Art. 30 - (Limits on sentences and security measures)Art. 31 - (Habeas corpus)
Art. 32 - (Safeguards in criminal procedure)Art. 33 - (Deportation, extradition and right of asylum)Art. 34 - (Inviolability of home and correspondence)
Art. 35 - (Use of information technology)
Art. 36 - (Family, marriage and filiation)
Art. 37 - (Freedom of expression and information)
Art. 38 - (Freedom of the press and the media)

Art. 39 - (Regulation of the media)
Art. 40 - (Right to broadcasting time, of reply and of political response)
Art. 41 - (Freedom of conscience, of religion and of form of worship)
Art. 42 - (Freedom of cultural creation)
Art. 43 - (Freedom to learn and to teach)Art. 44 - (Right to travel and to emigrate)
Art. 45 - (Right to meet and to demonstrate)
Art. 46 - (Freedom of association)
Art. 47 - (Freedom to choose a profession and of access to the public service)
CHAPTER II - Rights, freedoms and guarantees concerning participation in politics
Art. 48 - (Participation in public life)
Art. 49 - (Right to vote)Art. 50 - (Right of access to public office)Art. 51 - (Political associations and parties)
Art. 52 - (Right to petition and right of actio popularis)
CHAPTER III - Workers’ rights, freedoms and guarantees
Art. 53 - (Job security)
Art. 54 - (Workers’ committees)
Art. 55 - (Freedoms concerning trade unions)Art. 56 - (Trade union rights and collective agreements)
Art. 57 - (Right to strike and prohibition of lock-outs)
TITLE III - Economic, social and cultural rights and duties
CHAPTER I - Economic rights and duties
Art. 58 - (Right to work)
Art. 59 - (Workers’ rights)
Art. 60 - (Consumer rights)
Art. 61 - (Private enterprise, cooperatives and worker management)
Art. 62 - (Right to private property)
CHAPTER II - Social rights and duties
Art. 63 - (Social security and solidarity)
Art. 64 - (Health)Art. 65 - (Housing and urbanism)
Art. 66 - (Environment and quality of life)
Art. 67 - (Family)
Art. 68 - (Fatherhood and motherhood)Art. 69 - (Childhood)Art. 70 - (Youth)
Art. 71 - (Disabled citizens)Art. 72 - (The elderly)
CHAPTER III - Cultural rights and duties
Art. 73 - (Education, culture and science)
Art. 74 - (Education)
Art. 75 - (Public, private and cooperative education)
Art. 76 - (University and access to higher education)
Art. 77 - (Democratic participation in education)
Art. 78 - (Cultural enjoyment and creation)
Art. 79 - (Physical education and sport)
PART II - Organisation of the economy

TITLE I - General principles
Art. 80 - (Fundamental principles)
Art. 81 - (Priority duties of the state)Art. 82 - (Sectors of ownership of the means of production)
Art. 83 - (Requisites for compulsory purchase)
Art. 84 - (Public domain)
Art. 85 - (Cooperatives and worker-management experiments)
Art. 86 - (Private enterprises)
Art. 87 - (Foreign economic activity and investment)
Art. 88 - (Abandoned means of production)
Art. 89 - (Worker participation in management)
TITLE II - Plans
Art. 90 - (Objectives of plans)Art. 91 - (Drawing up and implementation of plans)Art. 92 - (Economic and Social Council)
TITLE III - Agricultural, commercial and industrial policies
Art. 93 - (Agricultural policy objectives)Art. 94 - (Elimination of very large estates)
Art. 95 - (Resizing of small farms)
Art. 96 - (Forms of use of non-owned land)Art. 97 - (State assistance)
Art. 98 - (Participation in defining the agricultural policy)
Art. 99 - (Commercial policy objectives)Art. 100 - (Industrial policy objectives)
TITLE IV - Financial and fiscal system
Art. 101 - (Financial system)
Art. 102 - (Bank of Portugal)
Art. 103 - (Fiscal system)
Art. 104 - (Taxes)
Art. 105 - (Budget)
Art. 106 - (Drawing up the Budget)
Art. 107 - (Scrutiny)
PART III - Organisation of political power
TITLE I - General principles
Art. 108 - (Source and exercise of power) Art.
109 - (Citizens’ participation in politics) Art.
110 - (Entities that exercise sovereignty) Art.
111 - (Separation and interdependence) Art.
112 - (Normative acts)
Art. 113 - (General principles of electoral law)Art. 114 - (Political parties and right of opposition)
Art. 115 - (Referenda)
Art. 116 - (Collegial organs)Art. 117 - (Statutes governing political officeholders)Art. 118 - (Renewal principle)
Art. 119 - (Publicising of acts)
TITLE II - President of the RepublicCHAPTER I - Status, role and election
Art. 120 - (Definition)
Art. 121 - (Election)
Art. 122 - (Eligibility for election)
Art. 123 - (Eligibility for re-election)
Art. 124 - (Nominations)Art. 125 - (Date of election)
Art. 126 - (Electoral system)
Art. 127 - (Installation and swearing in)
Art. 128 - (Term of office)Art. 129 - (Absence from Portuguese territory)
Art. 130 - (Criminal liability)
Art. 131 - (Resignation)
Art. 132 - (Acting President)
CHAPTER II - Competences
Art. 133 - (Competences in relation to other entities)
Art. 134 - (Personal competences)Art. 135 - (Competences in international relations)Art. 136 - (Enactment and veto)Art. 137 - (Failure to enact or sign)
Art. 138 - (Declaration of a state of siege or of a state of emergency)
Art. 139 - (Acts of an acting President of the Republic)
Art. 140 - (Ministerial counter-signature)
CHAPTER III - Council of State
Art. 141 - (Definition)
Art. 142 - (Composition)
Art. 143 - (Installation and term of office)Art. 144 - (Organisation and modus operandi)
Art. 145 - (Competences)Art. 146 - (Issue of opinions)
TITLE III - Assembleia da República
CHAPTER I - Status, role and election
Art. 147 - (Definition) Art.
148 - (Composition) Art.
149 - (Constituencies) Art.
150 - (Eligibility)
Art. 151 - (Nominations)Art. 152 - (Political representation)
Art. 153 - (Beginning and end of term of office)Art. 154 - (Incompatibilities and disqualifications)Art. 155 - (Exercise of the function of Member of the Assembleia da República)
Art. 156 - (Powers of Members of the Assembleia da República)
Art. 157 - (Immunities)
Art. 158 - (Rights and privileges)
Art. 159 - (Duties)
Art. 160 - (Loss and resignation of seat)
CHAPTER II - Competences
Art. 161 - (Political and legislative competences)Art. 162 - (Competence to scrutinise)
Art. 163 - (Competences in relation to other entities and organs)Art. 164 - (Exclusive legislative competence)
Art. 165 - (Partially exclusive legislative competence)
Art. 166 - (Form of acts)
Art. 167 - (Initiative in relation to laws and referenda)
Art. 168 - (Discussion and voting)
Art. 169 - (Parliamentary consideration of legislative acts)
Art. 170 - (Urgent proceedings)
CHAPTER III - Organisation and modus operandiArt. 171 - (Legislature)
Art. 172 - (Dissolution)
Art. 173 - (Sitting following elections)Art. 174 - (Legislative sessions, full sessions and calling)
Art. 175 - (The Assembly’s internal competences)Art. 176 - (Order of business of plenary sittings)
Art. 177 - (Attendance by members of the Government)
Art. 178 - (Committees)
Art. 179 - (Standing Committee)
Art. 180 - (Parliamentary groups)
Art. 181 - (Assembly staff and specialists)
TITLE IV - Government
CHAPTER I - Function and structure
Art. 182 - (Definition)
Art. 183 - (Composition)
Art. 184 - (Council of Ministers)Art. 185 - (Substitution of members of the Government)
Art. 186 - (Beginning and end of functions)
CHAPTER II - Formation and accountability
Art. 187 - (Formation)
Art. 188 - (The Government’s Programme)
Art. 189 - (Collective responsibility)
Art. 190 - (Government accountability)
Art. 191 - (Accountability of members of the Government)
Art. 192 - (Consideration of the Government’s Programme)
Art. 193 - (Request for confidence motion)
Art. 194 - (Motions of no confidence)
Art. 195 - (Resignation or removal of the Government)
Art. 196 - (Implementation of criminal liability of members of the Government)
CHAPTER III - Competences
Art. 197 - (Political competences)Art. 198 - (Legislative competence)
Art. 199 - (Administrative competences)Art. 200 - (Competences of the Council of Ministers)Art. 201 - (Competences of members of the Government)
TITLE V - Courts
CHAPTER I - General principles
Art. 202 - (Jurisdictional function)
Art. 203 - (Independence)
Art. 204 - (Compliance with the Constitution)

Art. 205 - (Court decisions)Art. 206 - (Court hearings)
Art. 207 - (Juries, public participation and technical advice)
Art. 208 - (Legal representation)
CHAPTER II - Organisation of the courts
Art. 209 - (Categories of court)
Art. 210 - (Supreme Court of Justice and instances)Art. 211 - (Competence and specialisation of courts of law)Art. 212 - (Administrative and tax courts)
Art. 213 - (Courts martial)
Art. 214 - (Court of Auditors)
CHAPTER III - Status and role of judges
Art. 215 - (Judges of the courts of law)Art. 216 - (Guarantees and incompatibilities)
Art. 217 - (Appointment, assignment, transfer and promotion of judges)
Art. 218 - (High Council for the Judiciary)
CHAPTER IV - Public Prosecution Service
Art. 219 - (Functions and statute)
Art. 220 - (Prosecutor General’s Office)
TITLE VI - Constitutional Court
Art. 221 - (Definition)
Art. 222 - (Composition and status and role of Justices)Art. 223 - (Competence)
Art. 224 - (Organisation and modus operandi)
TITLE VII - Autonomous regions
Art. 225 - (Political and administrative system of the Azores and Madeira)Art. 226 - (Statutes and electoral laws)
Art. 227 - (Powers of autonomous regions)Art. 228 - (Legislative autonomy)
Art. 229 - (Cooperation between entities that exercise sovereignty and regional organs)Art. 230 - (Representatives of the Republic)
Art. 231 - (Self-government organs of autonomous regions)Art. 232 - (Competences of Legislative Assemblies of autonomous regions)Art. 233 - (Signature and veto of Representatives of the Republic)
Art. 234 - (Dissolution and removal of self-government organs)
TITLE VIII - Local government
CHAPTER I - General principles
Art. 235 - (Local authorities)
Art. 236 - (Categories of local authority and administrative division)
Art. 237 - (Administrative decentralisation)
Art. 238 - (Local assets and finances)Art. 239 - (Decision-making and executive organs)Art. 240 - (Local referenda)
Art. 241 - (Regulatory power)
Art. 242 - (Administrative oversight)
Art. 243 - (Local authority staff)
CHAPTER II - Parishes

Art. 244 - (Parish organs)Art. 245 - (Parish assemblies)
Art. 246 - (Parish councils)
Art. 247 - (Associations)Art. 248 - (Delegation of tasks)
CHAPTER III - Municipalities
Art. 249 - (Changes to municipalities)
Art. 250 - (Municipal organs)Art. 251 - (Municipal assemblies)
Art. 252 - (Municipal councils)
Art. 253 - (Associations and federations)Art. 254 - (Share in revenue from direct taxes)
CHAPTER IV - Administrative regions
Art. 255 - (Creation by law)Art. 256 - (De facto institution)
Art. 257 - (Responsibilities)
Art. 258 - (Planning)
Art. 259 - (Regional organs)Art. 260 - (Regional assemblies)
Art. 261 - (Regional councils)
Art. 262 - (Government representatives)
CHAPTER V - Residents’ organisations
Art. 263 - (Formation and area)
Art. 264 - (Structure)
Art. 265 - (Rights and competences)
TITLE IX - Public Administration
Art. 266 - (Fundamental principles)
Art. 267 - (Structure of the Administration)
Art. 268 - (Citizens’ rights and guarantees)
Art. 269 - (Regime governing the public service)
Art. 270 - (Restrictions on exercise of rights)
Art. 271 - (Liability of public sector staff and agents)
Art. 272 - (Police)
TITLE X - National defence
Art. 273 - (National defence)
Art. 274 - (Supreme National Defence Council)
Art. 275 - (Armed Forces)
Art. 276 - (Defence of the nation, military service and civic service)PART IV - Guaranteeing and revision of the Constitution
TITLE I - Review of constitutionality
Art. 277 - (Positive unconstitutionality)
Art. 278 - (Prior review of constitutionality)
Art. 279 - (Effects of decision)
Art. 280 - (Concrete review of constitutionality and legality)
Art. 281 - (Abstract review of constitutionality and legality)
Art. 282 - (Effects of declaration of unconstitutionality or illegality)Art. 283 - (Unconstitutionality by omission)
TITLE II - Revision of the Constitution
Art. 284 - (Competence and time for revisions)Art. 285 - (Initiating revisions)Art. 286 - (Passage and enactment)
Art. 287 - (New text of the Constitution)
Art. 288 - (Matters in which revision is restricted)
Art. 289 - (Circumstances in which revision is restricted)
Final and transitional provisions
Art. 290 - (Previous law)Art. 291 - (Districts)
Art. 292 - (Criminalisation and trial of PIDE/DGS agents and officials)
Art. 293 - (Reprivatisation of property nationalised after 25 April 1974)
Art. 294 - (Regime applicable to local authority organs)Art. 295 - (Referenda on European treaties)
Art. 296 - (Date and entry into force of the Constitution)

PREAMBLE

On the 25th of April 1974 the Armed Forces Movement crowned the long resistance and reflected the
deepest feelings of the Portuguese people by overthrowing the fascist regime.
Freeing Portugal from dictatorship, oppression and colonialism represented a revolutionary change andthe beginning of an historic turning point for Portuguese society.
The Revolution restored their fundamental rights and freedoms to the people of Portugal. In the exerciseof those rights and freedoms, the people’s legitimate representatives are gathered to draw up a
Constitution that matches the country’s aspirations.
The Constituent Assembly affirms the Portuguese people’s decision to defend national independence,guarantee citizens’ fundamental rights, establish the basic principles of democracy, ensure the primacy of ademocratic state based on the rule of law and open up a path towards a socialist society, with respect for thewill of the Portuguese people and with a view to the construction of a country that is freer, more just andmore fraternal.
Meeting in plenary sitting on 2 April 1976, the Constituent Assembly does hereby pass and decree thefollowing Constitution of the Portuguese Republic:

Fundamental principles

Article 1(Portuguese Republic)
Portugal is a sovereign Republic, based on the dignity of the human person and the will of the people andcommitted to building a free, just and solidary society.

Article 2(Democratic state based on the rule of law)
The Portuguese Republic is a democratic state based on the rule of law, the sovereignty of the people,
plural democratic expression and political organisation, respect for and the guarantee of the effective
implementation of the fundamental rights and freedoms, and the separation and interdependence of powers,
with a view to achieving economic, social and cultural democracy and deepening participatory democracy.

Article 3(Sovereignty and legality)
1. Sovereignty is single and indivisible and lies with the people, who exercise it in the forms provided forin the Constitution.
2. The state is subject to the Constitution and is based on democratic legality.
3. The validity of laws and other acts of the state, the autonomous regions, local government and anyother public entities is dependent on their conformity with the Constitution.

Article 4(Portuguese citizenship)
All persons whom the law or an international convention considers to be Portuguese citizens are suchcitizens.

Article 5(Territory)
1. Portugal comprises the territory on the European mainland that is historically defined as Portuguese, and
the Azores and Madeira archipelagos.
2. The law shall define the extent and limit of Portugal’s territorial waters, its exclusive economic zone andits rights to the adjacent seabeds.
3. Without prejudice to the rectification of borders, the state shall not dispose of any part of Portuguese
territory or of the sovereign rights that it exercises thereover.

Article 6(Unitary state)
1. The state is unitary and the way in which it is organised and functions shall respect the autonomous
island system of self-government and the principles of subsidiarity, the autonomy of local authorities andthe democratic decentralisation of the Public Administration.
2. The Azores and Madeira archipelagos are autonomous regions with their own political and administrative
statutes and self-government institutions.

Article 7(International relations)
1. In its international relations Portugal is governed by the principles of national independence, respect forhuman rights, the rights of peoples, equality between states, the peaceful settlement of international
conflicts, non-interference in the internal affairs of other states and cooperation with all other peoples
with a view to the emancipation and progress of mankind.
2. Portugal advocates the abolition of imperialism, colonialism and any other forms of aggression, dominionand exploitation in the relations between peoples, as well as simultaneous and controlled general
disarmament, the dissolution of the political-military blocs and the establishment of a collective security
system, with a view to the creation of an international order that is capable of ensuring peace and justice inthe relations between peoples.
3. Portugal recognises peoples’ rights to self-determination and independence and to development, as wellas the right of insurrection against all forms of oppression.
4. Portugal maintains privileged ties of friendship and cooperation with Portuguese-speaking countries.

5. Portugal is committed to reinforcing the European identity and to strengthening the European states’
actions in favour of democracy, peace, economic progress and justice in the relations between peoples.
6. Subject to reciprocity and with respect for the fundamental principles of a democratic state based on
the rule of law and for the principle of subsidiarity, and with a view to the achievement of the economic,
social and territorial cohesion of an area of freedom, security and justice and the definition andimplementation of a common external, security and defence policy, Portugal may agree to the joint
exercise, in cooperation or by the Union’s institutions, of the powers needed to construct and deepen theEuropean Union.
7. With a view to achieving an international justice that promotes respect for the rights of the humanperson and of peoples, and subject to the provisions governing complementarity and the other terms laid
down in the Rome Statute, Portugal may accept the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.

Article 8(International law)
1. The norms and principles of general or common international law form an integral part of Portugueselaw.
2. The norms contained in duly ratified or approved international conventions come into force in Portuguese
internal law once they have been officially published, and remain so for as long as they are internationallybinding on the Portuguese state.
3. The norms issued by the competent organs of international organisations to which Portugal belongs
come directly into force in Portuguese internal law, on condition that this is laid down in the respective
constituent treaties.
4. The provisions of the treaties that govern the European Union and the norms issued by its institutionsin the exercise of their respective competences are applicable in Portuguese internal law in accordance with
Union law and with respect for the fundamental principles of a democratic state based on the rule of law.

Article 9(Fundamental tasks of the state)
The fundamental tasks of the state are:a) To guarantee national independence and create the political, economic, social and cultural conditions
that promote it;b) To guarantee the fundamental rights and freedoms and respect for the principles of a democratic statebased on the rule of law;c) To defend political democracy and safeguard and encourage citizens’ democratic participation in the
resolution of national problems;d) To promote the people’s well-being and quality of life and real equality between the Portuguese, as
well as the effective implementation of economic, social, cultural and environmental rights by means of
the transformation and modernisation of economic and social structures;e) To protect and enhance the Portuguese people’s cultural heritage, defend nature and the environment,
preserve natural resources and ensure correct town and country planning;f) To ensure that the Portuguese language is taught and constantly valued, defend its use and promote its
international dissemination;g) To promote the harmonious development of the whole of Portuguese territory, with particular re gard to
the ultraperipheral nature of the Azores and Madeira archipelagos;h) To promote equality between men and women.

Article 10(Universal suffrage and political parties)
1. The people exercise political power by means of universal, equal, direct, secret and periodic suffrage,
referendum and the other forms provided for in the Constitution.
2. Political parties exist in order to contribute to the organisation and expression of the will of the people,
with respect for the principles of national independence, the unity of the state and political democracy.

Article 11(National symbols and official language)
1. The National Flag, which is the symbol of the sovereignty of the Republic and of Portugal’s
independence, unity and integrity, is that adopted by the Republic formed by the Revolution of the 5th ofOctober 1910.
2. The national anthem is A Portuguesa.
3. The official language is Portuguese.

PART I
Fundamental rights and duties
TITLE I
General principles
Article 12(Principle of universality)
1. Every citizen enjoys the rights and is subject to the duties enshrined in the Constitution.
2. Legal persons enjoy the rights and are subject to the duties that are compatible with their nature.

Article 13(Principle of equality)
1. All citizens possess the same social dignity and are equal before the law.
2. No one may be privileged, favoured, prejudiced, deprived of any right or exempted from any duty forreasons of ancestry, sex, race, language, territory of origin, religion, political or ideological beliefs,
education, economic situation, social circumstances or sexual orientation.

Article 14(Portuguese abroad)
Portuguese citizens who find themselves or who reside abroad enjoy the state’s protection in the exerciseof the rights and are subject to the duties that are not incompatible with their absence from the country.

Article 15(Foreigners, stateless persons, European citizens)
1. Foreigners and stateless persons who find themselves or who reside in Portugal enjoy the same rights
and are subject to the same duties as Portuguese citizens.
2. Political rights, the exercise of public functions that are not predominantly technical in nature, and therights and duties that the Constitution and the law reserve exclusively to Portuguese citizens are exceptedfrom the provisions of the previous paragraph.
3. Save for access to appointment to the offices of President of the Republic, President of the Assembleia da
República, Prime Minister and President of any of the supreme courts, and for service in the armed forces
and the diplomatic corps, rights that are not otherwise granted to foreigners are accorded, as laid down by
law and under reciprocal terms, to the citizens of Portuguese-speaking states who reside permanently inPortugal.
4. Under reciprocal terms, the law may accord foreigners who reside in Portugal the eligibility to vote forand stand for election as officeholders of local authority organs.
5. Under reciprocal terms, the law may also accord citizens of European Union Member States who residein Portugal the eligibility to vote for and stand for election as Members of the European Parliament.

Article 16(Scope and interpretation of fundamental rights)
1. The fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution shall not exclude any others set out in applicableinternational laws and legal rules.
2. The constitutional and legal precepts concerning fundamental rights must be interpreted and completed
in harmony with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Article 17(Regime governing rights, freedoms and guarantees)
The regime governing rights, freedoms and guarantees applies to those set out in Title II and to
fundamental rights of an analogous nature.

Article 18

(Legal force)
1. The constitutional precepts with regard to rights, freedoms and guarantees are directly applicable andare binding on public and private entities.
2. The law may only restrict rights, freedoms and guarantees in cases expressly provided for in theConstitution, and such restrictions must be limited to those needed to safeguard other constitutionallyprotected rights and interests.
3. Laws that restrict rights, freedoms and guarantees must have a general and abstract nature and may nothave a retroactive effect or reduce the extent or scope of the essential content of the constitutional precepts.

