Country report, gender equality : how are EU rules transposed into national law? : Portugal 2024.
Date: 2024-08-16
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers
Subjects: Portugal, age discrimination, application of EU law, equal pay, equal treatment, gender equality, maternity leave, national law, parental leave, paternity leave, pension scheme, report, sexual discrimination, sexual harassment, social security

Portugal 

2024 

 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers 
Directorate D — Equality and Non-Discrimination 
Unit D.3 Gender Equality 

European Commission 
B-1049 Brussels 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Country report  

Gender equality 

How are EU rules transposed into 
national law? 

Portugal 

Maria do Rosário Palma Ramalho 

Reporting period 1 January 2023 – 1 January 2024 

2024  Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers  
to your questions about the European Union. 

Freephone number (*): 

00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 

(*)  The  information  given  is  free,  as  are  most  calls  (though  some  operators,  phone 

boxes or hotels may charge you). 

LEGAL NOTICE 

This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the 
authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information 
contained therein. 

More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://www.europa.eu). 

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2024 

© European Union, 2024 

PDF  

 ISBN 978-92-68-13321-7 

ISSN 2600-0164  

doi:10.2838/10007   

  DS-BD-24-026-EN-N 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

CONTENTS 
1 

3 

2 

4 

Introduction ...................................................................................... 5 
Basic structure of the national legal system ................................... 5 
1.1 
List of main legislation transposing and implementing the directives . 5 
1.2 
Sources of law ........................................................................... 6 
1.3 
1.4  Main surveys, reports on gender equality and other issues .............. 7 
General legal framework ................................................................... 9 
Constitution ............................................................................... 9 
2.1 
Equal treatment legislation .......................................................... 9 
2.2 
Implementation of central concepts ................................................ 11 
Sex/gender/transgender ........................................................... 11 
3.1 
Direct sex discrimination ........................................................... 13 
3.2 
Indirect sex discrimination ......................................................... 14 
3.3 
3.4  Multiple discrimination and intersectional discrimination ................ 15 
Positive action .......................................................................... 16 
3.5 
Harassment and sexual harassment ............................................ 19 
3.6 
Instruction to discriminate ......................................................... 22 
3.7 
Other forms of discrimination ..................................................... 22 
3.8 
3.9 
Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 23 
3.10  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 23 
Equal pay and equal treatment at work (Article 157 of the Treaty on 
the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  (TFEU)  and  Recast 
Directive 2006/54) ......................................................................... 24 
General (legal) context.............................................................. 24 
4.1 
Equal pay ................................................................................ 24 
4.2 
Access to work, working conditions and dismissal ......................... 29 
4.3 
Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 32 
4.4 
Remaining issues ...................................................................... 33 
4.5 
5  Work-life balance issues: pregnancy, maternity, family-related leave 
and  flexible  working  arrangements  (Directive 92/85,  relevant 
provisions of Directives 2006/54, and Directive 2019/1158) ......... 34 
General (legal) context.............................................................. 34 
5.1 
5.2 
Pregnancy and maternity protection ........................................... 35 
5.3  Maternity leave ........................................................................ 38 
Paternity leave ......................................................................... 41 
5.4 
Adoption leave ......................................................................... 43 
5.5 
Parental leave .......................................................................... 44 
5.6 
Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy .................................. 49 
5.7 
Carers’ leave ............................................................................ 50 
5.8 
5.9 
Time off for force majeure ......................................................... 52 
5.10  Flexible working time arrangements (FWAs) ................................ 53 
5.11  Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 56 
5.12  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 57 
Occupational 
of 
Directive 2006/54) ......................................................................... 58 
General (legal) context.............................................................. 58 
6.1 
Direct and indirect discrimination ............................................... 58 
6.2 
6.3 
Personal scope ......................................................................... 58 
6.4  Material scope .......................................................................... 59 
Exclusions ............................................................................... 59 
6.5 
6.6 
Laws  and  case  law  falling  under  the  examples  of  sex  discrimination 
mentioned in Article 9 of Directive 2006/54 ................................. 59 
6.7 
Actuarial factors ....................................................................... 59 
6.8 
Difficulties ............................................................................... 59 
Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 59 
6.9 
6.10  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 60 
Statutory schemes of social security (Directive 79/7) .................... 61 