Article 19(Suspension of the exercise of rights)
1. Entities that exercise sovereignty may not jointly or separately suspend the exercise of the rights,
freedoms and guarantees, save in the case of a state of siege or a state of emergency declared in the form
provided for in the Constitution.
2. A state of siege or a state of emergency may only be declared in part or all of Portuguese territory incases of actual or imminent aggression by foreign forces, a serious threat to or disturbance of democratic
constitutional order, or public disaster.
3. A state of emergency is declared when the preconditions referred to in the previous paragraph are lessserious, and may only cause the suspension of some of the rights, freedoms and guarantees that are capableof being suspended.
4. Both the choice between a state of siege and a state of emergency and the declaration and implementation
thereof must respect the principle of proportionality and limit themselves, particularly as regards their extent
and duration and the means employed, to that which is strictly necessary for the prompt restoration of
constitutional normality.
5. Declarations of a state of siege or a state of emergency shall set out adequate grounds therefore andspecify the rights, freedoms and guarantees whose exercise is to be suspended. Without prejudice to thepossibility of renewals subject to the same limits, neither state may last for more than fifteen days, or, when
it results from a declaration of war, for more than the duration laid down by law.
6. In no case may a declaration of a state of siege or a state of emergency affect the rights to life, personal
integrity, personal identity, civil capacity and citizenship, the non-retroactivity of the criminal law, accused
persons’ right to a defence, or the freedom of conscience and religion.
7. Declarations of a state of siege or a state of emergency may only alter constitutional normality inaccordance with the provisions of the Constitution and the law. In particular, they may not affect theapplication of the constitutional rules concerning the competences and modus operandi of the entities thatexercise sovereignty or of the self-government organs of the autonomous regions, or the rights andimmunities of the respective officeholders.
8. Declarations of a state of siege or a state of emergency grant the public authorities the competence totake the steps that are necessary and appropriate for the prompt restoration of constitutional normality.

Article 20(Access to law and effective judicial protection)

1. Everyone is guaranteed access to the law and the courts in order to defend those of his rights andinterests that are protected by law, and justice may not be denied to anyone due to lack of sufficientfinancial means.
2. Subject to the terms of the law, everyone has the right to legal information and advice, to legal counsel
and to be accompanied by a lawyer before any authority.
3. The law shall define and ensure adequate protection of the secrecy of legal proceedings.
4. Everyone has the right to secure a decision in any suit in which he is intervening, within a reasonable
time limit and by means of fair process.
5. For the purpose of defending the personal rights, freedoms and guarantees and in such a way as tosecure effective and timely judicial protection against threats thereto or breaches thereof, the law shallensure citizens judicial proceedings that are characterised by their swiftness and by the attachment ofpriority to them.

Article 21(Right of resistance)
Everyone has the right to resist any order that infringes their rights, freedoms or guarantees and, when it
is not possible to resort to the public authorities, to use force to repel any aggression.

Article 22(Liability of public entities)
Jointly with the officeholders of their entities and organs and their staff and agents, the state and otherpublic entities are civilly liable for actions or omissions that are committed in or because of the exerciseof their functions and result in a breach of rights, freedoms or guarantees or in a loss to others.

Article 23(Ombudsman)
1. Citizens may submit complaints against actions or omissions by the public authorities to the
Ombudsman, who shall assess them without the power to take decisions and shall send the competent
entities and organs the recommendations needed to prevent or make good any injustices.
2. The Ombudsman’s work is independent of any non-judicial or judicial remedies provided for in theConstitution or the law.
3. The Ombudsman is an independent entity and the Assembleia da República shall appoint him for theperiod laid down by law.
4. The entities, organs and agents of the Public Administration shall cooperate with the Ombudsman in
the fulfilment of his mission.

TITLE II
Rights, freedoms and guarantees

CHAPTER I
Personal rights, freedoms and guarantees
Article 24(Right to life)
1. Human life is inviolable.
2. In no case shall there be the death penalty.

Article 25(Right to personal integrity)
1. Every person’s moral and physical integrity is inviolable.
2. No one may be subjected to torture or to cruel, degrading or inhuman treatment or punishment.

Article 26(Other personal rights)
1. Everyone is accorded the rights to personal identity, to the development of personality, to civil
capacity, to citizenship, to a good name and reputation, to their image, to speak out, to protect the privacyof their personal and family life, and to legal protection against any form of discrimination.
2. The law shall lay down effective guarantees against the improper procurement and misuse of
information concerning persons and families and its procurement or use contrary to human dignity.
3. The law shall guarantee the personal dignity and genetic identity of the human person, particularly inthe creation, development and use of technologies and in scientific experimentation.
4. Deprivation of citizenship and restrictions on civil capacity may only occur in the cases and under theterms that are provided for by law, and may not be based on political motives.

Article 27(Right to freedom and security)
1. Everyone has the right to freedom and security.
2. No one may be wholly or partially deprived of their freedom, except as a consequence of a judicial
conviction and sentence imposed for the practice of an act that is legally punishable by a prison term or
the judicial imposition of a security measure.
3. The following cases of deprivation of freedom for the period and under the conditions laid down by
law are exceptions to this principle:a) Detention in flagrante delicto;b) Detention or remand in custody due to strong indications of the wilful commission of a crime that is
punishable by imprisonment for a maximum term of more than three years;c) The imprisonment or detention of, or the imposition of any other coercive measure subject to judicial
control on, a person who improperly entered or improperly remains in Portuguese territory, or who iscurrently the object of extradition or deportation proceedings;d) The disciplinary imprisonment of military personnel, subject to the guarantee of appeal to the competentcourt;e) The subjection of a minor to measures intended to protect, assist or educate him in a suitableestablishment, when ordered by the competent court of law;f) Detention by judicial decision for disobeying a court decision or to ensure appearance before a competentjudicial authority;g) Detention of suspects for identification purposes, in the cases that are and for the time that is strictly
necessary;h) Committal of a person suffering from a psychic anomaly to an appropriate therapeutic establishment,
when ordered or confirmed by a competent judicial authority.
4. Every person who is deprived of his freedom must immediately be informed in an understandable
manner of the reasons for his arrest, imprisonment or detention and of his rights.
5. Deprivation of freedom contrary to the provisions of the Constitution or the law places the state under aduty to compensate the aggrieved person in accordance with the law.

Article 28(Remand in custody)
1. Within a time limit of at most forty-eight hours, all detentions shall be submitted to judicial consideration
with a view to either the detainee’s release or the imposition of an appropriate coercive measure. The
judge must become acquainted with the reasons that caused the detention and must inform the detainee
thereof, question him and give him the opportunity to present a defence.
2. Remand in custody is exceptional in nature and shall not be ordered or maintained whenever it ispossible to grant bail or apply another, more favourable measure provided for by law.
3. The judicial decision to institute or maintain a measure entailing the deprivation of freedom shallimmediately be communicated to the relative or person of trust nominated by the detainee.
4. Remand in custody is subject to the time limits laid down by law.

Article 29(Application of criminal law)
1. No one may be sentenced under the criminal law unless the action or omission in question ispunishable under a pre-existing law, nor may any person be the object of a security measure unless theprerequisites therefore are laid down by a pre-existing law.
2. The provisions of the previous paragraph do not preclude the punishment up to the limits laid down byinternal Portuguese law of an action or omission which was deemed criminal under the general principles
of international law that were commonly recognised at the moment of its commission.

3. No sentence or security measure may be applied unless it is expressly sanctioned by a pre-existing law.
4. No one may be the object of a sentence or security measure that is more severe than those provided forat the moment of the conduct in question, or at that at which the prerequisites for the application of such ameasure were fulfilled, while criminal laws whose content is more favourable to the accused person shallbe applied retroactively.
5. No one may be tried more than once for commission of the same crime.
6. Citizens who are unjustly convicted have the right to the review of their sentences and to compensation
for the damages they have suffered, as laid down by law.

Article 30(Limits on sentences and security measures)
1. No sentence or security measure that deprives or restricts freedom may be perpetual in nature or havean unlimited or undefined duration.
2. In cases of danger based on a serious psychic abnormality in which therapy in an open environment is
impossible, security measures that deprive or restrict freedom may be successively extended for as longas the psychic state in question is maintained, but always by judicial decision.
3. Criminal liability is not transferable.
4. No sentence shall automatically involve the loss of any civil, professional or political right.
5. Convicted persons who are the object of a sentence or security measure that deprives them of theirfreedom retain their fundamental rights, save for the limitations that are inherent to the purpose of theirconvictions and to the specific requirements imposed by the execution of the respective sentences.

Article 31(Habeas corpus)
1. Habeas corpus is available to counter misuse of power in the form of illegal arrest, imprisonment or
detention. Application for it must be made to the competent court.
2. Application for a habeas corpus order may be made by the person so arrested, imprisoned or detained,or by any citizen in possession of his political rights.
3. Within a time limit of eight days of an application for habeas corpus, the judge shall rule thereon in ahearing that shall be subject to the adversarial principle.

Article 32(Safeguards in criminal procedure)
1. Criminal procedure shall ensure all the safeguards of the defence, including the right to appeal.
2. Every accused person is presumed innocent until the sentence in which he was convicted has transitedin rem judicatam, and must be tried as quickly as is compatible with the safeguards of the defence.

3. Accused persons have the right to choose counsel and to be assisted by him in relation to every procedural
act. The law shall specify those cases and phases of procedure in which the assistance of a lawyer ismandatory.
4. All committal proceedings shall be the competence of a judge, who may, as laid down by law, delegate
the practice of such committal-related acts as do not directly concern fundamental rights to other entities.
5. Criminal procedure shall possess an accusatorial structure, and trial hearings and the committal-related
acts that are required by law shall be subject to the adversarial principle.
6. The law shall define the cases in which, subject to the safeguarding of the rights of the defence, thepresence of the accused person at procedural acts, including trial hearings, may be dispensed with.
7. Victims have the right to intervene in the proceedings, as laid down by law.
8. All evidence obtained by torture, coercion, infringement of personal physical or moral integrity, or
improper intromission into personal life, the home, correspondence or telecommunications is null andvoid.
9. No case may be withdrawn from a court that was competent under a pre-existing law.
10. Accused persons in proceedings concerning administrative offences or in any proceedings in whichsanctions may be imposed are assured the right to be heard and to a defence.

Article 33(Deportation, extradition and right of asylum)
1. The deportation of Portuguese citizens from Portuguese territory is not permitted.
2. Deportation of anyone who properly entered or is properly remaining in Portuguese territory, has been
granted a residence permit or has submitted a request for asylum that has not been refused may only beordered by a judicial authority. The law shall assure expedite forms of decision in such cases.
3. The extradition of Portuguese citizens from Portuguese territory is only permissible where aninternational convention has established reciprocal extradition arrangements, in cases of terrorism orinternational organised crime, and on condition that the applicant state’s legal system enshrines
guarantees of just and fair proceedings.
4. Extradition for crimes that are punishable under the applicant state’s law by a sentence or security
measure which deprives or restricts freedom in perpetuity or for an undefined duration, is only
permissible if the applicant state is a party to an international convention in this domain to which Portugal
is bound, and offers guarantees that such a sentence or security measure will not be applied or executed.
5. The provisions of the previous paragraphs do not prejudice the application of the norms governing
judicial cooperation in the criminal field that are laid down within the scope of the European Union.
6. The extradition or handing over of a person under any circumstances for political reasons, or for crimes
which are punishable under the applicant state’s law by death or by any other sentence that results inirreversible damage to physical integrity, is not permitted.
7. Extradition may only be ordered by a judicial authority.
8. The right of asylum is guaranteed to foreigners and stateless persons who are the object, or are undergrave threat, of persecution as a result of their activities in favour of democracy, social and national
liberation, peace among peoples, freedom or the rights of the human person.
9. The law shall define the status of political refugee.

Article 34(Inviolability of home and correspondence)
1. Domiciles and the secrecy of correspondence and other means of private communication are inviolable.
2. Entry into a citizen’s domicile against his will may only be ordered by the competent judicial authority
and then only in the cases and in compliance with the forms laid down by law.
3. No one may enter any person’s domicile at night without his consent, save in situations of flagrantedelicto, or with judicial authorisation in cases of especially violent or highly organised crime including
terrorism and trafficking in persons, arms or narcotics, as laid down by law.
4. The public authorities are prohibited from interfering in any way with correspondence,telecommunications or other means of communication, save in the cases in which the law so provides inmatters related to criminal procedure.

Article 35(Use of information technology)
1. Every citizen has the right of access to all computerised data that concern him, which he may require to
be corrected and updated, and the right to be informed of the purpose for which they are intended, as laid
down by law.
2. The law shall define the concept of personal data, together with the terms and conditions applicable toits automatised treatment and its linkage, transmission and use, and shall guarantee its protection,
particularly by means of an independent administrative entity.
3. Information technology may not be used to treat data concerning philosophical or political convictions,party or trade union affiliations, religious faith, private life or ethnic origins, save with the express
consent of the data subject, or with an authorisation provided for by law and with guarantees of
non-discrimination, or for the purpose of processing statistical data that are not individually identifiable.
4. Third-party access to personal data is prohibited, save in exceptional cases provided for by law.
5. The allocation of a single national number to any citizen is prohibited.
6. Everyone is guaranteed free access to public-use information technology networks. The law shalldefine the regime governing cross-border data flows, and the appropriate means for protecting both personal
data and other data whose safeguarding is justified in the national interest.
7. Personal data contained in manual files enjoy the same protection as that provided for in the previous
paragraphs, as laid down by law.

Article 36(Family, marriage and filiation)
1. Everyone has the right to form a family and to marry under conditions of full equality.
2. The law shall regulate the requisites for and the effects of marriage and its dissolution by death or
divorce, regardless of the form in which it was entered into.

3. Spouses have equal rights and duties in relation to their civil and political capacity and to the maintenanceand education of their children.
4. Children born outside wedlock may not be the object of any discrimination for that reason, and neither
the law, nor official departments or services may employ discriminatory terms in relation to filiation.
5. Parents have the right and the duty to educate and maintain their children.
6. Children may not be separated from their parents, save when the latter do not fulfil their fundamental
duties towards them, and then always by judicial decision.
7. Adoption shall be regulated and protected in accordance with the law, which must lay down swift
forms for completion of the respective procedural requirements.

Article 37(Freedom of expression and information)
1. Everyone has the right to freely express and divulge his thoughts in words, images or by any othermeans, as well as the right to inform others, inform himself and be informed without hindrance or
discrimination.
2. Exercise of these rights may not be hindered or limited by any type or form of censorship.
3. Infractions committed in the exercise of these rights are subject to the general principles of the criminal
law or the law governing administrative offences, and the competence to consider them shall pertain to
the courts of law or an independent administrative entity respectively, as laid down by law.
4. Every natural and legal person shall be equally and effectively ensured the right of reply and to makecorrections, as well as the right to compensation for damages suffered.

Article 38(Freedom of the press and the media)
1. Freedom of the press is guaranteed.
2. Freedom of the press implies:a) Freedom of expression and creativity on the part of journalists and other staff, as well as journalists’
freedom to take part in deciding the editorial policy of their media entity, save when the latter is doctrinalor religious in nature;b) That journalists have the right, as laid down by law, of access to sources of information, and to theprotection of professional independence and secrecy, as well as the right to elect editorial boards;c) The right to found newspapers and any other publications, without the need for any prior administrative
authorisation, bond or qualification.
3. In generic terms, the law shall ensure that the names of the owners of media entities and the means bywhich those entities are financed are publicised.
4. The state shall ensure the freedom and independence of media entities from political power andeconomic power by imposing the principle of specialisation on enterprises that own general information

media entities, treating and supporting them in a non-discriminatory manner and preventing theirconcentration, particularly by means of multiple or interlocking interests.
5. The state shall ensure the existence and operation of a public radio and television service.
6. The structure and modus operandi of public sector media must safeguard their independence from theGovernment, the Administration and the other public authorities, and must ensure that all different currentsof opinion are able to express themselves and confront one another.
7. Radio and television broadcasting stations may only operate with licences that are granted undercompetitive public selection processes, as laid down by law.

Article 39(Regulation of the media)
1. An independent administrative entity shall be responsible for ensuring the following in the media:a) The right to information and the freedom of the press;b) The non-concentration of ownership of the media;c) Independence from political power and economic power; d)Respect for the personal rights, freedoms and guarantees; e)Respect for the norms that regulate the work of the media;f) That all different currents of opinion are able to express themselves and confront one another;g) Exercise of the rights to broadcasting time, of reply and of political response.
2. The law shall define the composition, competences, organisation and modus operandi of the entity
referred to in the previous paragraph, together with the statute governing its members, who shall be
appointed by the Assembleia da República and co-opted by those so appointed.

Article 40(Rights to broadcasting time, of reply and of political response)
1. Political parties, trade union and professional organisations and organisations that represent economic
activities, and other social organisations with a national scope have the right to broadcasting time on the
public radio and television service, in accordance with their prominence and representativity and with
objective criteria that shall be defined by law.
2. Political parties that are represented in the Assembleia da República and do not form part of theGovernment have the right to broadcasting time on the public radio and television service, as laid down
by law, which shall be apportioned in accordance with each party’s proportional share of the seats in the
Assembly, together with the right to reply or respond politically to the Government’s political statements.
These times shall be of the same duration and prominence as those given over to the Government’s
broadcasts and statements. Parties that are represented in the Legislative Assembly of an autonomous
region enjoy the same rights within the ambit of the region in question.
3. During electoral periods and as laid down by law, those competing for election have the right to regularand equitable broadcasting time on radio and television stations with a national or regional scope.

Article 41(Freedom of conscience, of religion and of form of worship)
1. The freedom of conscience, of religion and of form of worship is inviolable.
2. No one may be persecuted, deprived of rights or exempted from civic obligations or duties because of
his convictions or religious observance.
3. No authority may question anyone in relation to his convictions or religious observance, save in orderto gather statistical data that cannot be individually identified, nor may anyone be prejudiced in any way
for refusing to answer.
4. Churches and other religious communities are separate from the state and are free to organise
themselves and to exercise their functions and form of worship.
5. The freedom to teach any religion within the ambit of the religious belief in question and to use thereligion’s own media for the pursuit of its activities is guaranteed.
6. The right to be a conscientious objector, as laid down by law, is guaranteed.

Article 42(Freedom of cultural creation)
1. There shall be freedom of intellectual, artistic and scientific creation.
2. This freedom comprises the right to invent, produce and divulge scientific, literary and artistic work
and includes the protection of copyright by law.

Article 43(Freedom to learn and to teach)
1. The freedom to learn and to teach is guaranteed.
2. The state may not programme education and culture in accordance with any philosophical, aesthetic,
political, ideological or religious directives.
3. Public education shall not be linked to a religious belief.
4. The right to create private and cooperative schools is guaranteed.

Article 44(Right to travel and to emigrate)
1. Every citizen is guaranteed the right to travel and settle freely in any part of Portuguese territory.
2. Every citizen is guaranteed the right to emigrate or to leave Portuguese territory and the right to return
thereto.

Article 45(Right to meet and to demonstrate)
1. Citizens have the right to meet peacefully and without arms, even in places that are open to the public,
without the need for any authorisation.
2. All citizens are accorded the right to demonstrate.

Article 46(Freedom of association)
1. Citizens have the right to form associations freely and without the requirement for any authorisation,
on condition that such associations are not intended to promote violence and their purposes are not contrary
to the criminal law.
2. Associations shall pursue their purposes freely and without interference from the public authorities, andmay not be dissolved by the state or have their activities suspended other than in cases provided for by
law and then only by judicial decision.
3. No one may be obliged to belong to an association, or be coerced to remain therein by any means.
4. Armed associations, military, militarised or paramilitary-type associations and organisations that are
racist or display a fascist ideology are not permitted.

Article 47(Freedom to choose a profession and of access to the public service)
1. Everyone has the right to choose a profession or type of work freely, subject to the legal restrictions
that are imposed in the collective interest or the restrictions that are inherent in a person’s own
capabilities.
2. Every citizen has the right of access to the public service under equal and free conditions, as a generalrule by means of a competitive selection process.

CHAPTER II
Rights, freedoms and guarantees concerning participation in politics
Article 48(Participation in public life)
1. Every citizen has the right to take part in political life and the direction of the country’s public affairs,
either directly or via freely elected representatives.
2. Every citizen has the right to be given objective clarifications about acts of the state and of other public
entities and to be informed by the Government and other authorities about the management of publicaffairs.

Article 49(Right to vote)
1. Every citizen who has attained the age of eighteen years has the right to vote, subject to the incapacities
provided for in the general law.
2. The right to vote shall be exercised personally and constitutes a civic duty.

Article 50(Right of access to public office)1. Every citizen has the right of access to public office under equal and free conditions.
2. No one may be prejudiced in his appointments, job or professional career or the social benefits towhich he is entitled, due to the exercise of political rights or of public office.
3. In governing the right of access to elected office, the law may only lay down the ineligibilities needed
to guarantee both the electors’ freedom of choice, and independence and absence of bias in the exercise of
the offices in question.

Article 51(Political associations and parties)
1. Freedom of association includes the right to form or take part in political associations and parties andthrough them to work jointly and democratically towards the formation of the popular will and theorganisation of political power.
2. No one may be simultaneously registered as a member of more than one political party, and no one
may be deprived of the exercise of any right because he is or ceases to be registered as a member of any
legally constituted party.
3. Without prejudice to the philosophy or ideology that underlies their manifestoes, political parties may
not employ names that contain expressions which are directly related to any religion or church, or emblems
that can be confused with national or religious symbols.
4. No party may be formed with a name or manifesto objectives that show it has a regional nature orscope.
5. Political parties must be governed by the principles of democratic transparency, organisation andmanagement, and participation by all their members.
6. The law shall lay down the rules governing the financing of political parties, particularly as regards therequisites for and limits on public funding, as well as the requirements to publicise their assets andaccounts.

Article 52(Right to petition and right of actio popularis)

1. Every citizen has the right to individually, or jointly with others, submit petitions, representations,claims or complaints in defence of their rights, the Constitution, the laws or the general interest to theentities that exercise sovereignty, the self-government organs of the autonomous regions, or any
authority, as well as the right to be informed of the result of the consideration thereof within a reaso nable
time limit.
2. The law shall lay down the terms under which collective petitions that are submitted to the Assembleia
da República and the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions are considered in plenary
sitting.
3. Everyone is granted the right of actio popularis, including the right to apply for the applicablecompensation for an aggrieved party or parties, in the cases and under the terms provided for by law,either personally or via associations that purport to defend the interests in question. The said right may
particularly be exercised in order to:a) Promote the prevention, cessation or judicial prosecution of offences against public health, consumer
rights, the quality of life or the preservation of the environment and the cultural heritage;b) Safeguard the property of the state, the autonomous regions and local authorities.