(Chapter 

schemes 

security 

social 

7 

6 

2 

3 

Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

8 

9 

7.1 
7.2 

General (legal) context.............................................................. 61 
Implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women 
in matters of social security ....................................................... 61 
7.3 
Personal scope ......................................................................... 62 
7.4  Material scope .......................................................................... 62 
Exclusions ............................................................................... 63 
7.5 
Actuarial factors ....................................................................... 63 
7.6 
Difficulties ............................................................................... 63 
7.7 
Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 64 
7.8 
7.9 
Remaining issues ...................................................................... 65 
Self-employed  workers  (Directive 2010/41/EU  and  some  relevant 
provisions of the Recast Directive) .................................................. 66 
Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU ..................................... 66 
8.1 
8.2 
Personal scope ......................................................................... 66 
8.3  Material scope .......................................................................... 68 
Positive action .......................................................................... 69 
8.4 
8.5 
Social protection ...................................................................... 69 
8.6  Maternity benefits..................................................................... 70 
Occupational social security ....................................................... 71 
8.7 
Prohibition of discrimination ....................................................... 71 
8.8 
8.9 
Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 72 
8.10  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 72 
Goods and services (Directive 2004/113) ....................................... 73 
General (legal) context.............................................................. 73 
9.1 
9.2 
Prohibition of direct and indirect discrimination ............................ 73 
9.3  Material scope .......................................................................... 73 
Exceptions ............................................................................... 73 
9.4 
Justification of differences in treatment ....................................... 73 
9.5 
Actuarial factors ....................................................................... 74 
9.6 
9.7 
of 
Interpretation 
Directive 2004/113 ................................................................... 74 
Positive action measures (Article 6 of Directive 2004/113) ............. 74 
9.8 
9.9 
Specific problems related to pregnancy, maternity or parenthood ... 74 
9.10  Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 75 
9.11  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 75 
10  Violence  against  women  and  domestic  violence  in  relation  to  the 
Istanbul Convention ........................................................................ 76 
10.1  General (legal) context.............................................................. 76 
10.2  Ratification of the Istanbul Convention ........................................ 77 
11  Compliance  and  enforcement  aspects  (horizontal  provisions  of  all 
directives) ....................................................................................... 79 
11.1  General (legal) context.............................................................. 79 
11.2  Victimisation ............................................................................ 79 
11.3  Access to courts ....................................................................... 79 
11.4  Horizontal effect of the applicable law ......................................... 80 
11.5  Burden of proof ........................................................................ 81 
11.6  Remedies and sanctions ............................................................ 81 
11.7  Equality body ........................................................................... 82 
11.8  Social partners ......................................................................... 84 
11.9  Other relevant bodies................................................................ 84 
11.10  Evaluation of implementation ..................................................... 84 
11.11  Remaining issues ...................................................................... 85 
12  Overall assessment ......................................................................... 86 
Bibliography ............................................................................................ 88 

in  Article 5(2) 

contained 

exception 

of 

4 

 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

1 

Introduction 

1.1  Basic structure of the national legal system 

The  Portuguese  legal  system  is  mainly  a  statutory  law  system,  headed  by  the 
Portuguese  Constitution  (PC)  and  developed  by  state 
legislation.  Where 
employment  and  industrial  relations  are  concerned,  the  Labour  Code  (LC)  is  the 
essential statutory piece of legislation and it also integrates the main provisions in 
the  field  of  gender  equality  and  non-discrimination  principle  on  other  grounds 
related to employment.  

In  the  field  of  employment  and  industrial  relations  (including  in  relation  to  sex 
equality and non-discrimination principles in this field), collective agreements are 
also  a  key  element  of  the  system,  but  they  cannot  go  against  mandatory  legal 
provisions.  

European Directives are generally transposed into national legislation by statutory 
law and not by collective agreements, which also applies to equality legislation. 

Apart from the area of employment, gender equality provisions are found in several 
acts, according to the various fields. 

1.2  List of main legislation transposing and implementing the directives 

The main legislation in the field of gender equality and non-discrimination on other 
grounds  is  dispersed  in  several  sources,  which  have  transposed  European 
Directives where  appropriate  and  necessary.  Among  those  sources,  the  following 
pieces of legislation, presented according to the subjects dealt by each one of them, 
are worth mentioning: 

- 

- 

Constitutional  grounds  of  equality  rights  and  provisions:  Portuguese 
Constitution (PC), of 1976. 

Non-discrimination principle in general and gender equality law in the field of 
employment and industrial relations and as regards maternity, paternity and 
parental leave and other measures related to the reconciliation of professional 
and family life: Labour Code (LC), approved by Law No. 7/2009 of 12 February 
2009.  All  the  relevant  directives  regarding  sex  discrimination  and  non-
discrimination in general in the field of employment and industrial relations, 
as well as the maternity and parental leave directives, were transposed into 
the LC and its complementary legislation. Repealed directives in this area were 
transposed at an earlier stage into the former LC (of 2003) and prior to this 
by specific acts on the various issues (mainly the Gender Equality Act of 1979, 
and the Maternity and Paternity Act of 1984). With the publication of the first 
LC in 2003 these acts were repealed, and their provisions were integrated into 
the code. The same system was kept by the LC of 2009 that is now in force.  

LC  provisions  in  the  field  of  non-discrimination  in  general,  gender 
discrimination  and  maternity,  paternity  and  reconciliation  of  family  and 
working  life  are  applicable  to  employees  of  the  private  sector,  but  also  to 
employees of the public sector (Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014, Lei Geral 
do  Trabalho  em  Funções  Públicas  –  LGTFP  (General  Law  on  Public 
Employment), as indicated in Article 4(1)(c) and (d) of this Law). 

In the field of equal pay, the LC rules are complemented by Law No. 60/2018 
of 21 August 2018, which has approved a number of measures for the active 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

promotion of equal pay of men and women for equal work or work of the same 
value.  

In the field of reconciliation of family and professional life, the LC rules were 
changed several times and the provisions of the LC are now complemented by 
specific acts on several topics.  

In  the  same  area,  a  piece  of  legislation  related  to  telework,  which  was 
approved  by  Law  No. 83/2021  of  6  December  and  entered  into  force  on  1 
January 2022, has approved some changes as regards the right to telework 
for  the  purpose  of  reconciling  professional  activity  with  the  care  of  young 
children and of other dependants within the family.  

Gender  equality  and  occupational  social  security  schemes:  Decree-Law 
No. 12/2006 of 20 January 2006 (on trust funds that deal with professional 
social security schemes) and Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997, 
which has transposed Directive 86/378/EEC, including the changes introduced 
by Directive 96/97/EC, into domestic legislation.  