CHAPTER III
Workers’ rights, freedoms and guarantees
Article 53(Job security)
Workers are guaranteed job security, and dismissal without fair cause or for political or ideologicalreasons is prohibited.

Article 54(Workers’ committees)
1. Workers have the right to form workers’ committees to defend their interests and democraticallyintervene in the life of their enterprise.
2. Decisions to form workers’ committees must be taken by the workers in question, who must approvethe committees’ by-laws, and must elect their members by direct, secret ballot.
3. Coordinating committees may be created with a view to improving intervention in economic
restructuring and in such a way as to guarantee workers’ interests.
4. Committee members enjoy the legal protection accorded to trade union delegates.
5. Workers’ committees have the right:a) To receive all the information needed to do their work;b) To monitor the management of their enterprises;c) To participate in corporate restructuring processes, especially in relation to training actions or whenworking conditions are altered;d) To take part in drawing up labour legislation and economic and social plans that address their sector;e) To manage or participate in the management of their enterprise’s social activities;f) To promote the election of workers’ representatives to the governing bodies of enterprises that belong
to the state or other public entities, as laid down by law.

Article 55(Freedoms concerning trade unions)
1. Workers are accorded the freedom to form, belong to and operate trade unions as a condition andguarantee of the building of their unity in defence of their rights and interests.
2. In exercising the freedom to form, belong to and operate trade unions, workers are particularly
guaranteed the following, without any discrimination:a) The freedom to form trade unions at every level;b) Freedom of membership, and no worker may be obliged to pay dues to a union to which he does notbelong;c) The freedom to decide the organisation and internal regulations of trade unions;d) The right to engage in trade union activities in their enterprise;e) The right to political views, in the forms laid down by the respective by-laws.
3. Trade unions must be governed by the principles of democratic organisation and management, to be
based on the periodic election of their governing bodies by secret ballot, without the need for any
authorisation or homologation, and to be founded on active worker participation in every aspect of tradeunion activity.
4. Trade unions shall be independent of employers, the state, religious beliefs, and parties and other politicalassociations, and the law must lay down the guarantees that are appropriate to that independence, which isfundamental to the unity of the working classes.
5. Trade unions have the right to establish relations with or join international trade union organisations.
6. Workers’ elected representatives enjoy the right to be informed and consulted, as well as to adequate
legal protection against any form of subjection to conditions, constraints or limitations on the legitimate
exercise of their functions.

Article 56(Trade union rights and collective agreements)
1. Trade unions have the competence to defend and promote the defence of the rights and interests of theworkers they represent.
2. Trade unions have the right:a) To take part in drawing up labour legislation;b) To take part in the management of social security institutions and other organisations that seek to fulfil
workers’ interests;

c) To pronounce themselves on economic and social plans and monitor their implementation;d) To be represented on social concertation bodies, as laid down by law;e) To take part in corporate restructuring processes, especially with regard to training actions or whenworking conditions are altered.
3. Trade unions have the competence to exercise the right to enter into collective agreements, which shallbe guaranteed as laid down by law.
4. The law shall lay down the rules governing the legitimacy to enter into collective labour agreements
and the efficacy of the respective norms.

Article 57(Right to strike and prohibition of lock-outs)
1. The right to strike is guaranteed.
2. Workers have the competence to define the scope of the interests that are to be defended by a strike andthe law may not limit that scope.
3. The law shall define the conditions under which services that are needed to ensure the safety andmaintenance of equipment and facilities and minimum services that are indispensable to the fulfilment ofessential social needs are provided during strikes.
4. Lock-outs are prohibited.

TITLE III
Economic, social and cultural rights and duties
CHAPTER I
Economic rights and duties
Article 58(Right to work)
1. Everyone has the right to work.
2. In order to ensure the right to work, the state is charged with promoting:a) The implementation of full-employment policies;b) Equal opportunities in the choice of profession or type of work, and the conditions needed to avoid thegender-based preclusion or limitation of access to any position, work or professional category;c) The cultural and technical training and occupational development of workers.

Article 59

(Workers’ rights)
1. Regardless of age, sex, race, citizenship, place of origin, religion and political and ideologicalconvictions, every worker has the right:a) To the remuneration of his work in accordance with its volume, nature and quality, with respect for the
principle of equal pay for equal work and in such a way as to guarantee a proper living;b) That work be organised under conditions of social dignity and in such a way as to provide personalfulfilment and to make it possible to reconcile work and family life;c) To work in conditions that are hygienic, safe and healthy;d) To rest and leisure time, a maximum limit on the working day, a weekly rest period and periodic paid
holidays;e) To material assistance when he involuntarily finds himself in a situation of unemployment;f) To assistance and fair reparation when he is the victim of a work-related accident or occupational
illness.
2. The state is charged with ensuring the working, remuneratory and rest-related conditions to which
workers are entitled, particularly by:a) Establishing and updating a national minimum wage which, among other factors, shall have regard toworkers’ needs, increases in the cost of living, the level of development of the forces of production, thedemands of economic and financial stability, and the accumulation of capital for development purposes;b) Setting national limits on working hours;c) Especially protecting the work done by women during pregnancy and following childbirth, as well as
the work done by minors, the disabled and those whose occupations are particularly strenuous or are
undertaken in unhealthy, toxic or dangerous conditions;d) In cooperation with social organisations, ensuring the systematic development of a network of rest andholiday centres;e) Protecting emigrant workers’ working conditions and guaranteeing their social benefits;f) Protecting student workers’ working conditions.
3. Salaries shall enjoy special guarantees, as laid down by law.

Article 60(Consumer rights)
1. Consumers have the right to the good quality of the goods and services consumed, to training andinformation, to the protection of health, safety and their economic interests, and to reparation fordamages.
2. Advertising shall be disciplined by law and all forms of concealed, indirect or fraudulent advertising
are prohibited.
3. Consumers’ associations and consumer cooperatives have the right, as laid down by law, to receive
support from the state and to be consulted in relation to consumer-protection issues, and are accorded
legitimatio ad causam in defence of their members or of collective or general interests.

Article 61(Private enterprise, cooperatives and worker management)
1. Private economic enterprise shall be undertaken freely within the overall frameworks defined by theConstitution and the law and with regard for the general interest.
2. Everyone is accorded the right to freely form cooperatives, subject to compliance with cooperative
principles.
3. Cooperatives must pursue their activities freely within the overall framework of the law and may group
together in unions, federations and confederations and other forms of organisation provided for by law.
4. The law shall lay down the specific organisational requirements for cooperatives in which any public
entity possesses an interest.
5. The right to worker management, as laid down by law, is recognised.

Article 62(Right to private property)
1. Everyone is guaranteed the right to private property and to the transmission thereof in life or upon
death, in accordance with the Constitution.
2. Requisitions and expropriations in the public interest may only be undertaken on a legal basis and upon
payment of just compensation.

CHAPTER II
Social rights and duties

Article 63(Social security and solidarity)
1. Everyone has the right to social security.
2. The state is charged with organising, coordinating and subsidising a unified and decentralised social
security system, with the participation of the trade unions, other organisations that represent workers andassociations that represent the other beneficiaries.
3. The social security system shall protect citizens in illness and old age and when they are disabled,
widowed or orphaned, as well as when they are unemployed or in any other situation that entails a lack ofor reduction in means of subsistence or the ability to work.
4. All periods of work shall, as laid down by law, contribute to the calculation of old age and disability
pensions, regardless of the sector of activity in which they were performed.
5. With a view to the pursuit of the social solidarity objectives that are particularly enshrined in this
Article and in Articles 67(2)(b), 69, 70(1)(e), 71 and 72, the state shall, as laid down by law, support andinspect the activities and modus operandi of private charitable institutions and other not-for-profit
institutions that are recognised to be in the public interest.

Article 64(Health)
1. Everyone has the right to the protection of health and the duty to defend and promote health.
2. The right to the protection of health shall be fulfilled:a) By means of a universal and general national health service which, with particular regard to theeconomic and social conditions of the citizens who use it, shall tend to be free of charge;b) By creating economic, social, cultural and environmental conditions that particularly guarantee theprotection of childhood, youth and old age; by systematically improving living and working conditions,and promoting physical fitness and sport at school and among the people; and also by developing thepeople’s health and hygiene education and healthy living practices.
3. In order to ensure the right to the protection of health, the state is charged, as a priority, with:a) Guaranteeing access by every citizen, regardless of his economic situation, to preventive, curative andrehabilitative medical care;b) Guaranteeing a rational and efficient nationwide coverage in terms of human resources and healthcare
units;c) Working towards the socialisation of the costs of medical care and medicines;d) Disciplining and inspecting entrepreneurial and private forms of medicine and articulating them with
the national health service, in such a way as to ensure adequate standards of efficiency and quality in bothpublic and private healthcare institutions;e) Disciplining and controlling the production, distribution, marketing, sale and use of chemical,
biological and pharmaceutical products and other means of treatment and diagnosis;f) Establishing policies for the prevention and treatment of drug abuse.
4. Management of the national health service shall be decentralised and participatory.

Article 65(Housing and urbanism)
1. Everyone has the right for himself and his family to have an adequately sized dwelling that provides
hygienic and comfortable conditions and preserves personal and family privacy.
2. In order to ensure the right to housing, the state is charged with:a) Programming and implementing a housing policy that is incorporated into general town and country
planning instruments and supported by urbanisation plans that guarantee the existence of an adequate
network of transport and social facilities;b) In cooperation with the autonomous regions and local authorities, promoting the construction of
low-cost and social housing;c) Stimulating both private construction, subject to the general interest, and access to owned or rented
housing;d) Encouraging and supporting local community and popular initiatives that work towards the resolutionof the respective housing problems and foster the formation of housing and self-building cooperatives.
3. The state shall adopt a policy that works towards the establishment of a rental system which is compatible
with family incomes and provides access to individual housing.
4. The state, the autonomous regions and local authorities shall define the rules governing the occupancy,
use and transformation of urban land, particularly by means of planning instruments and within theoverall framework of the laws concerning town and country planning and urbanism, and shall expropriate
land that proves necessary to the fulfilment of public-interest urbanisation goals.
5. The participation of the interested parties in the drawing up of urban planning instruments and anyother physical town and country planning instruments is guaranteed.

Article 66(Environment and quality of life)
1. Everyone has the right to a healthy and ecologically balanced human living environment and the duty
to defend it.
2. In order to ensure the right to the environment within an overall framework of sustainable
development, the state, acting via appropriate bodies and with the involvement and participation of citizens,is charged with:a) Preventing and controlling pollution and its effects and the harmful forms of erosion;b) Conducting and promoting town and country planning with a view to a correct location of activities,balanced social and economic development and the enhancement of the landscape;c) Creating and developing natural and recreational reserves and parks and classifying and protecting
landscapes and places, in such a way as to guarantee the conservation of nature and the preservation ofcultural values and assets that are of historic or artistic interest;d) Promoting the rational use of natural resources, while safeguarding their ability to renew themselves
and ecological stability, with respect for the principle of inter-generational solidarity;e) In cooperation with local authorities, promoting the environmental quality of rural settlements andurban life, particularly on the architectural level and as regards the protection of historic zones;f) Promoting the integration of environmental objectives into the various policies with a sectoral scope;g) Promoting environmental education and respect for environmental values and assets;h) Ensuring that the fiscal policy renders development compatible with the protection of the environment
and the quality of life.

Article 67(Family)
1. As a fundamental element in society, the family has the right to protection by society and the state andto the effective implementation of all the conditions needed to enable family members to achieve personalfulfilment.

2. In order to protect the family, the state is particularly charged with:a) Promoting the social and economic independence of households;b) Promoting the creation of, and guaranteeing access to, a national network of crèches and other social
facilities designed to support the family, together with a policy for the elderly;c) Cooperating with parents in relation to their children’s education;d) With respect for individual freedom, guaranteeing the right to family planning by promoting theinformation and access to the methods and means required therefore, and organising the legal and technicalarrangements that make it possible to exercise motherhood and fatherhood with awareness;e) Regulating assisted procreation in such a way as to safeguard the dignity of the human person;f) Regulating taxes and social benefits in harmony with family costs;g) After first consulting the associations that represent the family, defining and implementing a global andintegrated family policy;h) By concerting the various sectoral policies, promoting the reconciliation of work and family life.

Article 68(Fatherhood and motherhood)
1. In performing their irreplaceable role in relation to their children, particularly as regards the children’s
education, fathers and mothers have the right to protection by society and the state, together with theguarantee of their own professional fulfilment and participation in civic life.
2. Motherhood and fatherhood constitute eminent social values.
3. Women have the right to special protection during pregnancy and following childbirth, and working
women also have the right to an adequate period of leave from work without loss of remuneration or any
privileges.
4. The law shall regulate the attribution to mothers and fathers of rights to an adequate period of leave fromwork, in accordance with the interests of the child and the needs of the household.

Article 69(Childhood)
1. With a view to their integral development, children have the right to protection by society and the state,especially from all forms of abandonment, discrimination and oppression and from the improper exercise
of authority in the family or any other institution.
2. The state shall ensure special protection for children who are orphaned, abandoned or deprived of anormal family environment in any way.
3. Labour by minors of school age is prohibited, as laid down by law.

Article 70

(Youth)
1. In order to ensure the effective fulfilment of their economic, social and cultural rights, young people
shall enjoy special protection, particularly:a) In education, vocational training and culture;b) In access to their first job, at work and in relation to social security;c) In access to housing;d) In physical education and sport;e) In the use of their free time.
2. The priority objectives of the youth policy must be the development of young people’s personality, thecreation of the conditions needed for their effective integration into the active life, a love of free creativity
and a sense of community service.
3. In cooperation with families, schools, enterprises, residents’ organisations, cultural associations andfoundations and cultural and recreational groups, the state shall foster and support youth organisations in
the pursuit of the said objectives, as well as international youth exchanges.

Article 71(Disabled citizens)
1. Citizens with physical or mental disabilities fully enjoy the rights and are subject to the duties
enshrined in the Constitution, save for the exercise or fulfilment of those for which their condition renders
them incapable.
2. The state undertakes to implement a national policy for the prevention of disability and the treatment,
rehabilitation and integration of disabled citizens and the provision of support to their families, to educatesociety in such a way as to make it aware of the duties of respect and solidarity towards them, and toundertake the charge of ensuring that their rights are effectively fulfilled, without prejudice to the rights
and duties of their parents or guardians.
3. The state shall support disabled citizens’ organisations.

Article 72(The elderly)
1. The elderly have the right to economic security and to conditions in terms of housing and family andcommunity life that respect their personal autonomy and avoid and overcome isolation or social
marginalisation.
2. The policy for the elderly shall include measures of an economic, social and cultural nature that tend toprovide elderly persons with opportunities for personal fulfilment by means of an active participation incommunity life.

CHAPTER III
Cultural rights and duties

Article 73(Education, culture and science)
1. Everyone has the right to education and culture.
2. The state shall promote the democratisation of education and the other conditions needed for an
education conducted at school and via other means of training to contribute to equal opportunities, theovercoming of economic, social and cultural inequalities, the development of the personality and thespirit of tolerance, mutual understanding, solidarity and responsibility, to social progress and to democratic
participation in collective life.
3. In cooperation with the media, cultural associations and foundations, cultural and recreational groups,
cultural heritage associations, residents’ organisations and other cultural agents, the state shall promote
the democratisation of culture by encouraging and ensuring access by all citizens to cultural enjoyment
and creation.
4. The state shall encourage and support scientific research and creation and technological innovation, insuch a way as to ensure their freedom and autonomy, strengthen competitivity and ensure articulation
between scientific institutions and enterprises.

Article 74(Education)
1. Everyone has the right to education, with the guarantee of the right to equal opportunities in access toand success in schooling.
2. In implementing the education policy, the state is charged with:a) Ensuring universal, compulsory and free basic education;b) Creating a public, and developing the general, preschool education system;c) Guaranteeing permanent education and eliminating illiteracy;d) In accordance with his capabilities, guaranteeing every citizen access to the highest levels of education,scientific research and artistic creation;e) Progressively making all levels of education free of charge;f) Inserting schools into the communities they serve and establishing links between education andeconomic, social and cultural activities;g) Promoting and supporting disabled citizens’ access to education and supporting special education whennecessary;h) Protecting and developing Portuguese sign language, as an expression of culture and an instrument foraccess to education and equal opportunities;i) Ensuring that emigrants’ children are taught the Portuguese language and enjoy access to Portuguese
culture;j) Ensuring that immigrants’ children receive adequate support in order to enable them to effectively
enjoy the right to education.

Article 75(Public, private and cooperative education)
1. The state shall create a network of public education establishments that covers the needs of the whole
population.
2. The state shall recognise and inspect private and cooperative education, as laid down by law.

Article 76(University and access to higher education)
1. The regime governing access to university and the other higher education institutions shall guarantee
equal opportunities in and the democratisation of the education system, and must have due regard to thecountry’s needs for qualified staff and to raising its educational, cultural and scientific level.
2. As laid down by law and without prejudice to an adequate assessment of the quality of education,
universities shall enjoy autonomy in drawing up their own by-laws and in scientific, pedagogical,
administrative and financial matters.

Article 77(Democratic participation in education)
1. Teachers and students have the right to take part in the democratic management of schools, as laid
down by law.
2. The law shall regulate the forms in which associations of teachers, students and parents, communities
and institutions of a scientific nature participate in the definition of the education policy.

Article 78(Cultural enjoyment and creation)
1. Everyone has the right to cultural enjoyment and creation, together with the duty to preserve, defend
and enhance the cultural heritage.
2. In cooperation with all cultural agents, the state is charged with:a) Encouraging and ensuring access by all citizens to the means and instruments required for culturalactivities, and correcting the country’s existing asymmetries in this respect;b) Supporting initiatives that stimulate individual and collective creation in its multiple forms andexpressions, and more travel by high quality cultural works and items;c) Promoting the safeguarding and enhancement of the cultural heritage and making it an element thatinspires and gives life to a common cultural identity;d) Developing cultural relations with all peoples, especially those that speak Portuguese, and ensuring thedefence and promotion of Portuguese culture abroad;e) Articulating the cultural policy with the other sectoral policies.

Article 79(Physical education and sport)
1. Everyone has the right to physical education and sport.
2. In cooperation with schools and sporting associations and groups, the state is charged with promoting,stimulating, guiding and supporting the practice and dissemination of physical education and sport, andpreventing violence in sport.

PART II
Organisation of the economy
TITLE I
General principles
Article 80(Fundamental principles)
Society and the economy shall be organised on the basis of the following principles:a) The subordination of economic power to democratic political power;b) The coexistence of the public, private and cooperative and social sectors in the ownership of the meansof production;c) Freedom of entrepreneurial initiative and organisation, within the overall framework of a mixed
economy;d) The public ownership of natural resources and the means of production, in accordance with thecollective interest;e) The democratic planning of economic and social development;f) Protection of the cooperative and social sector of ownership of the means of production;g) The participation of organisations that represent workers and organisations that represent economic
activities in the definition of the main economic and social measures.

Article 81(Priority duties of the state)
In the economic and social field the state is under a priority duty:a) Within the overall framework of a sustainable development strategy, to promote an increase in people’ssocial and economic well-being and quality of life, especially those of the most disadvantaged persons;b) To promote social justice, ensure equal opportunities and carry out the necessary corrections toinequalities in the distribution of wealth and income, particularly by means of the fiscal policy;

c) To ensure the full use of the forces of production, particularly by making every effort to ensure theefficiency of the public sector;d) To promote the economic and social cohesion of the whole country by guiding development in the
direction of a balanced growth in every sector and region and progressively eliminating the economic andsocial differences between town and country and between the coastal strip and the inland areas;e) To promote the correction of the inequalities derived from the autonomous regions’ insular nature andencourage those regions’ progressive integration into broader economic areas within a national orinternational framework;f) To ensure the efficient operation of the markets, in such a way as to guarantee a balanced competition
between enterprises, counter monopolistic forms of organisation and repress abuses of dominant positions
and other practices that are harmful to the general interest;g) To develop economic relations with all peoples, while always safeguarding national independence andthe interests of the Portuguese people and the country’s economy;h) To eliminate very large estates and restructure small farms;i) To guarantee the defence of consumer rights and interests;j) To create the legal and technical instruments needed to democratically plan economic and social
development;l) To ensure the existence of a science and technology policy that favours the country’s development;m) To adopt a national energy policy that preserves natural resources and the ecological balance, while
promoting international cooperation in this domain;n) To adopt a national water policy that uses, plans and manages water resources rationally.

Article 82(Sectors of ownership of the means of production)
1. The coexistence of three sectors of ownership of the means of production is guaranteed.
2. The public sector comprises the means of production that rightly belong to and are managed by thestate or other public entities.
3. Without prejudice to the provisions of the following paragraph, the private sector comprises the meansof production that rightly belong to or are managed by private individuals or private groups.
4. The cooperative and social sector specifically comprises:a) Means of production that cooperatives possess and manage in accordance with cooperative principles,
without prejudice to the specific provisions that are laid down by law for cooperatives in which the public
sector holds a stake and are justified by the special nature thereof;b) Community means of production possessed and managed by local communities;c) Means of production operated by worker collectives;d) Means of production possessed and managed by not-for-profit legal persons whose primary objective
is social solidarity, particularly entities of a mutualist nature.

Article 83(Requisites for compulsory purchase)
The law shall lay down the means and forms of intervention in relation to, and for the public
appropriation of, means of production, together with the criteria for setting the applicable compensation.

Article 84(Public domain)
1. The following belong to the public domain:a) Territorial waters, together with their beds and the adjacent seabeds, and lakes, lagoons andwatercourses that are suitable for navigation or flotation, together with their beds;b) Airspace over Portuguese territory, above the recognised limit for proprietary or surface rights;c) Mineral deposits, mineral and medicinal water sources and natural subterranean cavities below theground, save for rocks, ordinary earth and other materials that are habitually used for construction;d) Roads;e) National railway lines;f) Other property that is classified as such by law.
2. The law shall define what property forms part of the public state domain, the public domain of theautonomous regions and the public domain of local authorities, as well as the regime, terms andconditions of use and limits governing it.
Article 85(Cooperatives and worker-management experiments)
1. The state shall stimulate and support the creation and activities of cooperatives.
2. The law shall define the fiscal and financial benefits to be enjoyed by cooperatives, as well as
preferential terms and conditions for obtaining credit and technical assistance.
3. The state shall support viable worker-management experiments.