Gender  equality  in  statutory  social  security  schemes:  Lei  de  Bases  da 
Segurança  Social  (Social  Security  General  Law)  –  Law  No. 4/2007  of  16 
January  2007)  and  Código  dos  Regimes  Contributivos  de  Segurança  Social 
(CRCSS)  (Social  Security  Contribution  System  Code),  approved  by  Law 
No. 110/2009 of 16 September 2009. 

Non-discrimination  principle  in  self-employment,  including  gender  equality: 
Law  No. 3/2011  of  15  February  2011,  which  establishes  the  general 
framework  for  the  protection  of  self-employed  persons  as  regards  the 
prohibition  of  discrimination  in  the  access  to  and  in  the  development  of 
independent  work  in  the  private  sector,  in  the  public  sector,  and  in  the 
cooperative 
transposed  Directive 2000/43, 
Directive 2000/78 and (partially) Directive 2006/54. 

sector.  This 

Law  has 

Gender  equality  in  access  to  and  the  provision  of  goods  and  services:  Law 
No. 14/2008  of  12  March  2008,  which  has  transposed  Directive 2004/113; 
this Law was amended by Law No. 9/2015 of 11 February 2015, in view of the 
Test-Achats judgment.  

Gender  equality  in  decision-making:  Law  No. 3/2006  of  21  August  2006, 
amended by Law No. 1/2019 of 29 March 2019 (known as ‘Lei da Paridade’ – 
Parity  Law),  imposing  quotas  for  national  Parliamentary  elections,  for 
European Parliamentary elections and for local political representatives;  Law 
No. 62/2017  of  1  August  2017,  regarding  women  on  boards,  imposing  a 
minimum representation of the less represented sex on executive boards and 
supervisory  boards  of  public  companies  and  private  listed  companies;  Law 
No. 26/2019,  of  28  March  2019,  imposing  a  balanced  representation  of 
women and men in positions requiring high qualifications in the public sector 
(‘trabalhadores  dirigentes’),  including  at  board  levels.  The  Portuguese 
legislation in this regard predates Directive 2022/2381, so the question of the 
transposition of the Directive was not an issue at the time. 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

1.3  Sources of law 

The main source of gender equality law in Portugal is national legislation.  

6 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Under the condition that they are ratified by Portugal, international treaties are also 
integrated into the national legal system, and placed directly under the Portuguese 
Constitution and above other internal legislation (Article 8(2) of the PC). EU Law is 
also applicable at domestic level either directly (as in the case of EU Treaties and 
EU  Regulations)  or  by  way  of  transposing  the  Directives into  national  legislation 
(Article 8(3) of the PC). 

The Portuguese legal system is a statutory system, so case law is important because 
previous  court  decisions  are  taken  into  account,  but  it  does  not  stand  as  an 
autonomous source of law, as judgments do not form legal precedent. 

In exceptional situations, called ‘Uniformização de Jurisprudência’ (judgments of the 
Supreme  Court  solving  differences  of  opinion  coming  from  prior  judgments  with 
different  views  in  relation  to  the  interpretation  of  a  specific  legal  provision),  the 
jurisprudence of the Supreme Court forms judicial precedent. Also, judgments with 
general binding value issued by the Constitutional Court, where a specific provision 
is declared unconstitutional, are a substantive source of law, in the sense that the 
specific  provision  is  no  longer  applicable  and  must  be  changed.  In  short,  only  in 
these specific and exceptional situations is case law more than an indirect source of 
law. 

Opinions  of  equality  bodies  or  quasi-judicial  bodies  and  authoritative  scholarly 
interpretations (doutrina) are not a source of law but play an important role as non-
binding opinions and are often quoted in judicial action.  

In the field of employment and industrial relations, collective agreements at branch 
level or at company level are an autonomous source of law (Articles 1, 2(2), 485 
and  following  of  the  LC),  and  the  same  goes  for  administrative  regulation  of 
employment  relations  –  the  Portaria  de  Extensão  (Extension  Regulation),  that 
extends  the  scope  of  collective  agreements  to  employers  and  employees  not 
covered initially (Articles 2(4) and 514 of the LC), and the Portaria de Condições de 
Trabalho (Employment Conditions Regulation) that regulates employment relations 
in the absence of a collective agreement (Articles 2(4) and 517 of the LC). Finally, 
company regulations issued by the employer (regulamento interno de empresa) and 
common  practices  within  the  companies  or  related  to  a  specific  profession  (usos 
laborais) are also autonomous sources of law in this field (Articles 1 and 99 of the 
LC).  

These sources cannot go against imperative legal provisions (Article 3 of the LC), 
but in practice they play a very important role, especially collective agreements.  

1.4  Main surveys, reports on gender equality and other issues 

Gender equality issues in general and more specific issues related to gender equality 
are  object  of  regular  surveys  conducted  by  public  and  private  agencies  with 
competence in the different areas and also by public inspection services. The areas 
that  are  usually  covered  by  these  surveys  are  employment  and  employment 
relations, violence against women and domestic violence.1  

In  recent  years,  two  central  concepts  of  gender  equality  law  –  harassment  and 
positive action – have been widely debated in Portugal not only at a political level 
but in several other forums. Furthermore, the concepts of sex identity and gender 
reassignment are the basis of a significant debate at several levels. The debate on 
harassment gave rise to the change to the LC, by Law No. 73/2017 of 16 August 
2017, which introduced several measures intended to promote a more active fight 

1   These surveys can be traced at these agencies websites, such as https://cite.gov.pt/web/pt and 

http://www.cig.gov.pt. 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

against harassment practices in employment relations and to protect  harassment 
victims from retaliation. 

The debate relating to the concept and justification of positive action was stimulated 
in the context of the approval of quota legislation in company boards and company 
plans for gender equality in promotion and in the access to management positions 
(Law  No. 62/2017  of  1  August  2017).  This  piece  of  legislation  has  been  being 
applied  for  several  years  now,  within  the  time  limits  established  to  make  the 
necessary  changes,  especially  on  company  boards,  so  only  now  is  it  possible  to 
make  some  assessment  of  the  practical  implementation  of  the  changes  it 
introduced. 

The debate over the concepts of sex identity and gender reassignment was at the 
source of the changes introduced in the legislation on self-determination of gender 
and change of legal sex by Law No. 38/2018 of 7 August 2018, which remain very 
controversial in some social sectors, particularly in the field of education and how 
to address gender identity and gender assignment in young children and especially 
at school. 

8 

 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

2 

General legal framework 

2.1  Constitution 

2.1.1  Constitutional ban on sex discrimination 

The  Portuguese  Constitution  (PC)  establishes  a  general  principle  of  non-
discrimination  on  several  grounds.  Sex  is  explicitly  indicated  as  a  discriminatory 
ground and sex discrimination is explicitly prohibited (Article 13(2) of the PC). 

2.1.2  Other constitutional protection of equality between men and women  

As  well  as  the  explicit  prohibition  of  sex  discrimination  in  Article 13(2),  equality 
between men and women is addressed in several other provisions of the PC. 

Article 9 of the PC, on the fundamental tasks and objectives of the Portuguese State, 
considers  the  active  promotion  of  equality  between  men  and  women  as  a 
fundamental task and goal of the Portuguese State (Article 9(h)). 

Also,  the  PC  develops  the  general  prohibition  of  sex  discrimination  established  in 
Article 13(2)  in  several  areas:  equal  opportunities  in  access  to  employment 
(Article 58(2)(b));  equal  pay  (Article 59(1)(a));  reconciliation  of  work  and  family 
life (Article 59(2)(b) and Article 67(1)(h)); and protection of pregnancy, maternity 
and paternity (Article 68).  

All  provisions  indicated  are  qualified  as  fundamental  rights  by  the  Constitution, 
which means that they rank higher among the constitutional rights. In this capacity, 
these provisions prevail over other constitutional provisions and over any other legal 
provisions. 

Some  of  these  provisions  are  addressed  to  the  State  itself  (‘programmatic’ 
provisions), while others are immediately applicable. Only the second category of 
provisions  have  horizontal  effect,  in  the  sense  that  they  are  immediately  binding 
provisions  for  both  public  and  private  entities  and  can  therefore  also  be  invoked 
between private parties (Article 18(2) of the PC). The non-discrimination principle 
(including on the ground of sex), the equality principle in the access to employment, 
or the equal pay principle are good examples of immediately binding provisions that 
can also be invoked between private parties.  

2.2  Equal treatment legislation 

In  Portugal,  there  is  no  general  act  dealing  with  equal  treatment  issues.  Equal 
treatment legislation is dispersed in several pieces of legislation, relating to different 
fields. 

As  regards  employment  and  maternity,  paternity  and  reconciliation  issues,  equal 
treatment  provisions  are  integrated  in  the  LC,  but  in  autonomous  sections,  that 
address equality and non-discrimination in general (Articles 23 to 28); harassment 
(Article 29);  gender  equality  (Articles 30  to  32);  and  maternity,  paternity  and 
reconciliation rights (Articles 33 to 65). 

In the field of reconciliation of family and professional life, the LC rules have been 
changed by several acts over the years. The most recent changes were introduced 
in  2023  by  Law  No. 13/2023  of  3  April  2023.  This  piece  of  legislation,  which 
introduced  a  major  reform  of  the  LC  and  transposed  Directive 2029/1158, 
reinforced  the  rights  attached  to  paternity,  maternity  and  the  reconciliation  of 
professional  and  family  life.  This  legislation  was  complemented  by  Decree-Law 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

No. 53/2023  of  5  July  2023,  which  introduced  some  important  changes  to  the 
specific  legislation  regarding  social  security  protection  attached  to  parental  leave 
(Decree-Law No. 91/2009, of 9 April 2009). 

In certain areas, the LC is complemented by more specific legislation. This is the 
case for equal pay, where the LC regulation is complemented by Law No. 60/2018 
of 21 August 2018. This is also the case for equality plans within companies, which 
were  introduced  through  Law  No. 62/2017  of  1  August  2017.  For  maternity, 
paternity  and  reconciliation  rights,  the  LC  regulation  is  complemented  by  Law 
No. 91/2009  of  9  April  2009  (social  protection  attached  to  these  rights)  and  Law 
No. 102/2009  of  10  September  2009  (special  health  and  safety  measures  for 
pregnant working women and women who have given birth). 

As regards other issues (self-employment, access to and the supply of goods and 
services, social security and gender-balance in company boards), there are specific 
acts on equal treatment in each area, as listed in section 1.2 above.  