Article 86(Private enterprises)
1. The state shall encourage entrepreneurial activity, particularly that of small and medium-sizedenterprises, and shall inspect fulfilment of the respective legal obligations, especially by enterprises thatengage in activities that are of general interest to the economy.
2. The state may only intervene in the management of private enterprises on a transitional basis, in casesthat are expressly provided for by law and, as a general rule, subject to prior judicial decision.

3. The law may define basic sectors in which private enterprises and other entities of the same nature areforbidden to do business.

Article 87(Foreign economic activity and investment)
The law shall discipline economic activity and investment by foreign natural and legal persons, with theaim of ensuring that they contribute to the country’s development and defending national independence
and workers’ interests.

Article 88(Abandoned means of production)
1. Abandoned means of production may be expropriated under terms and conditions to be laid down bylaw, which must pay due regard to the specific situation of the property of emigrant workers.
2. Means of production that are abandoned without good reason may also be the object of compulsory
rental or operating concessions under terms to be laid down by law.

Article 89(Worker participation in management)
The workers of units of production in the public sector shall be ensured an effective participation in therespective management.

TITLE II
Plans
Article 90(Objectives of plans)
The objective of economic and social development plans shall be to promote economic growth, theharmonious and integrated development of sectors and regions, the just division of the national productbetween persons and between regions, the coordination of the economic policy with the social, educationand cultural policies, the defence of the rural world, the preservation of the ecological balance, thedefence of the environment and the quality of life of the Portuguese people.

Article 91(Drawing up and implementation of plans)
1. National Plans shall be drawn up in harmony with the respective laws governing the Major Options,and may incorporate specific programmes with a territorial and sectoral scope.

2. Government bills in relation to the Major Options shall be accompanied by reports setting out the
grounds for them.
3. National Plans shall be implemented on a decentralised, regional and sectoral basis.

Article 92(Economic and Social Council)
1. The Economic and Social Council is the organ with responsibility for consultation and concertation in
the economic and social policy domain, shall take part in drafting the Major Options and the economic
and social development plans, and shall exercise any other functions allocated to it by law.
2. The law shall define the composition of the Economic and Social Council, which shall particularly
include representatives of the Government, of the organisations that represent workers, economic
activities and families, of the autonomous regions and of local authorities.
3. The law shall also define the way in which the Economic and Social Council is organised and its
modus operandi, together with the status and role of its members.

TITLE III
Agricultural, commercial and industrial policies
Article 93(Agricultural policy objectives)
1. The objectives of the agricultural policy shall be:a) To increase agricultural production and productivity by providing agriculture with adequate
infrastructures and human, technical and financial resources that will work towards an increase incompetitivity and to ensure the quality of its products, their effective marketing and sale, an improved
supply for the country and a rise in exports;b) To promote the improvement of the economic, social and cultural situation of rural workers and farmers,
the development of the rural world, the rationalisation of the structure of land owne rship, themodernisation of the business fabric, and the access by those that work the land to ownership or
possession of the land itself and of the other means of production that they directly employ thereon;c) To create the conditions needed to achieve effective equality between those who work in agriculture
and other workers and to prevent the agricultural sector from being disadvantaged in its exchanges withother sectors;d) To ensure the rational use and management of the soil and other natural resources and to maintain theirregenerative capability;e) To encourage farmers to form and join associations and to directly work the land.
2. The state shall promote a policy of agrarian planning and reconversion and forestry development, in
accordance with the ecological and social factors that condition the country.

Article 94

(Elimination of very large estates)
1. The law shall regulate the resizing of farming units that are excessively large from the point of view of
the agricultural policy objectives, and, in the case of expropriation, must provide for the right of eachowner to the corresponding compensation and to the retention of an area that is sufficient to ensure theviability and rationality of his own farm.
2. Without prejudice to the stipulation of an experimental period prior to the grant of full title in order todetermine whether the land in question is being used effectively and rationally, expropriated land shall behanded over for either ownership or holding, as laid down by law, to small farmers, preferably those
integrated into family farming units, to rural workers’ or small farmers’ cooperatives, or to other forms ofworker operation.

Article 95(Resizing of small farms)
Without prejudice to the right of ownership and as laid down by law, the state shall promote the resizingof farming units that are smaller than that which is suitable from the point of view of the agricultural
policy objectives, particularly by means of legal, fiscal and credit incentives for their structural or merely
economic integration, particularly in a cooperative form, or by measures designed to join parcels of land
together.

Article 96(Forms of use of non-owned land)
1. The law shall regulate the regimes governing the rental and other forms of use of non-owned land insuch a way as to guarantee the security and legitimate interests of those who cultivate it.
2. The fee-farming and colony systems shall be prohibited and the conditions that those who cultivate theland need to put an effective end to the agricultural partnership system shall be created.

Article 97(State assistance)
1. In pursuit of the agricultural policy objectives the state shall provide preferential support to small andmedium-sized farmers, particularly when they are integrated into family farming units, are sole farmers or
are associated in cooperatives, as well as to agricultural workers’ cooperatives and other forms of worker
operation.
2. This state support shall particularly comprise:a) The grant of technical assistance;b) The creation of forms of marketing and sales support upstream and downstream from production;c) Support for the coverage of risks resulting from unpredictable or uncontrollable climatic or
phytopathological incidents;d) Stimuli to encourage rural workers and farmers to form and join associations, particularly by forming
producers’, purchasing, sales, processing and service cooperatives and other forms of worker operation.

Article 98(Participation in defining the agricultural policy)
Rural workers and farmers shall be ensured participation in the definition of the agricultural policy via theorganisations that represent them.

Article 99(Commercial policy objectives)
The objectives of the commercial policy shall be:a) Healthy competition between commercial agents;b) The rationalisation of distribution circuits;c) To combat speculative activities and restrictive commercial practices;d) The development and diversification of external economic relations; e)Consumer protection.

Article 100(Industrial policy objectives)
The objectives of the industrial policy shall be:a) The increase of industrial production within an overall framework of the modernisation and adjustmentof social and economic interests and the international integration of the Portuguese economy;b) The strengthening of industrial and technological innovation;c) The increase of the competitivity and productivity of industrial enterprises;d) Support for small and medium-sized enterprises and, in general, for ventures and enterprises thatgenerate employment and foster exports or substitutes for imports;e) Support for the international prominence of Portuguese enterprises.

TITLE IV
Financial and fiscal system
Article 101(Financial system)
The financial system shall be structured by law in such a way as to guarantee the accumulation, deposit
and security of savings, as well as the application of the financial resources needed for economic andsocial development.

Article 102(Bank of Portugal)
The Bank of Portugal is the national central bank and shall exercise its functions as laid down by law andin accordance with the international norms by which the Portuguese state is bound.

Article 103(Fiscal system)
1. The fiscal system shall aim to satisfy the financial needs of the state and of other public entities and toensure a just distribution of income and wealth.
2. Taxes shall be created by laws, which shall lay down their applicability and rate, fiscal benefits and theguarantees accorded to taxpayers.
3. No one shall be obliged to pay taxes that are not created in accordance with the Constitution, areretroactive in nature, or are not charged and collected as laid down by law.

Article 104(Taxes)
1. Personal income tax shall aim to reduce inequalities, shall be single and progressive and shall pay due
regard to the needs and incomes of households.
2. Enterprises shall essentially be taxed on their real income.
3. The taxation of assets must contribute to equality between citizens.
4. The taxation of consumption shall aim to adapt the structure of consumption to evolution in therequirements for economic development and social justice, and must increase the cost of luxury consumer
items.

Article 105(Budget)1. The State Budget shall contain:a) A breakdown of the state’s income and expenditure, including that of autonomous funds anddepartments;b) The social security budget.
2. The Budget shall be drawn up in harmony with the major planning options and in the light of legal andcontractual obligations.
3. The Budget shall be a single budget and shall set out expenditure in accordance with the respective
organisational and functional classification, in such a way as to preclude the existence of secretappropriations and funds. It may also be structured by programmes.

4. The Budget shall provide for the income needed to cover expenditure, and the law shall define the rules
governing the Budget’s execution, the terms and conditions governing the resort to public credit, and thecriteria that must govern the alterations that the Government makes during the course of the Budget’s
execution in the organisational classification headings of each budget programme passed by the Assembleia
da República, with a view to its full implementation.

Article 106(Drawing up the Budget)
1. The Budget Law shall be annually drawn up, organised, put to the vote and implemented in accordancewith the applicable framework law, which shall include the regime governing the drawing up and executionof the budgets of autonomous funds and departments.
2. The Budget bill shall be presented and put to the vote within the time limits set by law, and the law
shall lay down the procedures to be adopted when those time limits cannot be met.
3. The Budget bill shall be accompanied by reports on:a) A forecast of the evolution of the main macroeconomic indicators that have an influence on the
Budget, as well as the evolution of the money supply and the sources thereof;b) The grounds for variations in the income and expenditure forecasts compared to the previous Budget;c) The public debt, treasury operations and the Treasury accounts;d) The situation of autonomous funds and departments;e) Transfers of funds to the autonomous regions and local authorities;f) Any financial transfers between Portugal and other countries that affect the Budget bill;g) Fiscal benefits and an estimate of the ensuing reduction in income.

Article 107(Scrutiny)
The Budget’s execution shall be scrutinised by the Court of Auditors and the Assembleia da República.
Following receipt of an opinion issued by the Court of Auditors, the Assembleia da República shallconsider the General State Accounts, including the social security accounts, and shall put them to thevote.

PART III
Organisation of political power
TITLE I
General principles
Article 108(Source and exercise of power)
Political power lies with the people and shall be exercised in accordance with the Constitution.

Article 109(Citizens’ participation in politics)
The direct and active participation in political life by men and women is a condition for and afundamental instrument in the consolidation of the democratic system, and the law must promote both
equality in the exercise of civic and political rights and the absence of gender-based discrimination inaccess to political office.

Article 110(Entities that exercise sovereignty)
1. The President of the Republic, the Assembleia da República, the Government and the Courts areentities that exercise sovereignty.
2. The formation, composition, competences and modus operandi of the entities that exercise sovereignty
are those defined in the Constitution.

Article 111(Separation and interdependence)
1. The entities that exercise sovereignty must respect the separation and interdependence laid down in theConstitution.
2. No entity that exercises sovereignty and no organ of an autonomous region or local government organ
may delegate its powers to other entities or organs, save in the cases and under the terms that are
expressly provided for in the Constitution and the law.

Article 112(Normative acts)
1. Legislative acts comprise laws, executive laws and regional legislative decrees.
2. Without prejudice to the subordination of executive laws that are published under legislative
authorisation and of those that develop the general bases of legal regimes to the corresponding laws, laws
and executive laws possess equal force.
3. Organic laws, laws which must be passed by a two-thirds majority, and laws which, under theConstitution, are normative prerequisites for other laws or must be obeyed by other laws, possess superior
legal force.
4. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 227(1)(b) and (c), legislative decrees possess a regional
scope and address matters set out in the political and administrative statute of the respective autonomous
region that are not the exclusive competence of entities that exercise sovereignty.
5. No law may create other categories of legislative act, or grant other types of act the power to interpret,
complete, modify, suspend or repeal any of its precepts in a way that produces external effects.

6. Government regulations shall take the form of regulatory decrees when so required by the law they
regulate, as well as in the case of independent regulations.
7. Regulations shall make express mention of the laws which they are intended to regulate, or which
define the subjective and objective competence to issue them.
8. The transposition of European Union legal acts into the internal legal order shall take the form of a law,an executive law, or, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (4), a regional legislative decree.

Article 113(General principles of electoral law)
1. Direct, secret and periodic suffrage is the general rule for the appointment of the officeholders of theelected entities that exercise sovereignty, elected organs of autonomous regions and elected local
government organs.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 15(4) and (5) and 121(2), electoral registration isconducted at the initiative of the citizen and is compulsory and permanent, and there is a single
registration system for all elections that are held by direct, universal suffrage.
3. Election campaigns are governed by the following principles:a) Freedom of propaganda;b) Equal opportunities and treatment for all candidatures;c) The impartiality of public entities towards all candidatures;d) The transparency and scrutiny of electoral accounts.
4. Citizens are under a duty to cooperate with the electoral administration in the forms laid down by law.
5. Votes are converted into seats in harmony with the principle of proportional representation.
6. Any act that dissolves a collegial organ that is based on direct suffrage must also set the date of the newelection thereto, which shall take place within the following sixty days and in accordance with the electoral
law that is in force at the time of the dissolution, failing which the electoral act shall be legally nugatory.
7. The competence to judge the correctness and validity of electoral procedural acts pertains to the courts.

Article 114(Political parties and right of opposition)
1. Political parties hold seats in entities and organs that are based on universal, direct suffrage in accordancewith their proportion of election results.
2. Minorities are accorded the right of democratic opposition, as laid down in the Constitution and thelaw.
3. Political parties that hold seats in the Assembleia da República and do not form part of theGovernment particularly have the right to be regularly and directly informed by the Government about thesituation and progress of the main matters of public interest. Political parties that hold seats in Legislative

Assemblies of the autonomous regions or in any other directly elected assemblies have the same right inrelation to the corresponding executive, in the event that they do not form part thereof.

Article 115(Referenda)
1. Upon a proposal submitted by the Assembleia da República or the Government in relation to mattersthat fall within their respective competences, in the cases provided for and as laid down in theConstitution and the law, the President of the Republic may decide to call upon citizens who are
registered to vote in Portuguese territory to directly and bindingly pronounce themselves by referendum.
2. Referenda may also result from the submission by citizens of an initiative to the Assembleia da
República. Such initiatives shall be submitted and considered under the terms and within the time limits
laid down by law.
3. Only important issues concerning the national interest which the Assembleia da República or theGovernment must decide by approving an international convention or passing a legislative act may be theobject of a referendum.
4. The following are excluded from the scope of referenda:a) Amendments to the Constitution;b) Questions and acts with a budgetary, tax-related or financial content;c) The matters provided for in Article 161 of the Constitution, without prejudice to the provisions of thefollowing paragraph;d) The matters provided for in Article 164 of the Constitution, except for the provisions of
subparagraph (i).
5. The provisions of the previous paragraph do not prejudice the submission to referendum of important
issues concerning the national interest that must be the object of an international convention pursuant to
Article 161(i), except when they concern peace or the rectification of borders.
6. Each referendum shall only address one matter. Questions must be objectively, clearly and precisely
formulated, shall solicit yes or no answers, and may not exceed a maximum number to be laid down bylaw. The law shall also lay down the other terms governing the formulation and effective implementationof referenda.
7. Referenda may not be called or held between the dates on which general elections for the entities thatexercise sovereignty, elections for the self-government organs of the autonomous regions and for local
government organs, as well as for Members of the European Parliament, are called and those on which
they are held.
8. The President of the Republic shall submit all draft referenda submitted to him by the Assembleia da
República or the Government, to compulsory prior review of their constitutionality and legality.
9. The norms contained in Article 113(1), (2), (3), (4) and (7) are applicable to referenda, mutatis
mutandis.
10. Draft referenda that are refused by the President of the Republic or are negatived by the electorate
may not be resubmitted during the same legislative session, save new elections to the Assembleia da
República, or until the Government resigns or is removed.
11. Referenda only have binding effect when the number of voters exceeds half the number of registeredelectors.

12. Citizens who reside abroad and are properly registered to vote under the provisions of Article 121(2)shall be called upon to take part in referenda that address matters which specifically also concern them.
13. Referenda may be regional in scope, in accordance with Article 232(2).

Article 116(Collegial organs)
1. Except in the cases provided for by law, meetings of assemblies that function as entities that exercise
sovereignty, as organs of autonomous regions or as local government organs shall be public.
2. Collegial entities and organs shall take their decisions in the presence of a majority of the number ofmembers they are prescribed to have by law.
3. Save in cases provided for by the Constitution, the law or the respective rules of procedure, collegial
entities and organs shall take their decisions by a simple majority and abstentions shall not count in thecalculation thereof.

Article 117(Statutes governing political officeholders)
1. Political officeholders are politically, civilly and criminally liable for their actions and omissions in theexercise of their functions.
2. The law shall make provision for the duties, responsibilities, liabilities and incompatibilities of political
officeholders and the consequences of any breach thereof, together with their rights, privileges andimmunities.
3. The law shall lay down the special crimes for which political officeholders may be held liable, together
with the applicable sanctions and the effects thereof, which may include removal from office or loss of seat.

Article 118(Renewal principle)
1. No one may exercise any political office with a national, regional or local political scope for life.
2. The law may place limits on successive renewals of mandates of holders of executive political office.

Article 119(Publicising of acts)
1. The following shall be published in the official journal – the Diário da República:a) Constitutional laws;b) International conventions and the respective ratification notices, together with the rest of the notices inrelation thereto;c) Laws, executive laws and regional legislative decrees;d) Decrees of the President of the Republic;e) Resolutions of the Assembleia da República and of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous
regions;f) The Rules of Procedure of the Assembleia da República, the Council of State and the Legislative
Assemblies of the autonomous regions;g) Decisions of the Constitutional Court, and other court decisions to which the law grants generallybinding force;h) Regulatory decrees and other decrees and regulations issued by the Government, together with decreesof the Representatives of the Republic to the autonomous regions and regional regulatory decrees;i) The results of elections to or for entities that exercise sovereignty, organs of autonomous regions andlocal government organs, as well as to the European Parliament, and also the results of national andregional referenda.
2. Failure to publicise the acts provided for in subparagraphs (a) to (h) of the previous paragraph and of
any act with a generic content of entities that exercise sovereignty, organs of autonomous regions and local
government organs shall cause them to be without legal effect.
3. The law shall lay down the forms in which other acts are to be publicised and the consequences of any
failure to do so.

TITLE II
President of the Republic
CHAPTER I
Status, role and election
Article 120(Definition)
The President of the Republic represents the Portuguese Republic, guarantees national independence, theunity of the state and the proper operation of the democratic institutions, and is ex officio
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

Article 121(Election)
1. The President of the Republic is elected by the universal, direct and secret suffrage of Portuguese
citizens who are registered to vote in Portuguese territory and, in accordance with the following
paragraph, of Portuguese citizens who reside abroad.
2. The law shall regulate the right to vote of Portuguese citizens who reside abroad, to which end it must
pay due regard to the existence of ties that effectively link them to the Portuguese community.

3. The right to vote in Portuguese territory shall be exercised in person.

Article 122(Eligibility for election)
Citizens of Portuguese origin who are registered to vote and have attained the age of thirty-five are
eligible for election.

Article 123(Eligibility for re-election)
1. Re-election to a third consecutive term of office, or during the five years immediately following theend of a second consecutive term of office, is not permitted.
2. If the President of the Republic resigns, he may not stand again in the next election, or in any that takeplace in the five years immediately following his resignation.

Article 124(Nominations)
1. Nominations for President of the Republic must be put forward by at least seven thousand five hundred
and at most fifteen thousand registered electors.
2. Nominations must be submitted to the Constitutional Court at least thirty days prior to the date set for
the election.
3. In the case of the death of any candidate, or of any other fact that renders any candidate incapable ofexercising the functions of President of the Republic, the election process shall recommence under terms
to be defined by law.

Article 125(Date of election)
1. The President of the Republic shall be elected during the sixty days prior to the end of his
predecessor’s term of office, or during the sixty days after the office becomes vacant.
2. The election may not take place during the ninety days prior to or following the date of elections to the
Assembleia da República.
3. In the case provided for in the previous paragraph, the election shall take place during the ten days
following the end of the period set out therein, and the term of office of the outgoing President shall
automatically be extended for the necessary period.

Article 126(Electoral system)1. The candidate who receives more than half of the validly cast votes shall be elected President of the
Republic. Blank ballot papers are considered not to have been validly cast.
2. If none of the candidates obtains this number of votes, a second ballot shall be held within twenty-one
days of the first one.
3. Only the two candidates who received most votes in the first ballot and have not withdrawn theircandidatures shall stand in the second ballot.

Article 127(Installation and swearing in)
1. The President elect is installed before the Assembleia da República.
2. His installation takes place on the last day of the outgoing President’s term of office, or, in the case ofelection to a vacant office, on the eighth day following that on which the election results are published.
3. Upon taking office the President of the Republic elect shall take the following oath:
I swear by my honour to faithfully perform the functions in which I am invested and to defend andobserve the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic and cause it to be observed.

Article 128(Term of office)
1. The term of office of President of the Republic is five years and ends upon installation of the new
President elect.
2. In the event that the office falls vacant, the newly elected President of the Republic commences a newterm of office.

Article 129(Absence from Portuguese territory)
1. The President of the Republic may not absent himself from Portuguese territory without the consent of
the Assembleia da República or, if the Assembly is not in full session, of its Standing Committee.
2. Consent is dispensed with in cases in which the President of the Republic is in transit or is on an
unofficial visit lasting no more than five days. However, he must notify the Assembleia da República ofsuch cases in advance.
3. Failure to comply with the provisions of paragraph (1) automatically entails loss of office.

Article 130(Criminal liability)

1. The President of the Republic answers before the Supreme Court of Justice for crimes committed in theexercise of his functions.
2. Proceedings may only be initiated by the Assembleia da República, upon a motion subscribed by one
fifth and a decision passed by a two-thirds majority of all the Members of the Assembleia da República infull exercise of their office.
3. Conviction implies removal from office and disqualification from re-election.
4. For crimes that are not committed in the exercise of his functions, the President of the Republicanswers before the common courts, once his term of office has ended.

Article 131(Resignation)
1. The President of the Republic may resign by means of a message addressed to the Assembleia da
República.
2. The resignation takes effect when the Assembleia da República takes note of the message, without
prejudice to its subsequent publication in the Diário da República.

Article 132(Acting President)
1. While the President of the Republic is temporarily unable to perform his functions, or while the office
is vacant and until the new President elect is installed, his functions are performed by the President of theAssembleia da República, or, in the event that the latter is unable to do so, by his substitute.
2. While he exercises the functions of President of the Republic in an acting capacity, the President of theAssembleia da República or his substitute’s mandate as Member of the Assembly is automaticallysuspended.
3. While he is temporarily unable to perform his functions, the President of the Republic retains the rights
and privileges inherent to his office.
4. An acting President of the Republic enjoys all the honours and prerogatives of the office, but his rights
are those of the office to which he was elected.