Sex discrimination is prohibited in both the LC and in the specific acts on the various 
issues indicated above.  

In  addition  to  sex  and  in  the  field  of  employment,  the  LC  covers  the  following 
discrimination  grounds:  age,  ancestry,  sexual  orientation,  gender  identity  and 
sexual  reassignment,  marital status, family situation, economic situation, level of 
education,  origin  or  social  condition,  genetic  features,  disability,  chronic  disease, 
including  cancer,  or  reduced  capacity  for  work,  nationality,  race  or  ethnic  origin, 
place  of  birth,  native  language,  religion,  political  or  ideological  convictions,  and 
trade union affiliation (Article 24(1) of the LC).  

10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3 

Implementation of central concepts 

3.1  Sex/gender/transgender 

3.1.1  Definition of ‘gender’ and ‘sex’ 

In Portugal, there is traditionally no definition of sex or gender in the law, in case 
law,  or  in  the  opinions  of  equality  bodies,  including  in  the  legislation  on  self-
determination  of  gender  and  change  of  legal  sex  (Law  No. 38/2018  of  7  August 
2018). 

The  only  exception  is  the  legislation  on  equal  pay  and  pay  transparency  (Law 
No. 60/2018  of  21  August  2018),  which  defines  sex  in  Article 2(1)(a)  as:  ‘the 
biological  characteristics  that  distinguish  humans  as  woman  or  man,  used  as  a 
demographic criterion’.2 However, it is important to point out that this definition is 
strictly valid for the purposes  of equal pay and pay transparency, as indicated in 
the same article of Law No. 60/2018.  

3.1.2  Protection of transgender, intersex and non-binary persons  

Table 1: Protection of transgender, intersex and non-binary persons 

Are gender 
identity/transgender 
status/intersex status/sex 
characteristic etc. specific 
grounds of prohibited 
discrimination? If yes, specify 
which grounds are recognised 
in legislation and/or case law. 
In the field of employment, the 
Labour Code explicitly prohibits 
discrimination on the ground of 
gender identity and of gender 
reassignment, in Article 24(1). 

Is discrimination against transgender, 
intersex and non-binary persons forbidden 
on the basis of the existing prohibition on 
sex discrimination? If yes, if possible 
specify which groups are protected 
(transgender/intersex/non-binary). 

All the indicated groups 
(transgender/intersex/non-binary) are covered 
by the existing legislation. 

The general clause on non-discrimination 
established in the Constitution (Article 13), 
which expressly mentions sex and sexual 
orientation as grounds for discriminatory 
practices and prohibits such practices, can be 
invoked directly in such areas, since it is, as 
explained above, an immediately binding 
provision.  

Also, it is to be noted that once it is established 
in an individual case that the questions related 
to transgender, intersex and non-binary persons 
are gender equality issues, the legislation that 
deals with sex discrimination in different areas 
(social security, access to and provision for 
goods and services, or self-employment) is to be 
considered applicable to those issues. 

2   This is a rough and unofficial translation by the author. 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3.1.3  Specific requirements 

In  Portugal,  transgender,  intersex  and  non-binary  persons  are  protected  from 
discrimination  under  the  categories  of  gender  identity,  sex  characteristics  and 
gender expression.  

Law No. 38/2018 of 7 August 2018, on the right to the self-determination of gender 
identity and to the protection of the sexual characteristics (Article 1), establishes a 
general  prohibition  of  direct  or  indirect  discrimination  on  the  grounds  of  gender 
identity, gender characteristics and gender expression (Article 2(1)). 

Prior to Law No. 38/2018 of 7 August 2018, a change of legal gender was dealt with 
by Law No. 7/2011 of 15 March 2011. Under this legislation, medical confirmation 
of the specific gender status of transgender, intersex and non-binary persons was 
necessary in order to change legal gender, as this situation was viewed as a health 
issue. Therefore, the evidence of a ‘gender identity disorder’, had to be declared by 
a medical and psychological evaluation (Articles 2 and 3).  

However,  this  Act was  repealed  by  Law  No. 38/2018  of  7  August  2018,  which 
establishes a civil procedure for the recognition of gender identity that includes the 
change of the legal gender and of the name (Articles 6 to 10), that is much simpler 
than the previous procedure. In the course of this procedure, a medical evaluation 
is  not  required  except  in  the  case  of  minors  who  may  start  the  procedures  after 
reaching the age of 16, with the assistance of their parents (as legal representatives 
of the minors, under Articles 122 and 123 of the Civil Code).3 

Also, during this procedure, it is strictly forbidden to ask the person for any proof 
of having undergone sterilisation, sex-change surgery, hormonal treatment or any 
other medical or psychological treatment as a condition of the change of legal sex 
(Articles 7 and 9 of Law No. 38/2018 of 7 August 2018). 

As already indicated, this piece of legislation was very controversial and some of its 
provisions  were  brought  before  the  Portuguese  Constitutional  Court  (PCC).  In 
judgment No. 474/2021 of 23/07/2021, the Court declared Article 12(1) and (3) of 
the  law,  which  had  established  as  a  public  duty  of  the  Portuguese  State  the 
promotion  of  actions  intended  to  raise  the  awareness  of  children  of  sex  identity 
issues and to protect them against discriminatory practices at all levels of education, 
contrary  to  the  Portuguese  Constitution,  due  to  the  lack  of  definition  of  the 
measures  that  the  State  could  take  to  achieve  that  goal.  Therefore,  some  of  the 
more  controversial  measures  of  this  piece  of  legislation,  related  to  addressing 
gender identity and the gender assignment of small children in schools are no longer 
in force. 