CHAPTER II
Competences
Article 133(Competences in relation to other entities)
In relation to other entities and organs the President of the Republic has the competences:a) To chair the Council of State;b) In harmony with electoral law, to set the date for elections for President of the Republic, Members of
the Assembleia da República, Members of the European Parliament and members of the Legislative
Assemblies of the autonomous regions;c) To call extraordinary sittings of the Assembleia da República;d) To address messages to the Assembleia da República and the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous
regions;e) Subject to the provisions of Article 172 and after first consulting both the Council of State and theparties with seats in the Assembleia da República, to dissolve that Assembly;f) To appoint the Prime Minister pursuant to Article 187(1);g) To remove the Government in accordance with Article 195(2), and to discharge the Prime Ministerfrom office pursuant to Article 186(4);h) Upon a proposal from the Prime Minister, to appoint members of the Government and discharge themfrom office;i) When asked to do so by the Prime Minister, to chair the Council of Ministers;j) After first consulting the Council of State and the parties with seats in the Legislative Assemblies of theautonomous regions, and subject to the provisions of Article 172, mutatis mutandis, to dissolve those
Legislative Assemblies;l) After first consulting the Government, to appoint the Representatives of the Republic to theautonomous regions and discharge them from office;m) Upon a proposal from the Government, to appoint the President of the Court of Auditors and theProsecutor General and discharge them from office;n) To appoint five members of the Council of State and two ordinary members of the High Council for
the Judiciary;o) To chair the Supreme National Defence Council;p) Upon a proposal from the Government, to appoint the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forcesand discharge him from office; and, upon a proposal from the Government and after consulting the Chiefof the General Staff of the Armed Forces, to appoint the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed
Forces if any, and the Chiefs of Staff of the three armed services, and discharge them from office.

Article 134(Personal competences)
In the practice of personal acts the President of the Republic has the competences:a) To exercise the functions of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces;b) To enact laws, executive laws and regulatory decrees and order their publication, and to sign bothresolutions of the Assembleia da República that approve international agreements and the rest of theGovernment’s decrees;c) To submit important issues of national interest, as laid down in Article 115, and those referred to in
Articles 232(2) and 256(3), to referendum;d) To declare a state of siege or a state of emergency, in compliance with the provisions of Articles 19
and 138;e) To pronounce on all emergencies that are of serious consequence to the life of the Republic;f) After first consulting the Government, to grant remissions of sentence and commute sentences;g) To ask the Constitutional Court to undertake a prior review of the constitutionality of the norms
contained in laws and executive laws and international conventions;h) To ask the Constitutional Court to declare whether legal norms are unconstitutional and verify theexistence of unconstitutionalities by omission;i) To confer decorations in accordance with the law, and to exercise the function of Grand Master ofPortugal’s honorary orders.

Article 135(Competences in international relations)
In international relations the President of the Republic has the competences:a) To appoint ambassadors and extraordinary envoys upon a proposal from the Government, and to accredit
foreign diplomatic representatives;b) Once they have been duly approved, to ratify international treaties;c) Upon a proposal from the Government, after consulting the Council of State and subject toauthorisation by the Assembleia da República, or, when the Assembly is not sitting and it is not possible toarrange for it to sit immediately, by its Standing Committee, to declare war in the case of effective or
imminent aggression and to make peace.

Article 136(Enactment and veto)
1. Within a time limit of twenty days counting from the receipt of any decree of the Assembleia da
República for enactment as a law, or of the publication of the decision in which the Constitutional Court
refrains from pronouncing the unconstitutionality of any norm contained therein, the President of the
Republic must enact the decree, or exercise the right of veto and send a message setting out the grounds
for doing so and requesting that the legislative act be reconsidered.
2. If the Assembleia da República confirms its vote by an absolute majority of all the Members of theAssembleia da República in full exercise of their office, the President of the Republic must enact thelegislative act within a time limit of eight days counting from its receipt.
3. However, a majority that is at least equal to two thirds of all Members present and is greater than an
absolute majority of all the Members in full exercise of their office is required to confirm decrees thattake the form of organic laws, as well as to confirm those concerning the following matters:a) External relations;b) Boundaries between the public, private and cooperative and social sectors of ownership of the meansof production;c) Any regulation of the electoral acts provided for in the Constitution that does not take the form of anorganic law.
4. Within a time limit of forty days counting from the receipt of any Government decree for enactment, orof the publication of the decision in which the Constitutional Court refrains from pronouncing theunconstitutionality of any norm contained therein, the President of the Republic shall enact the decree, or
exercise his right of veto and inform the Government in writing of the reasons for doing so.
5. The President of the Republic shall also exercise the right of veto pursuant to Articles 278 and 279.

Article 137(Failure to enact or sign)
Failure by the President of the Republic to enact or sign any of the acts provided for in Article 134(b)means that that act is legally nugatory.

Article 138(Declaration of a state of siege or of a state of emergency)
1. Declaration of a state of siege or a state of emergency requires prior consultation of the Government
and authorisation by the Assembleia da República, or, if the Assembly is not sitting and it is not possible toarrange for it to sit immediately, by its Standing Committee.
2. When a declaration of a state of siege or a state of emergency is authorised by the Assembleia da
República’s Standing Committee, that declaration will then have to be confirmed by the Plenary as soon as
it is possible to arrange for it to sit.

Article 139(Acts of an acting President of the Republic)
1. Acting Presidents of the Republic may not undertake any of the acts provided for in Articles 133(e) and(n) and 134(c).
2. Acting Presidents of the Republic may only undertake any of the acts provided for in Articles 133(b),(c), (f), (m) and (p), 134(a) and 135(a) after first consulting the Council of State.

Article 140(Ministerial counter-signature)
1. Acts that the President of the Republic undertakes under the terms of Articles 133(h), (j), (l), (m) or (p),134(b), (d) or (f) or 135(a), (b) or (c) require counter-signature by the Government.
2. The absence of the counter-signature renders the act legally nugatory.

CHAPTER III

Council of State
Article 141(Definition)
The Council of State is the political organ that advises the President of the Republic.

Article 142(Composition)
The Council of State is chaired by the President of the Republic and is also composed of the following
members:a) The President of the Assembleia da República;b) The Prime Minister;c) The President of the Constitutional Court;d) The Ombudsman;e) The presidents of the regional governments;f) Former Presidents of the Republic who were elected under the Constitution and were not removed fromoffice;g) Five citizens appointed by the President of the Republic for the period of his term of office;h) Five citizens elected by the Assembleia da República in harmony with the principle of proportional
representation, for the period that corresponds to the duration of the legislature.

Article 143(Installation and term of office)
1. The members of the Council of State are installed by the President of the Republic.
2. Those members of the Council of State who are provided for in Article 142(a) to (e) shall continue toserve for as long as they remain in the respective offices.
3. Those members of the Council of State who are provided for in Article 142(g) and (h) shall continue toserve until the installation of those who replace them in the respective offices.

Article 144(Organisation and modus operandi)
1. The competence to draw up its own Rules of Procedure pertains to the Council of State.
2. Council of State meetings are not public.

Article 145

(Competences)
The Council of State has the competences:a) To pronounce on dissolutions of the Assembleia da República and the Legislative Assemblies of theautonomous regions;b) To pronounce on the removal of the Government in the case provided for in Article 195(2);c) To pronounce on declarations of war and the making of peace;d) To pronounce on those acts of acting Presidents of the Republic that are referred to in Article 139;e) To pronounce on the other cases provided for in the Constitution, and in general and when asked to do
so by the President of the Republic, to advise him in the exercise of his functions.

Article 146(Issue of opinions)
The Council of State opinions provided for in Article 145(a) to (e) shall be issued at meetings which the
President of the Republic calls for that purpose, and shall be made public when the act to which they referis undertaken.

TITLE III
Assembleia da República
CHAPTER I
Status, role and election
Article 147(Definition)
The Assembleia da República is the assembly that represents all Portuguese citizens.

Article 148(Composition)
The Assembleia da República shall have a minimum of one hundred and eighty and a maximum of two
hundred and thirty Members, as laid down by electoral law.

Article 149(Constituencies)
1. Members of the Assembleia da República are elected for constituencies that shall be geographicallydefined by law. The law may order the creation of plurinominal and uninominal constituencies and laydown the nature and complementarity thereof, in such a way as to ensure that votes are converted into
numbers of seats in accordance with the proportional representation system and using D’Hondt’s
highest-average rule.
2. With the exception of the national constituency when one exists, the number of Members of theAssembleia da República for each plurinominal constituency in Portuguese territory shall be proportional to
the number of citizens registered to vote therein.

Article 150(Eligibility)
Save for the restrictions that electoral law lays down in relation to local incompatibilities or the exercise
of certain offices, all Portuguese citizens who are registered to vote are eligible for election.

Article 151(Nominations)
1. Nominations are submitted by political parties as laid down by law. Parties may submit nominationsindividually or in coalition, and the lists may include citizens who are not registered members of therespective parties.
2. No one may be a candidate for more than one constituency of the same nature, with the exception of
the national constituency when one exists. No one may appear on more than one list.

Article 152(Political representation)
1. The law may not set limits on the conversion of votes into seats by requiring a minimum national
percentage of votes cast.
2. Members of the Assembleia da República represent the whole country and not the constituencies forwhich they are elected.

Article 153(Beginning and end of term of office)
1. Without prejudice to the suspension or termination of any individual mandate, terms of office ofMembers of the Assembleia da República begin with the first sitting of the Assembly following elections
and end with the first sitting following the subsequent elections.
2. Electoral law shall regulate the filling of vacancies that arise in the Assembleia da República, as well as
the temporary substitution of Members on important grounds.

Article 154(Incompatibilities and disqualifications)1. Members of the Assembleia da República who are appointed to be members of the Government may not
exercise their mandate until the latter functions end, and shall be substituted in accordance with the previous
Article.
2. The law shall lay down any other incompatibilities.
3. The law shall regulate the cases and circumstances in which Members require the Assembleia da
República authorisation in order to be jurors, arbiters, experts or witnesses.

Article 155(Exercise of the function of Member of the Assembleia da República)
1. Members of the Assembleia da República shall exercise their mandates freely and shall be guaranteed
the conditions needed to exercise their functions effectively, particularly those needed for the indispensable
contact with registered electors and for ensuring that the latter are regularly kept informed.
2. The law shall regulate the circumstances in which the absence of Members from official acts orproceedings that do not concern the Assembleia da República, due to Assembly sittings or missions,constitutes justified grounds for adjourning the said acts or proceedings.
3. Public entities are under a duty, as laid down by law, to cooperate with Members of the Assembleia da
República in the exercise of their functions.

Article 156(Powers of Members of the Assembleia da República)
Members of the Assembleia da República have the following powers:a) To submit draft revisions of the Constitution;b) To submit Member’s bills, draft Rules of Procedure, draft resolutions, particularly in relation toreferenda, and draft decisions, and to request that they be scheduled for debate;c) To take part and speak in parliamentary debates, as laid down in the Rules of Procedure;d) To question the Government about any of its acts or those of the Public Administration, and to obtain
answers within a reasonable time limit, save for the provisions of the law on matters concerning statesecrets;e) To request and obtain the elements, information and official publications they deem useful to the exerciseof their mandate from the Government or the organs of any public entity;f) To move the formation of parliamentary committees of inquiry;g) Those set out in the Rules of Procedure.

Article 157(Immunities)

1. Members of the Assembleia da República are not civilly or criminally liable for or subject to disciplinary
proceedings in relation to their votes or the opinions they express in the exercise of their functions.
2. Members of the Assembleia da República may not appear as makers of declarations or accused
persons without the Assembly’s authorisation. In the latter case, the Assembly shall obligatorily decide infavour of authorisation when there are strong indications of the commission of a wilful crime punishable
by imprisonment for a maximum term of more than three years.
3. No Member of the Assembleia da República may be detained, arrested or imprisoned without theAssembly’s authorisation, save for a wilful crime punishable by the type of prison term referred to by theprevious paragraph and in flagrante delicto.
4. In the event that criminal proceedings are brought against any Member of the Assembleia da
República and he is definitively charged, the Assembly shall decide whether or not he must be suspended
so that the proceedings can take their course. When the crime is of the type referred to in the previous
paragraphs, the Assembly shall obligatorily decide to suspend the Member.

Article 158(Rights and privileges)
Members of the Assembleia da República enjoy the following rights and privileges:a) Deferment of military, civic and civil defence service;b) Free transit and the right to a special passport during official trips abroad;c) A special identity card;d) The allowances stipulated by law.

Article 159(Duties)
Members of the Assembleia da República are under the following duties:a) To attend plenary sittings and the meetings of any committees to which they belong;b) To exercise any offices in the Assembly and any functions to which they are appointed upon proposals
by their parliamentary groups;c) To take part in voting.

Article 160(Loss and resignation of seat)
1. Members of the Assembleia da República shall lose their seat in the event that:a) They become subject to any of the disqualifications or incompatibilities provided for by law;b) They do not take up their seat in the Assembly, or they exceed the number of failures to attend laid
down in the Rules of Procedure;c) They register as members of a party other than that for which they stood for election;d) They are convicted by a court of any of the special crimes for which political officeholders may beheld liable, which they commit in the exercise of their functions and for which they are sentenced to suchloss, or they are convicted of participating in organisations that are racist or display a fascist ideology.
2. Members of the Assembleia da República may resign their seat by means of a written declaration.

CHAPTER II
Competences
Article 161(Political and legislative competences)
The Assembleia da República has the competences:a) To pass amendments to the Constitution in accordance with Articles 284 to 289;b) To pass the political and administrative statutes of the autonomous regions and the laws governing theelection of the members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions;c) To make laws on all matters, save for those in which the Government has exclusive competence under
the Constitution;d) To grant the Government authorisations to legislate;e) To grant the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions the authorisations provided for in
Article 227(1)(b) of the Constitution;f) To grant generic amnesties and pardons;g) Upon the submission of drafts by the Government, to pass the laws on the Major Options of the
National Plans and the State Budget;h) To authorise the Government to contract and grant loans and engage in other lending operations, apartfrom floating debt operations, to define the general terms and conditions governing such loans andlending operations, and to set the maximum limit for guarantees to be given by the Government eachyear;i) To approve treaties, particularly those that concern Portugal’s participation in international organisations,friendship, peace, defence, the rectification of borders or military affairs, as well as international
agreements that address matters in which the Assembly has exclusive competence, or which the Government
deems fit to submit to the Assembly for consideration;j) To propose to the President of the Republic that important issues of national interest be submitted toreferendum;l) To authorise and confirm declarations of a state of siege or a state of emergency;m) To authorise the President of the Republic to declare war or to make peace;n) To pronounce, as laid down by law, on matters awaiting decision by European Union organs thatconcern the sphere of its exclusive legislative competence;o) To perform the other functions that the Constitution and the law allocate to it.

Article 162(Competence to scrutinise)
In the exercise of its scrutiny functions the Assembleia da República has the competences:a) To scrutinise compliance with the Constitution and the laws and to consider the acts of the Government
and the Administration;b) To consider the manner in which a declaration of a state of siege or a state of emergency has been
applied;c) To consider executive laws, save for those made by exercise of the Government’s exclusive legislativecompetence, and to consider the regional legislative decrees provided for in Article 227(1)(b), in bothcases for the purpose of determining whether they should be amended or cease to be in force;d) To receive the accounts of the state and the other public entities stipulated by law, which shall be
submitted by 31 December of the following year, together with the opinion of the Court of Auditors andthe other elements needed to consider them;e) To consider reports on the execution of National Plans.

Article 163(Competences in relation to other entities and organs)
In relation to other entities and organs the Assembleia da República has the competences:a) To witness the installation of the President of the Republic;b) To consent to the President of the Republic’s absence from Portuguese territory;c) To promote the bringing of charges against the President of the Republic for crimes committed in theexercise of his functions, and to decide whether to suspend members of the Government in the caseprovided for in Article 196;d) To consider the Government’s Programme;e) To put motions of confidence or no confidence in the Government to the vote;f) As laid down by law, to monitor and consider Portugal’s participation in the process of constructing theEuropean Union;g) To elect, under the proportional representation system, five members of the Council of State and thosemembers of the High Council of the Public Prosecution Service whom the Assembly has the competence
to appoint;h) By a majority that is at least equal to two thirds of all Members of the Assembleia da Repúblicapresent and greater than an absolute majority of all the Members in full exercise of their office, to electten Justices of the Constitutional Court, the Ombudsman, the President of the Economic and Social
Council, seven ordinary members of the High Council for the Judiciary, the members of the media
regulatory entity and the members of all other constitutional entities whose appointment is the responsibilityof the Assembleia da República by law;i) As laid down by law, to supervise the involvement of military contingents and security forces abroad.

Article 164(Exclusive legislative competence)
The Assembleia da República has exclusive competence to legislate on the following matters:a) Elections of the officeholders of the entities that exercise sovereignty;b) The regimes governing referenda;c) The organisation, modus operandi and procedure of the Constitutional Court;d) The organisation of national defence, the definition of the duties derived therefrom and the generalbases of the organisation, modus operandi, re-equipping and discipline of the Armed Forces;e) The regimes governing states of siege and states of emergency;f) The acquisition, loss and re-acquisition of Portuguese citizenship;g) The definition of the limits of territorial waters, the exclusive economic zone and Portugal’s rights tothe adjacent seabeds;h) Political associations and parties;i) The bases of the education system;j) The election of members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions;l) The election of officeholders of local government organs and other elections conducted by direct,
universal suffrage, as well as elections to the remaining constitutional entities and organs;m) The statutes governing the officeholders of the entities that exercise sovereignty and of local governmentorgans, as well as of the officeholders of the remaining constitutional organs and of those that are elected bydirect, universal suffrage;n) Without prejudice to the powers of the autonomous regions, the creation, abolition and modification of
local authorities and the regime governing them;o) Restrictions on the exercise of rights by full-time military personnel and militarised agents on active
service and by agents of the security services and forces;p) The regime governing the appointment of members of European Union organs, with the exception of
the Commission;q) The regime governing the Republic’s intelligence system and state secrets;r) The general regime governing the drawing up and organisation of the budgets of the state, theautonomous regions and local authorities;s) The regime governing national symbols;t) The regime governing the finances of the autonomous regions;u) The regime governing the security forces;

v) The regime governing the organisational, administrative and financial autonomy of the President of the
Republic’s support services.

Article 165(Partially exclusive legislative competence)
1. Unless it also authorises the Government to do so, the Assembleia da República has exclusivecompetence to legislate on the following matters:a) People’s legal status and capacity;b) Rights, freedoms and guarantees;c) The definition of crimes, sentences, security measures and the preconditions therefore, and criminal
procedure;d) The general regime governing the punishment of disciplinary infractions, and of administrative
offences and the respective procedure;e) The general regime governing requisitions and expropriations in the public interest;f) The bases of the social security system and the national health service;g) The bases of the system for protecting nature, the ecological balance and the cultural heritage;h) The general regime governing rural and urban rentals;i) The creation of taxes and the fiscal system, and the general regime governing duties and other financial
contributions to public entities;j) The definition of the sectors of ownership of the means of production, including that of the basic
sectors in which private enterprises and other entities of the same nature are forbidden to do business;l) The means and forms of intervention, expropriation, nationalisation and privatisation of and in relation
to means of production and soils in the public interest, together with criteria for setting compensation insuch cases;m) The regime governing economic and social development plans and the composition of the Economic
and Social Council;n) The bases of the agricultural policy, including the setting of the maximum and minimum limits forfarming units;o) The monetary system and the standard for weights and measures;p) The organisation and competences of the courts and the Public Prosecution Service and the statutegoverning the respective judges, as well as the organisation and competences of non-jurisdictional
conflict settlement entities;q) The statute governing local authorities, including the regime governing local finances;r) Participation in the exercise of local government by residents’ organisations;s) Public associations, guarantees available to users of the Administration, and the Administration’s civil
liability;t) The bases of the regime governing, and the scope of, the public service;u) The basic general elements of the statute governing public sector enterprises and foundations;v) The definition of, and the regime governing, property in the public domain;x) The regime governing means of production that are integrated into the cooperative and social sector ofownership;z) The bases for town and country planning and urbanism;aa) The regime governing municipal police forces and the form in which they are created.
2. Laws that grant authorisation to legislate must define the object, purpose, extent and duration of theauthorisation, which may be extended.
3. Without prejudice to their use in partial stages, authorisations to legislate may not be used more thanonce.
4. Authorisations lapse upon the resignation or removal of the Government to which they were granted, atthe end of the legislature, and upon the dissolution of the Assembleia da República.
5. Authorisations granted to the Government by the Budget law shall comply with the provisions of thepresent Article and, when they address fiscal matters, shall only lapse at the end of the fiscal year towhich they refer.

Article 166(Form of acts)
1. The acts provided for in Article 161(a) shall take the form of constitutional laws.
2. The acts provided for in Articles 164(a) to (f), (h), (j), the first part of (l), (q) and (t) and 255 shall takethe form of organic laws.
3. The acts provided for in Article 161(b) to (h) shall take the form of laws.
4. The acts provided for in Article 163(d) and (e) shall take the form of motions.
5. The remaining acts of the Assembleia da República shall take the form of resolutions, as shall those of
the Standing Committee provided for in Article 179(3)(e) and (f).
6. Resolutions shall be published regardless of whether they are enacted.

Article 167(Initiative in relation to laws and referenda)
1. The competence to initiate laws and referenda lies with Members of the Assembleia da República,
parliamentary groups and the Government, and also, under the terms and conditions laid down by law,with groups of registered electors. The competence to initiate laws in relation to the autonomous regions
lies with the respective Legislative Assemblies.
2. No Member of the Assembleia da República, parliamentary group, Legislative Assembly of anautonomous region or group of registered electors may submit bills or draft amendments which, during
the then current financial year, involve an increase in the state’s expenditure or a decrease in its revenues
as set out in the Budget.

3. No Member of the Assembleia da República, parliamentary group or group of registered electors may
submit draft referenda which, during the then current financial year, involve an increase in the state’s
expenditure or a decrease in its revenues as set out in the Budget.
4. Bills and draft referenda that are definitively rejected may not be resubmitted in the same legislative
session, unless a new Assembleia da República is elected.
5. Bills and draft referenda that are not put to the vote in the legislative session in which they aresubmitted do not require resubmission in the following legislative session, save in the event that thelegislature itself comes to an end.
6. Government bills and draft referenda lapse upon the resignation or removal of the Government.
7. Government bills that are initiated by Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions lapse at theend of the respective legislature, save for those whose general principles have already been passed, which
only lapse upon the end of the legislature of the Assembleia da República.
8. Without prejudice to the bills and draft referenda to which they refer, when they are not withdrawn,
parliamentary committees may submit replacement texts.

Article 168(Discussion and voting)
1. Discussion of bills comprises a debate on the general principles and another on the details.
2. Voting comprises a vote on the general principles, a vote on the details and a final overall vote.
3. If the Assembly so decides, texts that are passed on the general principles shall be put to the vote on thedetails in committee, without prejudice to the Assembly’s power to mandate the Plenary to put the details
to the vote, or to the final overall vote by the Plenary.
4. The details of laws on the matters provided for in Articles 164(a) to (f), (h), (n) and (o) and 165(1)(q)shall obligatorily be put to the vote by the Plenary.
5. When put to the overall final vote, organic laws require passage by an absolute majority of all theMembers of the Assembleia da República in full exercise of their office. The same majority is required for
passage by the Plenary of the details of provisions concerning the territorial delimitation of regions
provided for in Article 255.
6. Passage of the following requires a majority that is at least equal to two thirds of all Members present
and greater than an absolute majority of all the Members in full exercise of their office:a) The law concerning the media regulatory entity;b) The norms that govern the provisions of Article 118(2);c) The law that regulates the exercise of the right provided for in Article 121(2);d) The provisions of the laws that regulate the matters referred to in Articles 148 and 149, and thoseconcerning the system and method for electing the organs provided for in Article 239(3);e) The provisions that regulate the subject matter of Article 164(o);f) Those provisions of the political and administrative statutes of the autonomous regions that set out thematters which are included in the respective power to legislate.

Article 169(Parliamentary consideration of legislative acts)
1. Save for those passed in the exercise of the Government’s exclusive legislative competence, executive
laws may, upon a motion made by ten Members of the Assembleia da República within the thirty days
following their publication, excluding periods in which the Assembleia da República’s proceedings are
suspended, be subjected to consideration by the Assembleia da República with a view to causing them tocease to be in force or amending them.
2. Once a motion to consider an executive law drawn up under the terms of an authorisation to legislate
has been made and in cases in which one or more draft amendments are submitted, the Assembly may
suspend the force of all or part of the executive law until either the law that amends it is published, or all
the draft amendments are rejected.
3. Such suspensions expire after ten plenary sittings if the Assembly has not pronounced itself finally bythen.
4. If approval is given for the legislative act to cease to be in force, it shall so cease on the day on which
the respective resolution is published in the Diário da República, and may not be republished during thesame legislative session.
5. If a motion to consider has been made and the Assembly has not pronounced thereon, or in the event that
the Assembly has decided to make amendments, but has not put the respective law to the vote by the endof the then current legislative session, and on condition that at least fifteen plenary sittings have passed,
the consideration process shall be deemed to have lapsed.
6. Proceedings concerning the parliamentary consideration of executive laws enjoy priority, as laid downin the Rules of Procedure.

Article 170(Urgent proceedings)
1. Upon the initiative of any Member of the Assembleia da República, any parliamentary group or theGovernment, the Assembly may declare any bill or draft resolution to be the object of urgent proceedings.
2. Upon the initiative of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions, the Assembly may alsodeclare any government bill submitted by them to be the object of urgent proceedings.

CHAPTER III
Organisation and modus operandi
Article 171(Legislature)
1. The duration of each legislature is four legislative sessions.
2. In cases of dissolution, the Assembly that is then elected shall commence a new legislature, theduration of which shall be extended at the beginning by the time needed to complete the period that
corresponds to the legislative session that was in progress at the date of the election.

Article 172(Dissolution)
1. The Assembleia da República may not be dissolved during the six months following its election,
during the last six months of the President of the Republic’s term of office, or while a state of siege or astate of emergency is in force.
2. Failure to comply with the provisions of the previous paragraph renders the dissolution decree legally
nugatory.
3. Dissolution of the Assembly does not prejudice the continuation of its Members’ term of office, or thecompetences of the Standing Committee, until the first sitting of the Assembly following the subsequent
election.

Article 173(Sitting following elections)
1. The Assembleia da República shall sit by right on the third day following the calculation of the general
results of the election, or, in the case of elections called because a legislature is due to reach its term andthe said third day falls before the legislature reaches that term, on the first day of the following
legislature.
2. In the event that such a date falls when the Assembly is not in full session, it shall sit for the purposesof Article 175.

Article 174(Legislative sessions, full sessions and calling)
1. Legislative sessions last for one year and begin on 15 September.
2. Without prejudice to suspensions decided by a two-thirds majority of all the Members of the Assembleia
da República who are present, the Assembleia da República’s normal parliamentary term is from 15
September to 15 June.
3. Following a Plenary decision to extend the normal parliamentary term, or on the initiative of the Standing
Committee, or, in the event that the latter is unable to function and there is a serious emergency, on theinitiative of more than half of all the Members, the Assembleia da República may function outside the term
set out in the previous paragraph.
4. The President of the Republic may also call the Assembly on an extraordinary basis in order to address
specific subjects.
5. When the Assembly so decides under the same terms as those set out in paragraph (2), committees may
function regardless of whether the Assembly’s Plenary is in full session.

Article 175(The Assembly’s internal competences)

The Assembleia da República has the competences:a) To draw up and pass its Rules of Procedure, in accordance with the Constitution;b) To elect its President and the remaining members of the Bureau by absolute majority of all the Membersof the Assembleia da República in full exercise of their office. The four Vice-Presidents shall be elected
upon proposals from the four largest parliamentary groups;c) To form the Standing Committee and the remaining committees.

Article 176(Order of business of plenary sittings)
1. The President of the Assembleia da República shall set the order of business in accordance with thepriority accorded to each matter in the Rules of Procedure, and without prejudice to the right of appeal to
the Assembly’s Plenary and to the competence of the President of the Republic provided for in
Article 174(4).
2. The Government and parliamentary groups may request that priority be given to matters of national
interest that require urgent resolution.
3. Every parliamentary group has the right to set the order of business of a certain number of sittings inaccordance with a criterion that shall be laid down in the Rules of Procedure, in which respect theposition of minority parties and parties that are not represented in the Government must always besafeguarded.
4. Legislative Assemblies of autonomous regions may request that priority be given to matters of regional
interest that require urgent resolution.

Article 177(Attendance by members of the Government)
1. Ministers have the right to attend the Assembleia da República’s plenary sittings, at which they may beassisted or substituted by their Secretaries of State, and both have the right to speak, as laid down in theRules of Procedure.
2. Sittings shall be scheduled at which members of the Government shall be present in order to respond toquestions and requests for clarification from Members of the Assembleia da República. These sittings shalltake place with the minimum frequency laid down in the Rules of Procedure and on dates that shall be set
by agreement with the Government.
3. Members of the Government may ask to participate in committee proceedings, and must appear before
committees when asked to do so.

Article 178(Committees)
1. The Assembleia da República shall have the committees provided for in the Rules of Procedure, andmay form ad hoc committees of inquiry or for any other given purpose.
2. Committees shall be composed in proportion to the number of seats each party holds in the Assembleia
da República.

3. Petitions addressed to the Assembly shall be considered by the committees or by a committee formed
specially for the purpose, which may consult the other committees with competence for the matter inquestion. In all cases any citizens may be asked to testify.
4. Without prejudice to their formation in accordance with the normal provisions, parliamentary committees
of inquiry shall obligatorily be formed whenever a motion is made to that effect by one fifth of all theMembers of the Assembleia da República in full exercise of their office, up to a limit of one per Member
and per legislative session.
5. Parliamentary committees of inquiry have the investigative powers of the judicial authorities.
6. The chairmanships of the various committees shall be divided between the parliamentary groups inproportion to the number of Members of the Assembleia da República in each group.
7. Representatives of the Legislative Assembly of the proposing autonomous region may participate in thecommittee meetings at which regional legislative proposals are discussed, as laid down in the Rules ofProcedure.

Article 179(Standing Committee)
1. Outside periods in which the Assembleia da República is in full session, during periods in which it isdissolved, and in the remaining cases provided for in the Constitution, the Assembleia da República’sStanding Committee shall be in session.
2. The Standing Committee is chaired by the President of the Assembleia da República and is also
composed of the Vice-Presidents and of Members of the Assembleia da República nominated by each of
the parties, each in proportion to the number of seats it holds in the Assembly.
3. The Standing Committee has the competences to:a) Scrutinise compliance with the Constitution and the laws and monitor the activities of the Government
and the Administration;b) Exercise the Assembly’s powers in relation to the mandate of Members of the Assembleia da
República;c) Take steps to ensure that the Assembly is called whenever necessary;d) Prepare the opening of the legislative session;e) Consent to the President of the Republic’s absence from Portuguese territory;f) Authorise the President of the Republic to declare a state of siege or a state of emergency, declare war
or make peace.
4. In the case provided for in subparagraph (f) of the previous paragraph, the Standing Committee shalltake steps to ensure that the Assembly is called as soon as possible.

Article 180(Parliamentary groups)

1. The Members of the Assembleia da República who are elected for each party or coalition of parties
may form a parliamentary group.
2. Each parliamentary group has the following rights:a) To participate in Assembly committees in proportion to the number of its Members, and to nominate its
representatives on those committees;b) To be consulted when the order of business is set, and to appeal to the Plenary against that order ofbusiness;c) To cause the holding of debates on issues of urgent current public interest, which the Government shallattend;d) In each legislative session, to cause the holding of two debates on a matter of general or sectoral
policy, by calling on the Government to attend the Assembly;e) To ask the Standing Committee to take steps to ensure that the Plenary is convened;f) To move the formation of parliamentary committees of inquiry;g) To initiate legislation;h) To make motions rejecting the Government’s Programme;i) To make motions of no confidence in the Government;j) To be regularly and directly informed by the Government about the situation and progress of the main
matters of public interest.
3. Each parliamentary group has the right to dispose of places in which to work at the Seat of theAssembly, together with technical and administrative staff of its choice, as laid down by law.
4. Members of the Assembleia da República who do not belong to any parliamentary group shall beensured certain minimum rights and guarantees, as laid down in the Rules of Procedure.

Article 181(Assembly staff and specialists)
The Assembly and its committees shall be assisted in their work by a permanent body of technical andadministrative staff, and by specialists who are on assignment or are temporarily contracted. The numberof such staff and specialists shall be that which the President deems necessary.

TITLE IV
Government

CHAPTER I
Function and structure
Article 182(Definition)

The Government is the entity that conducts the country’s general policy and the senior organ of the Public
Administration.

Article 183(Composition)
1. The Government comprises the Prime Minister, the Ministers and the Secretaries and Under Secretaries
of State.
2. The Government may include one or more Deputy Prime Ministers.
3. The number, designation and responsibilities of the ministries and secretary-of-state’s offices and theforms of coordination between them shall be decided in each case by the decree appointing the respective
officeholders, or by executive law.

Article 184(Council of Ministers)
1. The Council of Ministers comprises the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Ministers if any, and theMinisters.
2. The law may create specialised Councils of Ministers with competence for specific matters.
3. Secretaries and Under Secretaries of State may be required to take part in meetings of the Council of
Ministers.

Article 185(Substitution of members of the Government)
1. In the event that there is no Deputy Prime Minister, the Prime Minister shall be substituted during his
absence or inability to perform his functions by the Minister he indicates to the President of the Republic,or, in the absence of such indication, by the Minister designated by the President of the Republic.
2. During his absence or inability to perform his functions, each Minister shall be substituted by the
Secretary of State he indicates to the Prime Minister, or, in the absence of such indication, by the memberof the Government designated by the Prime Minister.

Article 186(Beginning and end of functions)
1. The Prime Minister’s functions begin upon his installation and end when he is discharged by the
President of the Republic.
2. The functions of the remaining members of the Government begin upon their installation and end when
they or the Prime Minister are discharged.
3. The functions of Secretaries and Under Secretaries of State also end when their Minister is discharged.

4. In cases in which the Government resigns or is removed, the Prime Minister of the outgoing
Government is discharged on the date of the appointment and installation of the new Prime Minister.
5. Until its Programme has been considered by the Assembleia da República, or after its resignation or
removal, the Government shall limit itself to undertaking the acts that are strictly necessary in order toensure the management of public affairs.

CHAPTER II
Formation and accountability
Article 187(Formation)
1. The President of the Republic appoints the Prime Minister after consulting the parties with seats in
Assembleia da República and in the light of the electoral results.
2. The President of the Republic appoints the remaining members of the Government upon a proposal
from the Prime Minister.

Article 188(The Government’s Programme)
The Government’s Programme shall set out the main political guidelines and the measures that are to be
adopted or proposed in the various areas of governmental activity.

Article 189(Collective responsibility)
Members of the Government are bound by the Government’s Programme and by decisions taken by theCouncil of Ministers.

Article 190(Government accountability)
The Government is accountable to the President of the Republic and the Assembleia da República.

Article 191(Accountability of members of the Government)
1. The Prime Minister is accountable to the President of the Republic and, within the ambit of theGovernment’s political responsibility, to the Assembleia da República.
2. Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers are accountable to the Prime Minister and, within the ambit of
the Government’s political responsibility, to the Assembleia da República.

3. Secretaries and Under Secretaries of State are accountable to the Prime Minister and their Minister.

Article 192(Consideration of the Government’s Programme)
1. Within a time limit of at most ten days after its appointment, the Government shall submit its Programme
to the Assembleia da República for consideration, by means of a Prime Ministerial statement.
2. If the Assembleia da República is not in full session, its President shall obligatorily call it for thispurpose.
3. The debate may not last for more than three days, and until it is closed, any parliamentary group may
make a motion rejecting the Programme, or the Government may request the passage of a confidence
motion.
4. Rejection of the Government’s Programme requires an absolute majority of all the Members of theAssembleia da República in full exercise of their office.

Article 193(Request for confidence motion)
The Government may ask the Assembleia da República to pass a confidence motion in relation to astatement of general policy or to any matter of important national interest.

Article 194(Motions of no confidence)
1. Upon the initiative of one quarter of all the Members of the Assembleia da República in full exercise of
their office or of any parliamentary group, the Assembleia da República may put to the vote motions of no
confidence in the Government, in relation to the latter’s implementation of its Programme or to any matterof important national interest.
2. Motions of no confidence may only be considered forty-eight hours after they are made, in a debatethat shall last for no more than three days.
3. If a motion of no confidence is not passed, its signatories may not make another such motion during thesame legislative session.

Article 195(Resignation or removal of the Government)
1. The following shall imply the resignation of the Government:a) The beginning of a new legislature;b) Acceptance by the President of the Republic of the Prime Minister’s resignation;c) The Prime Minister’s death or lasting physical incapacitation;d) Rejection of the Government’s Programme;e) The failure of any confidence motion;f) Passage of a motion of no confidence by an absolute majority of all the Members of the Assembleia
da República in full exercise of their office.
2. The President of the Republic may only remove the Government when it becomes necessary to do so inorder to ensure the normal operation of the democratic institutions and after first consulting the Councilof State.

Article 196(Implementation of criminal liability of members of the Government)
1. No member of the Government may be detained, arrested or imprisoned without the authorisation of
the Assembleia da República, save for a wilful crime punishable by imprisonment for a maximum term of
more than three years and in flagrante delicto.
2. In the event that criminal proceedings are brought against any member of the Government and he isdefinitively charged, the Assembleia da República shall decide whether or not the member of theGovernment must be suspended so that the proceedings can take their course. In the case of a crime of thetype referred to in the previous paragraph, the decision to suspend is obligatory.

CHAPTER III
Competences

Article 197(Political competences)
1. In the exercise of its political functions the Government has the competences:a) In accordance with Article 140, to counter-sign acts of the President of the Republic;b) To negotiate and finalise international conventions;c) To approve international agreements whose approval is not within the competences of, or which havenot been submitted to, the Assembleia da República;d) To present and submit government bills and draft resolutions to the Assembleia da República;e) In accordance with Article 115, to propose to the President of the Republic that matters of importantnational interest be subjected to referendum;f) To pronounce on declarations of a state of siege or a state of emergency;g) To propose to the President of the Republic that he declare war or make peace;h) In accordance with Article 162(d), to submit the accounts of the state and of the other public entities
laid down by law, to the Assembleia da República;i) For the purpose of Articles 161(n) and 163(f) and in good time, to submit information concerning theprocess of constructing the European Union to the Assembleia da República;j) To undertake the other acts that are entrusted to it by the Constitution or the law.
2. Government approval of international agreements shall take the form of a decree.

Article 198(Legislative competences)
1. In the exercise of its legislative functions the Government has the competences to:a) Make executive laws on matters that do not fall within the exclusive competence of the Assembleia
da República;b) Subject to authorisation by the Assembleia da República, make executive laws on matters that fallwithin the latter’s partially exclusive competence;c) Make executive laws that develop the principles or the general bases of the legal regimes contained inlaws that limit themselves to those principles or general bases.
2. The Government has the exclusive competence to legislate on matters that concern its own organisationand modus operandi.
3. The executive laws provided for in paragraph (1)(b) and (c) must make express mention of the law
granting authorisation to legislate, or the basic law, under which they are passed.

Article 199(Administrative competences)
In the exercise of its administrative functions the Government has the competences:a) To draw up Plans on the basis of the respective Major Options, and to cause them to be implemented;b) To cause the State Budget to be executed;c) To make the regulations needed for the proper implementation of laws;d) To direct the state’s departments and services and all the activities under its direct administration, civil
and military, to superintend the indirect administration, and to exercise oversight over the latter and over
the autonomous administration;e) To undertake all the acts that the law requires in relation to staff and agents of the state and of otherpublic sector legal persons;f) To defend democratic legality;g) To undertake all the acts and make all the dispositions needed to promote economic and social
development and fulfil collective needs.

Article 200

(Competences of the Council of Ministers)
1. The Council of Ministers has the competences:a) To define the general lines of government policy and of the implementation thereof;b) To decide whether to ask the Assembleia da República to pass confidence motions; c)
To approve government bills and draft resolutions;d) To pass executive laws, and to approve international agreements that are not submitted to the
Assembleia da República;e) To approve Plans;f) To pass Government acts that involve increases or reductions in public revenues or expenditure;g) To decide other matters that are within the Government’s competences and are allocated to it by law or
submitted to it by the Prime Minister or any Minister.
2. Specialised Councils of Ministers exercise the competences that are allocated to them by law ordelegated to them by the Council of Ministers.

Article 201(Competences of members of the Government)
1. The Prime Minister has the competences:a) To direct the Government’s general policy and to coordinate and orient the actions of all the Ministers;b) To direct the work of the Government and its general relations with the other state entities and organs;c) To inform the President of the Republic about matters concerning the conduct of the country’s internaland external policy;d) To exercise the other functions that are allocated to him by the Constitution and the law.
2. Ministers have the competences:a) To implement the policy that has been set for their Ministries;b) Within the scope of their respective Ministries, to conduct the relations of a general nature between the
Government and the other state entities and organs.
3. Executive laws and the other decrees issued by the Government shall be signed by the Prime Ministerand the Ministers with competence for the matter in question.

TITLE V
CourtsCHAPTER I
General principles

Article 202(Jurisdictional function)
1. The courts are the entities that exercise sovereignty with the competence to administer justice in thename of the people.
2. In administering justice the courts are responsible for ensuring the defence of those citizens’ rights andinterests that are protected by law, repressing breaches of democratic legality and deciding conflicts
between interests, public and private.
3. In the exercise of their functions the courts have the right to the assistance of the other authorities.
4. The law may institutionalise non-jurisdictional instruments and forms of settling conflicts.

Article 203(Independence)
The courts are independent and subject only to the law.

Article 204(Compliance with the Constitution)
In matters that are submitted for judgement the courts may not apply norms that contravene the provisionsof the Constitution or the principles enshrined therein.

Article 205(Court decisions)
1. Court decisions that are not merely administrative in nature shall set out their grounds in the form laid
down by law.
2. Court decisions are binding on all public and private entities and prevail over the decisions of any otherauthorities.
3. The law shall regulate the terms under which court decisions are executed in relation to any authority,and shall lay down the sanctions to be imposed on those responsible for any failure to execute them.

Article 206(Court hearings)
Court hearings are public, save when, in order to safeguard personal dignity or public morals or to ensure
its own normal operation, the court itself decides otherwise in a written order that sets out the grounds for
its decision.

Article 207(Juries, public participation and technical advice)
1. In the cases and with the composition laid down by law, and particularly when the prosecution or the
defence so requests, a jury shall participate in the trial of serious crimes, save those involving terrorism or
highly organised crime.
2. The law may provide for the participation of lay magistrates in judgements concerning labour-related
matters, public health infractions, minor offences, the execution of sentences or other cases that justify
special consideration of the social values that have been infringed.
3. The law may also provide for the participation of technically qualified advisors in the trial of certain
matters.

Article 208(Legal representation)
The law shall ensure that lawyers enjoy the immunities needed to exercise their mandates and shallregulate legal representation as an element that is essential to the administration of justice.

CHAPTER II
Organisation of the courts
Article 209(Categories of court)
1. In addition to the Constitutional Court, there shall be the following categories of court:a) The Supreme Court of Justice and the courts of law of first and second instance;b) The Supreme Administrative Court and the remaining administrative and tax courts;c) The Court of Auditors.
2. There may be maritime courts, arbitration tribunals and justices of the peace.
3. The law shall lay down the cases and forms in which the courts provided for in the previous paragraphs
may separately or jointly be constituted as conflict-resolution tribunals.
4. Without prejudice to the provisions concerning courts martial, the existence of courts with theexclusive competence to try certain categories of crime is prohibited.

Article 210(Supreme Court of Justice and instances)
1. Without prejudice to the specific competence of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court of Justiceis the senior organ in the hierarchy of the courts of law.
2. The President of the Supreme Court of Justice is elected by its Justices.

3. As a rule the courts of first instance are the district courts, and the status of the courts referred to inparagraph (2) of the following Article is equivalent to that of the latter.
4. As a rule the courts of second instance are the Courts of Appeal.
5. The Supreme Court of Justice shall function as a court of instance in the cases laid down by law.