As  to  the  marital  status  of  the  person,  marriage  per  se  is  no  obstacle  to  the 
procedure for changing legal gender status, but change of sex is a legal ground for 
divorce or for the annulment of marriage. 

3   This is another difference between this legislation and Law No. 7/2011 of 15 March 2011, as in the 
former legislation the civil procedure to change legal gender was forbidden for minors (i.e. young 
persons under 18 years old). The extension of the right to start the civil procedure intended to 
change the legal gender of minors over 16 was the most debated issue of the new law, as, in its 
first version, the legal provision indicated that minors could start the procedure without the 
knowledge or consent of their parents and even without a medical evaluation. However, the 
Portuguese President exercised his veto powers to stop the law from entering into force and the 
provision was changed as indicated above and entered into force in this amended version.  

12 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3.2  Direct sex discrimination 

3.2.1  Explicit prohibition  

Direct  sex  discrimination  is  explicitly  prohibited  in  Portugal  in  relation  to 
employment  (LC,  Article 25(1)),  in  relation  to  self-employment  (Article 5  of  Law 
No. 3/2011 of 15 February), and in relation to access to and the supply of goods 
and services (Article 1 of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008). 

In the field of employment relations, direct discrimination is defined in general in 
the LC (Article 23(1)(a)) as:  

‘any situation where someone is submitted to a less favourable treatment than 
the treatment actually  or  virtually applied to  someone  else in a comparable 
situation, due to a discriminatory ground’.4  

Discriminatory  grounds  are  indicated  in  the  provision  that  prohibits  this  kind  of 
discriminatory  behaviour  (Article 24(1)).  This  concept  applies  to  direct  gender 
discrimination. 

Discrimination 
(Article 2(1)(c)), for the purposes of gender discrimination in pay.  

is  also  defined 

in  Law  No. 60/2018  of  21  August  2018 

A similar general concept of direct discrimination can be found in Article 5(2)(a) of 
Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011, which deals with non-discrimination in self-
employment. This concept applies to direct gender discrimination in this area.  

Direct sex discrimination is defined in Article 3(a) of Law No. 14/2008, of 12 March 
2008 (gender equality in access to and the supply of goods and services) as:  

‘any situation where someone is submitted to a less favourable treatment than 
the treatment actually  or  virtually applied to  someone  else in a comparable 
situation, on the ground of sex’.5  

In  the  author’s  view  these  concepts  are  in  line  with  EU  definitions  of  direct  sex 
discrimination. 

3.2.2  General discrimination 

General  discrimination,  which  is  a  discriminatory  practice  directed  at  a  certain 
category  without  individualisation  (e.g.  ‘we  don’t  hire  women’,  or  ‘we  don’t  hire 
mothers’) is prohibited in Portugal, not only on the basis of the general equality and 
non-discrimination principle established in the Portuguese Constitution (Article 13), 
which does not require individualised discrimination, but also on the basis of other 
domestic laws that copy and develop that general principle in more specific fields, 
such  as  employment,  self-employment,  access  to  and  provision  of  goods  and 
services, etc.  

Depending  upon  the  field  in  which  such  general  discriminatory  practice  occurs,  it 
can be challenged and brought before the court, either by an individual, acting as a 
victim,  or  by  a  trade  union,  a  private  association  or  even  by  a  public  body  with 
competence in that field.  

4   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 
5   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

In such cases, the  victim can also  complain to the public body, and the question 
can be brought before the court independently from an individual complaint, as a 
class action. 

3.2.3  Specific difficulties 

The prohibition of direct sex discrimination is generally well understood and causes 
no  special  problems  in  Portugal.  However,  some  difficulties  may  arise  as  regards 
discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy, maternity and reconciliation issues.  

Despite  the  recognition  of  these  practices  as  discrimination,  the  absence  of  their 
clear qualification as direct sex discrimination in the law may have a negative impact 
in the application of these provisions by the courts, which do not always establish a 
clear  link  between  the  two  issues,  and  therefore  do  not  always  apply  the  more 
favourable provisions on gender discrimination (for instance, provisions establishing 
a wide notion of pay, or the reversal of the burden of proof).  

Nevertheless, to a certain extent, the situation may be considered to have gained 
clarity due to  the introduction of a new provision in the LC (Article 35-A) by Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019, which includes an  explicit ban of  any form of 
discrimination against employees for the exercise of the rights related to maternity 
and paternity, and expressly qualifies as discrimination the different treatment of 
workers who exercise maternity and paternity rights in relation to bonuses related 
to productivity or lack of absences (thus making use of the broad sense of pay) and 
in relation to promotion. 

3.3  Indirect sex discrimination 

3.3.1  Explicit prohibition 

In  Portugal,  indirect  sex  discrimination  is  explicitly  prohibited  in  relation  to 
employment (LC, Article 25(1)), self-employment (Article 5(1) of Law No. 3/2011 
of 15 February 2011) and gender equality in access to and the supply of goods and 
services (Article 1 of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008). 