Article 211(Competence and specialisation of courts of law)
1. The courts of law are the general courts in civil and criminal matters and shall exercise jurisdiction in
every area that is not allocated to other judicial orders.
2. There may be courts of first instance that have specific competences or are specialised in the trial ofcertain matters.
3. The composition of courts of any instance that try crimes of a strictly military nature shall include one
or more military judges, as laid down by law.
4. The Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Justice may operate in specialised sections.

Article 212(Administrative and tax courts)
1. Without prejudice to the specific competence of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Administrative
Court is the senior organ in the hierarchy of administrative and tax courts.
2. The President of the Supreme Administrative Court is elected by its Justices from among their number.
3. The administrative and tax courts have the competence to try contested actions and appeals whose
object is to settle disputes arising from administrative and fiscal legal relations.

Article 213(Courts martial)
For as long as a state of war is in effect, there shall be courts martial with the competence to try crimes ofa strictly military nature.

Article 214(Court of Auditors)
1. The Court of Auditors is the senior organ for the scrutiny of the legality of public expenditure and for
judging the accounts which the law requires to be submitted to it. It particularly has the competence to:a) Give an opinion on the General State Accounts, including the social security accounts;b) Give an opinion on the accounts of the Azores and Madeira Autonomous Regions;c) Enforce liability for financial infractions, as laid down by law;d) Exercise the other competences allocated to it by law.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 133(m), the term of office of the President of the Courtof Auditors is four years.
3. The Court of Auditors may operate in a decentralised manner, in regional sections, as laid down by
law.
4. In the Azores and Madeira Autonomous Regions there shall be sections of the Court of Auditors withfull competence for the matter in question in the respective region, as laid down by law.

CHAPTER III
Status and role of judges
Article 215(Judges of the courts of law)
1. The judges of the courts of law form a single body and shall be governed by a single statute.
2. The law shall lay down the requisites for, and the rules governing, the recruitment of judges of thecourts of law of first instance.
3. The criterion that prevails in the recruitment of judges of the courts of law of second instance shall bethat of merit, to be determined by a competitive curricular selection process between judges of first instance.
4. Access to the bench of the Supreme Court of Justice shall be determined by a competitive curricular
selection process that is open to judges, public prosecutors and other meritorious jurists, as laid down bylaw.

Article 216(Guarantees and incompatibilities)
1. Judges enjoy security of tenure and may not be transferred, suspended, retired or removed from office
except in the cases provided for by law.
2. Save for the exceptions laid down by law, judges may not be held personally liable for their decisions.
3. Serving judges may not perform any other public or private function, save for unremunerated teachingor academic legal research functions, as laid down by law.
4. Serving judges may not be appointed to limited-term positions unrelated to the work of the courts
without the authorisation of the competent High Council.
5. The law may lay down other incompatibilities with the exercise of the function of judge.

Article 217

(Appointment, assignment, transfer and promotion of judges)
1. The High Council for the Judiciary has the competence to appoint, assign, transfer and promote judgesof the courts of law and exercise discipline over them, as laid down by law.
2. The respective High Council has the competence to appoint, assign, transfer and promote judges of theadministrative and tax courts and exercise discipline over them, as laid down by law.
3. The law shall define the rules governing the assignment, transfer and promotion of judges of theremaining courts and the exercise of discipline over them, and shall lay down the competences to do so,while safeguarding the guarantees provided for in the Constitution.

Article 218(High Council for the Judiciary)
1. The High Council for the Judiciary is chaired by the President of the Supreme Court of Justice and also
comprises the following ordinary members:a) Two appointed by the President of the Republic;b) Seven elected by the Assembleia da República;c) Seven judges elected by their peers in harmony with the principle of proportional representation.
2. The rules governing guarantees enjoyed by judges are applicable to all the ordinary members of theHigh Council for the Judiciary.
3. The law may provide for court officials to be members of the High Council for the Judiciary, to beelected by their peers. Their participation shall be restricted to the discussion and voting on mattersconcerning the assessment of the professional merit of, and the exercise of discipline over, court officials.

CHAPTER IV
Public Prosecution Service
Article 219(Functions and statute)
1. The Public Prosecution Service has the competence to represent the state and defend the interests laid
down by law, and, subject to the provisions of the following paragraph and as laid down by law, toparticipate in the implementation of the criminal policy defined by the entities that exercise sovereignty,
exercise penal action in accordance with the principle of legality, and defend democratic legality.
2. The Public Prosecution Service shall have its own statute and autonomy, as laid down by law.
3. The law shall create special forms of advice to be provided to the Public Prosecution Service in cases
involving strictly military crimes.
4. The agents of the Public Prosecution Service are accountable judicial officers, shall form part of and be
subject to a hierarchy, and may not be transferred, suspended, retired or removed from office except in
the cases provided for by law.
5. The competences to appoint, assign, transfer and promote agents of the Public Prosecution Service andexercise discipline over them pertain to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

Article 220(Prosecutor General’s Office)
1. The Prosecutor General’s Office is the senior organ of the Public Prosecution Service and shall havethe composition and competences laid down by law.
2. The Prosecutor General’s Office is presided over by the Prosecutor General and encompasses the HighCouncil of the Public Prosecution Service, which includes members elected by the Assembleia da República
and members elected by the public prosecutors from among their number.
3. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 133(m), the Prosecutor General’s term of office is six
years.

TITLE VI
Constitutional Court
Article 221(Definition)
The Constitutional Court is the court with the specific competence to administer justice in matters of aconstitutional-law nature.

Article 222(Composition and status and role of Justices)
1. The Constitutional Court is composed of thirteen Justices, ten of whom are appointed by the
Assembleia da República and three co-opted by those ten.
2. Six of the Justices who are appointed by the Assembleia da República or are co-opted must
obligatorily be chosen from among the judges of the remaining courts, and the others from among jurists.
3. The term of office of the Justices of the Constitutional Court is nine years and is not renewable.
4. The President of the Constitutional Court is elected by its Justices.
5. Constitutional Court Justices enjoy the same guarantees of independence, security of tenure,impartiality and absence of personal liability and are subject to the same incompatibilities as the judges of
the remaining courts.
6. The law shall lay down the immunities and other rules concerning the status and role of Constitutional
Court Justices.

Article 223(Competences)1. The Constitutional Court has the competence to consider unconstitutionality and illegality, in
accordance with Articles 277 et sequitur.
2. The Constitutional Court also has the competences:a) To verify the death and declare the permanent physical incapacity of the President of the Republic, andto verify cases in which he is temporarily prevented from exercising his functions;b) To verify loss of the office of President of the Republic in the cases provided for in Article 129(3) and
Article 130(3);c) As the court of final instance, to judge the proper observance and validity of electoral procedural acts,
as laid down by law;d) For the purposes of Article 124(3), to verify the death, and to declare the incapacity to exercise thefunction of President of the Republic, of any candidate therefore;e) To verify the legality of the formation of political parties and coalitions thereof, to assess the legality of
their names, initials and symbols, and to order their abolition, in accordance with the Constitution and thelaw;f) To verify in advance the constitutionality and legality of national, regional and local referenda,
including consideration of the requisites in relation to the respective universe of electors;g) At the request of Members, as laid down by law, to judge appeals concerning losses of seat in, andelections conducted by, the Assembleia da República and the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous
regions;h) To judge those actions involving challenges to elections to, and to decisions taken by, political party
organs, which by law are subject to appeal.
3. The Constitutional Court also has the competence to exercise the other functions that are allocated to it
by the Constitution and the law.

Article 224(Organisation and modus operandi)
1. The law shall lay down the rules governing the Constitutional Court’s seat, organisation and modus
operandi.
2. Save for the purpose of the abstract review of constitutionality and legality, the law may require theConstitutional Court to operate in sections.
3. The law shall regulate appeals to the Plenary of the Constitutional Court against contradictorydecisions by different sections in the field of the application of the same norm.

TITLE VII
Autonomous Regions
Article 225(Political and administrative system of the Azores and Madeira)1. The grounds for the specific political and administrative regime of the Azores and Madeiraarchipelagos are their geographic, economic, social and cultural characteristics and the island
populations’ historic aspirations to autonomy.
2. The autonomy of the regions is designed to ensure democratic participation by citizens, economic andsocial development and the promotion and defence of regional interests, as well as the strengthening of
national unity and of the bonds of solidarity between all Portuguese.
3. Regional political and administrative autonomy does not affect the integrity of the sovereignty of thestate and shall be exercised within the overall framework of the Constitution.

Article 226(Statutes and electoral laws)
1. Draft political and administrative statutes and government bills concerning the election of members of
the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions are drawn up by those Legislative Assemblies andsent to the Assembleia da República for discussion and passage or rejection.
2. If the Assembleia da República rejects or amends such a draft or bill, it shall return it to the respective
Legislative Assembly for consideration and the issue of an opinion.
3. Once the opinion has been drawn up, the Assembleia da República shall put the draft or bill to the final
discussion and vote.
4. The regime provided for in the previous paragraphs is applicable to amendments to both the politicaland administrative statutes and laws regarding the election of members of the Legislative Assemblies of
the autonomous regions.

Article 227(Powers of autonomous regions)
1. The autonomous regions are territorial legal persons and have the following powers, which shall bedefined in their statutes:a) To legislate within the ambit of the region on those matters that are set out in the respective politicaland administrative statute and are not within the exclusive competence of entities that exercise sovereignty;b) Subject to authorisation by the Assembleia da República, to legislate on matters that are within that
Assembly’s partially exclusive legislative competence, with the exception of the matters provided for in
Article 165(1)(a) to (c), the first part of subparagraph (d), subparagraphs (f) and (i), the second part ofsubparagraph (m) and subparagraphs (o), (p), (q), (s), (t), (v), (x) and (aa);c) Within the ambit of the region, to develop the principles or the general bases of the legal regimes
contained in laws that limit themselves thereto;d) To regulate regional legislation and those laws issued by entities that exercise sovereignty that do notreserve the respective regulatory power to the latter;e) To initiate statutes, and to initiate legislation on matters concerning the election of members of therespective Legislative Assemblies pursuant to Article 226;f) To initiate legislation in accordance with Article 167(1), by submitting regional government bills andthe respective draft amendments to the Assembleia da República;g) To exercise their own executive power;h) To administer and dispose of their assets and to make acts and contracts in which they have an interest;i) To exercise their own power to tax as laid down by law, and to adapt the national fiscal system toregional specificities under the terms of framework laws of the Assembleia da República;j) In accordance with the terms of their statutes and the law governing the finances of the autonomous
regions, to dispose of the tax revenues collected or generated in the autonomous region, as well as of apart of the state’s tax revenues determined in accordance with a principle that ensures effective national
solidarity, and of other revenues that are allocated to them, and to appropriate those revenues to theirexpenditure;l) To create and abolish local authorities and modify the respective area, as laid down by law;m) To exercise the power of oversight over local authorities;n) To raise rural settlements to the category of town or city;o) To superintend departments and services, public institutes and public sector and nationalised
enterprises that pursue their activities exclusively or predominantly in the region, and in other cases inwhich the regional interest justifies it;p) To pass the regional economic and social development plan, the regional budget and the region’s
accounts and to take part in drawing up the National Plans;q) Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 165(1)(d), to define administrative offences and therespective sanctions;r) To participate in the definition and implementation of the fiscal, monetary, financial and exchange
policies in such a way as to ensure regional control of the means of payment in circulation and the financingof the investments needed for the region’s economic and social development;s) To participate in the definition of policies concerning territorial waters, the exclusive economic zone
and the adjacent seabeds;t) To participate in the negotiation of international treaties and agreements that directly concern them, andto share in the benefits derived therefrom;u) To establish cooperation with foreign regional entities and to participate in organisations whose
purpose is to foster inter-regional dialogue and cooperation, in accordance with the guidelines defined by
the entities that exercise sovereignty with competence in relation to foreign policy matters;v) On their own initiative, or when consulted by entities that exercise sovereignty, to pronounce on issues
that are within the latter’s competences and concern the autonomous regions, as well as, in matters thatconcern their specific interests, on the definition of the Portuguese state’s positions within the ambit of
the process of constructing the European Union;x) To participate, when matters that concern them are at stake, in the process of constructing the European
Union by means of their representation in the respective regional institutions and in the delegations
involved in European Union decision-making processes, as well as to transpose Union legal acts inaccordance with Article 112.
2. Regional government bills seeking authorisation to legislate must be accompanied by the draft regional
legislative decree for which authorisation is sought. The provisions of Article 165(2) and (3) shall apply
to the corresponding laws granting authorisation to legislate.
3. The authorisations referred to in the previous paragraph lapse upon the end of the legislature or the
dissolution of either the Assembleia da República, or the Legislative Assembly to which they were granted.

4. The regional legislative decrees provided for in paragraph (1)(b) and (c) must expressly invoke therespective authorisation laws or basic laws. The provisions of Article 169 are applicable to the former,
mutatis mutandis.

Article 228(Legislative autonomy)
1. The legislative autonomy of the autonomous regions applies to the matters that are set out in therespective political and administrative statute and do not fall within the exclusive competence of the entities
that exercise sovereignty.
2. In the absence of specific regional legislation on matters that do not fall within the exclusive competenceof the entities that exercise sovereignty, the current legal norms shall apply in the autonomous
regions.

Article 229(Cooperation between entities that exercise sovereignty and regional organs)
1. In cooperation with the self-government organs, the entities that exercise sovereignty shall ensure theeconomic and social development of the autonomous regions, with a particular view to the correction of
the inequalities derived from insularity.
2. The entities that exercise sovereignty shall always consult the regional government organs in relation toquestions that fall within their own competences and concern the autonomous regions.
3. The financial relations between the Republic and the autonomous regions shall be regulated by the law
provided for in Article 164(t).
4. The Government of the Republic and the Regional Governments may agree other forms of cooperation,
particularly those involving acts entailing the delegation of competences. The corresponding transfer offinancial resources and the applicable scrutiny mechanisms shall be established in each case.

Article 230(Representatives of the Republic)
1. For each of the autonomous regions there is a Representative of the Republic, whom the President of
the Republic appoints and discharges from office after first consulting the Government.
2. Save in the case of discharge from office, the duration of a Representative of the Republic’s term ofoffice is the same as that of the President of the Republic and ends upon installation of a new Representativeof the Republic.
3. In the event that the office falls vacant, as well as in cases in which the Representative of the Republic
is absent or unable to perform his functions, he shall temporarily be substituted by the President of theLegislative Assembly.

Article 231

(Self-government organs of autonomous regions)
1. The self-government organs of each autonomous region are the Legislative Assembly and the Regional
Government.
2. Legislative Assemblies are elected by universal, direct and secret suffrage in harmony with theprinciple of proportional representation.
3. Each Regional Government is politically accountable to the Legislative Assembly of the autonomous
region, and the Representative of the Republic appoints its president in the light of the results of theelections.
4. The Representative of the Republic appoints and discharges the remaining members of the Regional
Government upon the proposal of the respective president.
5. Regional Governments are installed before the Legislative Assembly of the autonomous region.
6. Regional Governments have exclusive competence in matters concerning their own organisation andmodus operandi.
7. The status and role of the officeholders of the self-government organs of the autonomous regions shallbe defined in the respective political and administrative statute.

Article 232(Competences of Legislative Assemblies of autonomous regions)
1. The Legislative Assembly of the autonomous region shall have the exclusive competence to exercise
the powers referred to in Article 227(1)(a), (b) and (c), the second part of subparagraph (d),subparagraph (f), the first part of subparagraph (i) and subparagraphs (l), (n) and (q), as well as to pass theregional budget, the region’s economic and social development plan and accounts, and to adapt the national
fiscal system to the region’s specificities.
2. The Legislative Assembly of the autonomous region has the competence to submit draft regionalreferenda by means of which the President of the Republic may decide to call upon the citizens who are
registered to vote in the respective territory to directly and bindingly pronounce on questions that are ofimportant specific interest to the region. The provisions of Article 115 apply to such referenda, mutatis
mutandis.
3. The Legislative Assembly of the autonomous region has the competence to draft and pass its rules ofprocedure in accordance with the Constitution and the respective political and administrative statute.
4. The provisions of Articles 175(c), 178(1) to (6) and 179 except for paragraphs (3)(e) and (f) and (4),and of Article 180 apply, mutatis mutandis, to the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions andthe respective parliamentary groups.

Article 233(Signature and veto of Representatives of the Republic)
1. The competence to sign regional legislative decrees and regional regulatory decrees and order their
publication pertains to the Representative of the Republic.
2. Within a time limit of fifteen days counting from the receipt of any decree of the Legislative Assemblyof the autonomous region that is sent to him for signature, or of the publication of the decision in which
the Constitutional Court refrains from pronouncing the unconstitutionality of any norm contained therein,the Representative of the Republic must sign the decree, or exercise the right of veto and request that thelegislative act be reconsidered by means of a message setting out the grounds therefore.
3. If the Legislative Assembly of the autonomous region confirms its vote by an absolute majority of allits members in full exercise of their office, the Representative of the Republic must sign the legislative act
within a time limit of eight days counting from its receipt.
4. Within a time limit of twenty days counting from the receipt of any decree of the Regional Governmentthat is sent to him for signature, the Representative of the Republic must either sign it, or refuse to sign it
and inform the Regional Government in writing of the reasons for doing so, whereupon the Regional
Government may convert the decree into a bill for submission to the Legislative Assembly of theautonomous region.
5. The Representative of the Republic shall also exercise the right of veto pursuant to Articles 278 and279.

Article 234(Dissolution and removal of self-government organs)
1. After first consulting the Council of State and the parties with seats in them, the President of the
Republic may dissolve the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions.
2. Dissolution of the Legislative Assembly of an autonomous region causes the removal of the Regional
Government, which shall then be limited to undertaking the acts that are strictly necessary in order toensure the management of public affairs until the new government takes office following elections.
3. Dissolution of the Legislative Assembly of an autonomous region does not prejudice the continuationof its members’ term of office, or the competences of the Standing Committee, until the Assembly’s firstsitting following the subsequent elections.

TITLE VIII
Local government
CHAPTER I
General principles
Article 235(Local authorities)
1. The democratic organisational structure of the state includes the existence of local authorities.
2. Local authorities are territorial legal persons, have representative organs and seek to pursue theinterests of their populations.

Article 236(Categories of local authority and administrative division)
1. The local authorities on the mainland are parishes, municipalities and administrative regions.

2. The Azores and Madeira autonomous regions comprise parishes and municipalities.
3. In large urban areas and on the islands the law may establish other forms of territorial local governmentorganisation in accordance with their specific conditions.
4. The administrative division of the territory shall be established by law.

Article 237(Administrative decentralisation)
1. The law shall regulate the responsibilities and organisation of local authorities and the competences of
their organs, in harmony with the principle of administrative decentralisation.
2. Each local authority assembly has the competence to exercise the powers allocated to it by law,
including the power to pass the options of its plan and budget.
3. Municipal police forces shall cooperate in maintaining public order and protecting local communities.

Article 238(Local assets and finances)
1. Local authorities shall have their own assets and finances.
2. The law shall establish the local finance regime, which shall seek to ensure that public resources arejustly shared between the state and local authorities and the necessary correction of inequalities between
local authorities of the same category.
3. Local authorities’ own income shall obligatorily include that derived from the management of theirassets and that charged for the use of their services.
4. Local authorities may have the power of taxation in the cases and under the terms laid down by law.

Article 239(Decision-making and executive organs)
1. The organisational structure of local authorities comprises an elected assembly with decision-making
powers, and a collegial executive organ that is accountable to the assembly.
2. Assemblies are elected by universal, direct and secret suffrage of the citizens who are registered to votein the area of the respective local authority, in accordance with the proportional representation system.
3. The collegial executive organ shall be composed of an adequate number of members. The first candidateon the list that receives the most votes cast for the assembly or the executive, depending on the solution
adopted by law, shall be appointed chairman. The law shall also regulate the electoral process, therequisites for the formation and removal of the collegial executive organ, and its modus operandi.
4. Nominations for elections to local authority organs may be submitted by political parties, either
individually or in coalition, or by groups of registered electors, as laid down by law.

Article 240(Local referenda)
1. In the cases, under the terms and with the efficacy laid down by law, local authorities may submit
matters that are included in the competences of their organs to referendum the respective registered electors.
2. The law may attribute the right to initiate referenda to registered electors.

Article 241(Regulatory power)
Within the limits laid down by the Constitution, the laws, and regulations issued by a higher category of
local authority or by the authorities with the power of oversight, local authorities have their own regulatory
power.

Article 242(Administrative oversight)
1. Administrative oversight of local authorities consists of the verification of the local authority organs’compliance with the law and shall be exercised in the cases and in accordance with the forms laid down
by law.
2. Oversight measures that restrict local autonomy shall be preceded by an opinion from a local authority
organ, under terms to be laid down by law.
3. Local authority organs may only be dissolved on the grounds of serious illegal acts or omissions.

Article 243(Local authority staff)
1. Local authorities have their own staff rosters, as laid down by law.
2. The regime governing state staff and agents is applicable to local government staff and agents, mutatis
mutandis, as laid down by law.
3. Without prejudice to the autonomy of local authorities, the law shall define the forms in which the stateprovides them with technical support and support in human resources.

CHAPTER II
Parishes
Article 244(Parish organs)

The representative organs of a parish are the parish assembly and the parish council.

Article 245(Parish assemblies)
1. The parish assembly is the parish’s decision-making organ.
2. The law may require that the parish assembly in parishes with a very small population be replaced by
the plenary meeting of registered electors.

Article 246(Parish councils)
The parish council is the parish’s collegial executive organ.

Article 247(Associations)
Parishes may, as laid down by law, form associations to administer common interests.

Article 248(Delegation of tasks)
Parish assemblies may delegate administrative tasks that do not involve the exercise of powers ofauthority to residents’ organisations.

CHAPTER III
Municipalities
Article 249(Changes to municipalities)
Municipalities are only created or abolished and their area is only altered by law, following priorconsultation of the organs of the local authorities in question.

Article 250(Municipal organs)
The representative organs of a municipality are the municipal assembly and the municipal council.

Article 251(Municipal assemblies)
The municipal assembly is the municipality’s decision-making organ and is composed of directly elected
members and the chairmen of the municipality’s parish councils. The number of directly elected members
shall be greater than that of the chairmen of the parish councils.

Article 252(Municipal councils)
The municipal council is the municipality’s collegial executive organ.