In the field of employment relations, indirect discrimination is defined in general in 
the LC (Article 23(1)(b)) as:  

‘any situation where a rule, criterion, or practice apparently neutral can place 
someone,  due  to  a  discriminatory  ground,  in  a  disadvantaged  position  in 
comparison  to  others,  unless  that  rule,  criterion  or  practice  is  objectively 
justified by a legitimate goal and the means to reach that goal are adequate 
and necessary’.6  

This general concept applies to indirect sex discrimination. 

As  regards  self-employment,  a  similar  concept  is  established  in  Article 5(2)(b)  of 
Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011 (non-discrimination in self-employment). This 
concept applies to indirect gender discrimination in this area.  

As  regards  gender  equality  in  access  to  and  the  supply  of  goods  and  services, 
indirect  discrimination  is  defined  in  Article 3(b)  of  Law  No. 14/2008  of  12  March, 
as:  

6   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

‘any situation where a rule, criterion, or practice, apparently neutral can place 
someone in a disadvantaged position in comparison to a person of the other 
sex, unless that rule, criterion or practice is objectively justified by a legitimate 
goal and the means to reach that goal are adequate and necessary’.7 

In the author’s view these concepts comply with the EU definition of indirect gender 
discrimination. 

3.3.2  Statistical evidence 

The author has no knowledge of the use of statistical evidence in order to establish 
a presumption of indirect sex discrimination. 

3.3.3  Application of the objective justification test 

To the author’s knowledge, there is no case law on this subject. 

3.3.4  Specific difficulties 

The absence of case law relating to indirect discrimination makes it difficult to assess 
how the concept of indirect discrimination is interpreted and applied in practice.  

Also,  at  the  level  of  companies  and  in  collective  bargaining,  the  very  notion  of 
indirect discrimination seems difficult to understand, so its practical use to disclose 
discriminatory practices is limited. 

3.4  Multiple discrimination and intersectional discrimination 

3.4.1  Definition and explicit prohibition 

Multiple  discrimination  (i.e.  discrimination  based  on  two  or  more  grounds 
simultaneously) and intersectional discrimination (i.e. discrimination resulting from 
grounds  of  discrimination  which  interact  to  produce  a  new  and  different  type  of 
discrimination) is not explicitly addressed and defined in Portuguese legislation.  

The  author  is  not  aware  of  any  proposals  aiming  to  incorporate  the  concept  of 
multiple  discrimination  and/or  the  concept  of  intersectional  discrimination  in  the 
legislation. 

However, the absence of such concepts in the law does not prevent the use of more 
than  one  discrimination  ground  in  a  possible  claim.  In  the  author’s  opinion,  the 
legislative architecture of the protection against discrimination in Portugal already 
allows for the judicial recognition of multiple/intersectional discrimination, especially 
in the area of employment, because the LC takes the various discriminatory grounds 
all together, and only afterwards further elaborates on gender equality provisions. 

Nevertheless,  the  absence  of  case  law  with  this  scope  makes  it  hard  to  assess 
whether such a difficulty would arise in practice or not. 

3.4.2  Case law and judicial recognition  

As already indicated, there is no case law addressing multiple discrimination and/or 
intersectional discrimination, where gender is one of the grounds at stake. 

7   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3.5  Positive action 

3.5.1  Definition and explicit prohibition 

Positive action is indirectly allowed by the Portuguese Constitution, in Article 9(h). 
In fact, by considering the active promotion of equality between men and women 
as  a  fundamental  task  of  the  Portuguese  State,  this  provision  allows  for  positive 
action in promoting this goal. 

As regards employment, the LC explicitly allows for positive action legal measures, 
which  are  considered  as  non-discriminatory  measures,  provided  that  they  are 
established  on  a  temporary  basis  in  order  to  correct  a  factual  discrimination  that 
already exists (Article 27).  

Positive action is defined by Article 27 of the LC as:  

‘a  legal  measure  of  limited  duration  in  favour  of  a  group,  placed  in  a 
disadvantaged  situation  because  of  a  discrimination  ground,  and  aiming  to 
grant  equal  conditions  in  the  access  to  or  in  the  exercise  of  legal  rights  or 
correcting a factual discrimination that already exists’.8  

In the author’s view, this definition of positive action complies with the EU definition 
found in Article 157(4) TFEU. 

In the area of access to and supply of goods and services, Law No. 14/2008 of 12 
March  2008  (which  transposed  Directive 2004/113),  allows  for  positive  action 
measures in Article 4(7), which states as follows:  

‘the guarantee  of  full equality between  men  and women does not prejudice 
specific positive measures, already in place or to be implemented in order to 
prevent  or  to  compensate  factual  inequalities  or  disadvantages  related  to 
sex’.9 

This rule formally complies with Article 6 of Directive 2004/113.  

3.5.2  Conceptual distinctions between ‘equal opportunities’ and ‘positive action’ in 

national law 

In the Portuguese legal system, the equality principle and the non-discrimination 
principle  are  viewed  as  the  general  principles  in  this  area,  and  positive  action  is 
viewed  as  a  development  of  such  principles.  There  is  no  vertical  relationship 
between  the  two  concepts,  as  positive  action  is  an  instrument  intended  to 
implement the goal of equal opportunities. 