Article 253(Associations and federations)
In order to administer common interests, municipalities may form associations and federations, to which
the law may grant specific responsibilities and competences.

Article 254(Share in revenue from direct taxes)
1. Municipalities shall share in the revenue from direct taxes by right and as laid down by law.
2. Municipalities shall have their own tax revenues, as laid down by law.

CHAPTER IV
Administrative regions
Article 255(Creation by law)
The administrative regions shall be created simultaneously by means of a law, which shall define theirpowers and the composition, competences and modus operandi of their organs and may establish
differences between the regime applicable to each administrative region.

Article 256(De facto institution)
1. The de facto institution of the administrative regions by means of the passage of the individual laws
instituting each one shall depend on the law provided for in the previous Article, and on an affirmative

vote by the majority of the registered electors who cast their votes in a direct national ballot covering eachof the regional areas.
2. In the event that in response to the question with a national scope on the de facto institution of theadministrative regions, the majority of the registered electors who participate do not pronounce
themselves in favour, the answers to questions which are put in relation to each region that is created by
the law shall not produce effects.
3. The consultations of registered electors provided for in the previous paragraphs shall take place under
the terms of an organic law and by decision of the President of the Republic, upon a proposal from theAssembleia da República. The system derived from Article 115 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 257(Responsibilities)
Administrative regions are particularly charged with the direction of public departments and services andwith tasks involving the coordination and provision of support for the work of the municipalities, withrespect for the latter’s autonomy and without limiting their powers.

Article 258(Planning)
Administrative regions draw up regional plans and take part in the drawing up of national plans.

Article 259(Regional organs)
The representative organs of an administrative region are the regional assembly and the regional council.

Article 260(Regional assemblies)
The regional assembly is the region’s decision-making organ, and is composed of directly elected
members, and by a smaller number of members who are elected in accordance with the proportional
representation system and D’Hondt’s highest-average rule by an electoral college formed by thosemembers of the same area’s municipal assemblies who were appointed by direct election.

Article 261(Regional councils)
The regional council is the region’s collegial executive organ.

Article 262

(Government representatives)
The Council of Ministers may appoint a Government representative to each region. These representatives
shall also exercise their competences in relation to the local authorities in the respective area.

CHAPTER V
Residents’ organisations
Article 263(Formation and area)
1. In order to intensify local people’s participation in local administrative life, residents of areas smaller
than that of the respective parish may form residents’ organisations.
2. Upon its own initiative, or at the request of residents’ committees or a significant number of residents,
the parish assembly shall delimit the territorial areas of the organisations referred to in the previous
paragraph and shall resolve any conflicts that arise therefrom.

Article 264(Structure)
1. The law shall lay down the structure of residents’ organisations, which shall comprise a residents’assembly and a residents’ committee.
2. The residents’ assembly is composed of the residents registered in the parish census.
3. The residents’ assembly elects the residents’ committee by secret ballot, and may dismiss it freely.

Article 265(Rights and competences)
1. Residents’ organisations have the right:a) To petition local authorities in relation to administrative matters that are of interest to the residents;b) Via their representatives, to participate without vote in the parish assembly.
2. Residents’ organisations have the competence to perform the tasks that the law confers on them or that
their parish organs delegate to them.

TITLE IX
Public Administration
Article 266(Fundamental principles)1. The Public Administration shall seek to pursue the public interest, with respect for all those citizens’
rights and interests that are protected by law.
2. Administrative organs and agents are subject to the Constitution and the law, and in the exercise of
their functions must act with respect for the principles of equality, proportionality, justice, impartiality
and good faith.

Article 267(Structure of the Administration)
1. The Public Administration shall be structured in such a way as to avoid bureaucratisation, bringdepartments and services closer to local people and ensure that interested parties take part in its effective
management, particularly via public associations, residents’ organisations and other forms of democratic
representation.
2. For the purpose of the previous paragraph and without prejudice to the necessary efficacy and unity of
the Administration’s work and the management, superintendence and oversight powers of the competentorgans, the law shall lay down adequate forms of administrative decentralisation and devolution.
3. The law may create independent administrative entities.
4. Public associations may only be formed in order to fulfil specific needs, may not exercise the specificfunctions of trade unions and shall be organised internally on the basis of respect for their members’
rights and the democratic formation of their organs.
5. The processing of administrative activities shall be the object of a special law, which shall ensure therationalisation of the resources that are to be used by departments and services, and that citizens
participate in the taking of decisions or deliberations that concern them.
6. Private entities that exercise public powers may be subject to administrative inspection as laid down bylaw.

Article 268(Citizens’ rights and guarantees)
1. Citizens have the right to be informed by the Administration, whenever they so request, as to theprogress of the procedures and cases in which they are directly interested, together with the right to bemade aware of the definitive decisions that are taken in relation to them.
2. Without prejudice to the law governing matters concerning internal and external security, criminal
investigation and personal privacy, citizens also have the right of access to administrative files and records.
3. Administrative acts are subject to notification of the interested parties in the form laid down by law,
and when they affect rights or interests that are protected by law, must be based on express and accessible
grounds.
4. Citizens are guaranteed effective jurisdictional oversight of those of their rights and interests that areprotected by law, particularly including the recognition of the said rights and interests, the impugnation of
any administrative act that harms their rights and interests, regardless of its form, the issue of positive
decisions requiring the practice of administrative acts that are required by law, and the adoption of adequate
provisional remedies.
5. Citizens also have the right to challenge administrative norms which have external force and harmthose of their rights or interests that are protected by law.

6. For the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2) the law shall lay down a maximum time limit for responses
by the Administration.

Article 269(Regime governing the public service)
1. In the exercise of their functions Public Administration workers and other agents of the state and ofother public entities shall exclusively serve the public interest, as defined in accordance with the law by
the competent organs of the Administration.
2. Public Administration workers and other agents of the state and of other public entities may not be
prejudiced or benefited as a result of the exercise of any political rights provided for in the Constitution,
particularly party political preferences.
3. Accused persons in disciplinary proceedings are guaranteed the right to be heard and to a defence.
4. The accumulation of public positions and offices is not permitted, save in the cases that are expressly
admitted by law.
5. The law shall lay down the incompatibilities between the exercise of public positions or offices andthat of other activities.

Article 270(Restrictions on the exercise of rights)
Strictly to the extent required by the specific demands of the respective functions, the law may establish
restrictions on the exercise of the rights of expression, meeting, demonstration, association and collective
petition by full-time military personnel and militarised agents on active service and agents of the security
services and forces, and on their legal capacity to stand for election. In the case of the security forces,even when their right to form trade unions is recognised, the law may preclude the right to strike.

Article 271(Liability of public sector staff and agents)
1. The staff and agents of the state and of other public entities are civilly and criminally liable and subject
to disciplinary proceedings for their actions and omissions in the exercise of their functions, and for any
such exercise that leads to a breach of those citizens’ rights or interests that are protected by law, and nophase of any action or proceedings shall be dependent on authorisation by higher authority.
2. Liability on the part of any public sector member of staff or agent who acts in compliance with orders
or instructions issued by a legitimate hierarchical superior and in the performance of his duties is excluded,
if he previously protested against those orders or instructions or required them to be transmitted or confirmedin writing.
3. The duty of obedience ceases whenever compliance with orders or instructions would imply thecommission of any crime.
4. The law shall regulate the terms under which the state and other public entities have the right toindemnification by the officeholders of their entities and organs and their staff and agents.

Article 272(Police)
1. The functions of the police are to defend democratic legality and guarantee internal security andcitizens’ rights.
2. Policing measures shall be those laid down by law and must not be used beyond that which is strictly
necessary.
3. Crime prevention, including that of crimes against state security, may only be undertaken incompliance with the general rules governing policing and with respect for citizens’ rights, freedoms andguarantees.
4. The law shall lay down the regime governing the security forces and each such force shall have a soleorganisational structure for the whole of Portuguese territory.

TITLE X National
defence Article
273 (National
defence)
1. The state is under an obligation to ensure national defence.
2. The objectives of national defence are to guarantee national independence, territorial integrity and thefreedom and security of the population from any external aggression or threat, while respecting theconstitutional order, the democratic institutions and international conventions.

Article 274(Supreme National Defence Council)
1. The Supreme National Defence Council is chaired by the President of the Republic and shall becomposed as laid down by law, to include members elected by the Assembleia da República.
2. The Supreme National Defence Council is the specific consultative organ for matters concerning national
defence and the organisation, modus operandi and discipline of the Armed Forces, and may dispose of theadministrative competences that are allocated to it by law.

Article 275(Armed Forces)
1. The Armed Forces are charged with the military defence of the Republic.
2. The Armed Forces shall be composed exclusively of Portuguese citizens and shall have a single
organisational structure for the whole of Portuguese territory.

3. The Armed Forces shall obey the competent entities that exercise sovereignty, in accordance with theConstitution and the law.
4. The Armed Forces serve the Portuguese people and shall be rigorously non-partisan. Their personnel
may not take advantage of their weapons, their positions or their functions to intervene politically in anyway.
5. The Armed Forces are charged, as laid down by law, with fulfilling the Portuguese state’s international
commitments in the military field and taking part in humanitarian and peace missions undertaken by theinternational organisations to which Portugal belongs.
6. The Armed Forces may be charged, as laid down by law, with cooperating in civil defence missions,tasks concerning the fulfilment of basic needs and the improvement of people’s quality of life, and technicaland military cooperation actions within the ambit of the national cooperation policy.
7. The laws that regulate the state of siege and the state of emergency shall lay down the terms andconditions governing the use of the Armed Forces when such situations arise.

Article 276(Defence of the nation, military service and civic service)
1. Every Portuguese has the right and fundamental duty to defend the nation.
2. Military service shall be regulated by law, which shall lay down the forms, voluntary or compulsory
nature, duration and content of the performance thereof.
3. Citizens who by law are subject to the performance of military service and are considered unfit forarmed military service shall perform the unarmed military service or civic service that is appropriate totheir situation.
4. Conscientious objectors to the military service to which they are subject by law shall perform civic
service with the same duration and degree of arduousness as those of armed military service.
5. Civic service may be established as a substitute for or complement to military service and made legally
compulsory for citizens who are not subject to military duties.
6. No citizen may retain or obtain employment with the state or any other public entity if he fails orceases to perform his military or civic service duties when they are compulsory.
7. No citizen may be prejudiced in relation to his assignment, social benefits or permanent employment as
the result of his performance of military service or compulsory civic service.

PART IV
Guaranteeing and revision of the Constitution
TITLE I
Review of constitutionality
Article 277(Positive unconstitutionality)

1. Norms that contravene the provisions of the Constitution or the principles enshrined therein areunconstitutional.
2. On condition that the norms in question are applied in the legal order of the other party, the organic orformal unconstitutionality of properly ratified international treaties does not prevent the application of thenorms they contain in the Portuguese legal order, save if that unconstitutionality results from the breachof a fundamental provision of the Constitution.

Article 278(Prior review of constitutionality)
1. The President of the Republic may ask the Constitutional Court to undertake the prior consideration of
the constitutionality of any norm contained in an international treaty that is submitted to him for ratification,in any decree that is sent to him for enactment as a law or executive law, or in any international agreement,
the decree approving which is sent to him for signature.
2. Representatives of the Republic may also ask the Constitutional Court to undertake the priorconsideration of the constitutionality of any norm contained in a regional legislative decree that is sent tothem for signature.
3. The prior consideration of constitutionality must be requested within a time limit of eight days counting
from the date on which the legislative act is received.
4. In addition to the President of the Republic himself, the Prime Minister or one fifth of all the Membersof the Assembleia da República in full exercise of their office may ask the Constitutional Court toundertake the prior consideration of the constitutionality of any norm contained in any decree that is sent
to the President of the Republic for enactment as an organic law.
5. On the date on which he sends any decree that must be enacted as an organic law to the President of the
Republic for enactment, the President of the Assembleia da República shall notify the Prime Minister andthe parliamentary groups in the Assembleia da República thereof.
6. The prior consideration of constitutionality provided for in paragraph (4) must be requested within atime limit of eight days counting from the date provided for in paragraph (5).
7. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph (1), the President of the Republic may not enact thedecrees referred to in paragraph (4) unless eight days have passed since their receipt, or, when theConstitutional Court has been asked to intervene, until it has pronounced itself on them.
8. The Constitutional Court must pronounce within a time limit of twenty-five days, which the Presidentof the Republic may reduce for urgent reasons in the case provided for in paragraph (1).

Article 279(Effects of decision)
1. If the Constitutional Court pronounces the unconstitutionality of a norm contained in any decree orinternational treaty, the President of the Republic or the Representative of the Republic, as appropriate,must veto the legislative act and return it to the entity or organ that passed it.
2. In the case provided for in paragraph (1), the decree may not be enacted or signed unless the entity ororgan that passed it expunges the norm that has been held unconstitutional, or, where applicable, theentity or organ confirms the norm by a majority that is at least equal to two thirds of all Members who arepresent and is greater than an absolute majority of all the Members in full exercise of their office.

3. If the legislative act is reformulated, the President of the Republic or the Representative of the
Republic, as appropriate, may request the prior review of the constitutionality of any of the norms in thereformulated text.
4. If the Constitutional Court pronounces the unconstitutionality of any norm contained in a treaty, thelatter may only be ratified if the Assembleia da República then approves it by a majority that is at least
equal to two thirds of all Members present and greater than an absolute majority of all the Members infull exercise of their office.

Article 280(Concrete review of constitutionality and legality)
1. Appeal may be made to the Constitutional Court against court decisions:a) That refuse the application of any norm on the grounds of its unconstitutionality;b) That apply a norm whose unconstitutionality has been raised during the proceedings.
2. Appeal may also be made to the Constitutional Court against court decisions:a) That refuse the application of a norm contained in a legislative act, on the grounds that it is illegal
because it is in breach of a law which possesses superior legal force;b) That refuse the application of a norm contained in a regional legislative act, on the grounds that it isillegal because it is in breach of the autonomous region’s statute;c) That refuse the application of a norm contained in a legislative act issued by an entity that exercises
sovereignty, on the grounds that it is illegal because it is in breach of an autonomous region’s statute;d) That apply any norm whose illegality on any of the grounds referred to in subparagraphs (a), (b) and(c) has been raised during the proceedings.
3. When the norm whose application has been refused is contained in an international convention, alegislative act or a regulatory decree, the Public Prosecution Service shall obligatorily lodge the appeal
provided for in paragraph (1)(a) or 2(a).
4. The appeals provided for in paragraphs (1)(b) and (2)(d) may only be lodged by the party that raised
the question of unconstitutionality or illegality, and the law must regulate the regime governing theadmission of such appeals.
5. Appeal may also be made to the Constitutional Court, and the Public Prosecution Service shallobligatorily lodge such appeals, against court decisions that apply norms which the Constitutional Court
itself has previously held unconstitutional or illegal.
6. Appeals to the Constitutional Court are restricted to the question of unconstitutionality or illegality, as
appropriate.

Article 281(Abstract review of constitutionality and legality)
1. The Constitutional Court may consider and declare with generally binding force:a) The unconstitutionality of any norm;b) The illegality of any norms contained in a legislative act, on the grounds of the breach of a law withsuperior legal force;c) The illegality of any norms contained in a regional legislative act, on the grounds of the breach of theautonomous region’s statute;d) The illegality of any norms contained in a legislative act issued by an entity that exercises sovereignty,
on the grounds of a breach of those of an autonomous region’s rights that are enshrined in its statute.
2. The following may ask the Constitutional Court for a declaration of unconstitutionality or illegality
with generally binding force:a) The President of the Republic;b) The President of the Assembleia da República;c) The Prime Minister;d) The Ombudsman;e) The Prosecutor General;f) One tenth of the Members of the Assembleia da República;g) When the grounds for the request for a declaration of unconstitutionality are the breach of the rights of
the autonomous regions, or the grounds for the request for a declaration of illegality are the breach of therespective statute, Representatives of the Republic, Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions,presidents of Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions, presidents of Regional Governments, or
one tenth of the members of the respective Legislative Assembly.
3. The Constitutional Court may also consider and declare with generally binding force theunconstitutionality or illegality of any norm, on condition that it has already held the norm unconstitutional
or illegal in three concrete cases.

Article 282(Effects of declarations of unconstitutionality or illegality)
1. A declaration of unconstitutionality or illegality with generally binding force has effect as of the moment
at which the norm declared unconstitutional or illegal came into force, and causes the revalidationof any norms that the said norm repealed.
2. However, in the case of unconstitutionality or illegality due to breach of a subsequent constitutional or
legal norm, the declaration only has effect as of the moment at which the latter came into force.
3. Res judicata are excepted, save when the Constitutional Court decides to the contrary in relation to anorm that concerns penal or disciplinary matters or administrative offences and whose contents are lessfavourable to the accused person.
4. When required for the purposes of legal security, reasons of fairness or an exceptionally important
public interest, the grounds for which must be given, the Constitutional Court may determine a scope forthe effects of the unconstitutionality or illegality that is more restricted than that provided for in paragraphs(1) and (2).

Article 283

(Unconstitutionality by omission)
1. At the request of the President of the Republic, the Ombudsman, or, on the grounds of the breach ofrights of the autonomous regions, presidents of the Legislative Assemblies of autonomous regions, theConstitutional Court shall consider and verify whether there is a failure to comply with the Constitution
due to the omission of legislative measures needed to make constitutional norms executable.
2. When the Constitutional Court verifies that an unconstitutionality by omission exists, it shall notify thecompetent legislative entity thereof.

TITLE II
Revision of the Constitution
Article 284(Competence and time for revisions)
1. The Assembleia da República may revise the Constitution five years after the date of publication of thelast ordinary revision law.
2. However, by a majority of at least four fifths of all the Members in full exercise of their office, theAssembleia da República may take extraordinary revision powers at any time.

Article 285(Initiating revisions)
1. The competence to initiate revisions pertains to Members of the Assembleia da República.
2. Once a draft revision of the Constitution has been submitted, any others have to be submitted within atime limit of thirty days.

Article 286(Passage and enactment)
1. Amendments to the Constitution require passage by a majority of two thirds of the Members of theAssembleia da República in full exercise of their office.
2. Amendments to the Constitution that are passed shall be combined in a single revision law.
3. The President of the Republic may not refuse to enact the revision law.

Article 287(New text of the Constitution)
1. Amendments to the Constitution shall be inserted in the proper place by means of the necessary
replacements, eliminations and additions.
2. The new text of the Constitution shall be published along with the revision law.

Article 288(Material limits on revision) Constitutional
revision laws must respect:a) National independence and the unity of the state;b) The republican form of government;c) The separation between church and state;d) Citizens’ rights, freedoms and guarantees;e) The rights of workers, workers’ committees and trade unions;f) The coexistence of the public, private and cooperative and social sectors of ownership of the means of
production;g) The existence of economic plans, within the framework of a mixed economy;h) The appointment of the elected officeholders of the entities that exercise sovereignty, of the organs of
the autonomous regions and of local government organs by universal, direct, secret and periodic suffrage,
and the proportional representation system;i) Plural expression and political organisation, including political parties, and the right of democratic
opposition;j) The separation and interdependence of the entities that exercise sovereignty;l) The subjection of legal norms to review of their positive constitutionality and of theirunconstitutionality by omission;m) The independence of the courts;n) The autonomy of local authorities;o) The political and administrative autonomy of the Azores and Madeira archipelagos.

Article 289(Circumstances in which revision is restricted)
No act involving the revision of the Constitution may be undertaken during a state of siege or a state of
emergency.

Final and transitional provisions
Article 290(Previous law)

1. Without prejudice to the provisions of the following paragraph, constitutional laws that postdate 25
April 1974 and are not excepted in this chapter are considered ordinary laws.
2. The ordinary law prior to the entry into force of the Constitution is maintained on condition that it is
not contrary to the Constitution or the principles enshrined therein.

Article 291(Districts)
1. For as long as the administrative regions are not instituted de facto, the areas that they do not yet covershall continue to be divided into districts.
2. In each district there shall be a decision-making assembly composed of representatives from its
municipalities, under terms to be laid down by law.
3. With the assistance of a council, the civil governor has the competence to represent the Government
and exercise the powers of oversight in the area of each district.

Article 292(Criminalisation and trial of PIDE/DGS agents and officials)
1. Law no. 8/75 of 25 July 1975, as amended by Law no. 16/75 of 23 December 1975 and by Law
no. 18/75 of 26 December 1975, remains in force.
2. The law may specify the types of crime set out in Articles 2(2), 3, 4(b) and 5 of the legislative act
referred to in the previous paragraph.
3. The law may especially regulate the extraordinary extenuating circumstances provided for in Article 7of the same legislative act.

Article 293(Reprivatisation of property nationalised after 25 April 1974)
1. A framework law passed by an absolute majority of all the Members of the Assembleia da República infull exercise of their office shall regulate reprivatisations of the ownership of, or the right to use, means of
production and other property nationalised after 25 April 1974, in compliance with the following
fundamental principles:a) As a rule, reprivatisations of the ownership of, or of the right to use, means of production and otherproperty nationalised after 25 April 1974 shall preferentially be conducted by competitive public tender,
offer on the stock exchange, or public subscription;b) The revenue obtained from reprivatisations shall be used solely to redeem the public debt and the debts
of the state’s business sector, to service the debt resulting from nationalisations, or for new capital
investment in the productive sector;c) The workers of enterprises that are the object of reprivatisation shall retain all their pre-existing rights
and obligations in the process of the reprivatisation of the respective enterprise;d) The workers of enterprises that are the object of reprivatisation shall acquire the right to thepreferential subscription of a percentage of the respective share capital;

e) The means of production and other property that are to be reprivatised shall be the object of priorvaluation by more than one independent entity.
2. Small and medium-sized enterprises that have been indirectly nationalised and are situated outside thebasic sectors of the economy may be reprivatised as laid down by law.

Article 294(Regime applicable to local authority organs)
Until the law provided for in Article 239(3) enters into force, local authority organs shall be formed andoperate in accordance with the legislation that corresponds to the text of the Constitution as revised byConstitutional Law no. 1/92 of 25 November 1992.

Article 295(Referenda on European treaties)
The provisions of Article 115(3) do not prejudice the possibility of calling and holding referenda on theapproval of treaties concerning the construction and deepening of the European Union.

Article 296(Date and entry into force of the Constitution)
1. The Constitution of the Portuguese Republic bears the date of its passage by the Constituent Assembly:
2 April 1976.
2. The Constitution of the Portuguese Republic enters into force on 25 April 1976.