3.5.3  Specific difficulties  

To the author’s knowledge, there are no specific difficulties in relation to positive 
action in Portugal. In practice, positive action is often used to pursue specific goals 
in the field of employment and in relation to several grounds of discrimination. Some 
provisions of the LC are good examples of this specific use of positive action:  

- 

In  order  to  fight  unemployment  –  which  is  consistently  higher  among  the 
younger generation – and long-term unemployment, the LC used to facilitate 
the conclusion  of fixed-term  employment contracts with young persons and 
long-term unemployed persons (Article 140(4) of the LC). In a certain sense 

8   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 
9   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

this provision also fights indirect age discrimination. As a caveat, however, it 
should  be  noted  that  the  provision  was  changed  by  Law  No. 93/2019  of  4 
September 2019, and is now only applicable to very long-term unemployed 
persons (e.g. persons who have been unemployed for more than two years). 
In  contrast,  a  different  measure  intended  to  promote  the  employment  of 
young  persons  and  long-term  unemployed  persons  (e.g.  persons  who  are 
unemployed  for  more  than  one  year),  was  introduced  by  this  piece  of 
legislation 
the  employment  contract: 
Article 112(1)(b)(iii) establishes a longer probation period in the employment 
contract of these workers. In the author’s opinion, this new provision, which 
was intended to promote the employment of these workers, in fact establishes 
a form of indirect discrimination against them, on the grounds of age and of 
economic situation, which is contrary to the Portuguese Constitution. 

the  probation  period  of 

in 

- 

- 

In  relation  to  discrimination  on  the  grounds  of  maternity  and  parenthood 
Article 30(3) of the LC states that, for economic activities that are dominated 
by workers of one sex, workers of the underrepresented sex have priority in 
access  to  professional  training.  The  same  priority  is  generally  granted  to 
workers with low academic training or no specific skills, as well as to workers 
responsible for single-parent families, and to those who have been on leave 
for  reasons  related  to  maternity,  paternity  or  adoption.  This  provision  may 
clearly  favour  women,  since  they  are  more  likely  to  be  in  the  situations 
described by the rule. 

In  relation  to  discrimination  and  collective  agreements,  Article 492(2)(d)  of 
the  LC  states  that  collective  agreements  should  establish  ‘measures  that 
contribute  to  the  effective  implementation  of  equality  and  the  non-
discrimination  principle’.  According  to  this  rule,  equality  plans  and  concrete 
measures for the promotion of equality (on several grounds, including sex) at 
professional  or  company  level  can  be  defined  by  collective  agreements 
directly.  These  measures  can  include  positive  action  and  preferential 
treatment, if, in the specific situation, they meet the legal requirements for 
such  positive  action  measures.  However,  this  rule  is  a  non-binding 
recommendation, since there are no sanctions attached to the absence of such 
measures or plans. 

Also, outside the LC but with a direct impact in employment relations, it is worth 
mentioning  the  legislation  on  quotas  for  company  boards  (Law  No. 62/2017  of  1 
August  2017),  where  a  specific  provision  (Article 7)  imposes  upon  employers  the 
duty to instate gender equality plans intended to promote gender-balanced access 
to  leadership  positions  in  the  company.  Given  the  fact  that  women  are  less 
represented  in  those  positions,  this  provision  is  a  positive  action  in  the  sense  of 
Article 27 of the LC. 

In short, positive action is accepted as a normal tool in the Portuguese legal system, 
in the field of employment, in relation to non-discrimination in general and to sex 
discrimination in particular.  

3.5.4  Measures to improve the gender balance on company boards 

In Portugal, in the last decade, there has been increased intervention in the field of 
gender equality in decision making, especially as regards the presence of women 
on company boards.  

In  2012,  the  Government  approved  a  Resolution  to  promote  the  increased 
participation of women on the boards of public and private companies, and following 
this  Resolution  other  legislative  measures  have  been  established.  However,  for 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

some  years,  these  measures  have  gone  much  further  in  relation  to  public 
administration and state-owned companies than in relation to private companies.  

As  regards  public  companies,  Decree-Law  No. 133/2013  of  3  October  2013 
(Estatuto  das  Empresas  Públicas  –  on  general  features  of  public  companies), 
establishes that the governance boards of public companies (administration board 
and supervisory board) must aim to have both men and women as members, and 
establishes  the  obligation  of  public  companies  to  put  equality  plans  in  place. 
Similarly,  Law  No. 67/2013  of  28  August  2013  (Lei-Quadro  das  Entidades 
Reguladoras – Law on the general features of administrative independent agencies 
for  the  monitoring  of  economic  activity  in  the  private  and  in  the  public  sector), 
establishes  that  the  board  of  these  agencies  must  include  at  least  33 %  of  the 
members  of  both  sexes,  and  that  the  presidency  of  the  board  must  alternate 
between persons from either sex. Over the years, these measures have been put in 
place with success.  

Still  in  the  public  sector,  Law  No. 26/2019,  of  28  March  2019,  regarding  highly 
qualified public officers (pessoal dirigente da Administração Pública), established a 
set of rules intended to promote a balanced representation of men and women in 
the  boards  and  other  managerial  positions  of  the  public  administration  services 
(including public services at central, regional and local levels and also independent 
public  entities,  such  as  public  universities,  public  foundations,  public  professional 
associations and other public institutions). This piece of legislation establishes that 
a minimum of 40 % of persons from each sex must be on the board of these entities, 
and in the case of elected collective boards, the list of the candidates must alternate 
between the two sexes (Article 4). These rules are binding and if the gender criteria 
are not met nor corrected in due time, the nomination of the officers in question is 
null and void (Article 8). 

As regards the private sector, a major development occurred in this area in 2017, 
with  the  approval  of  Law  No. 62/2017  of  1  August  2017,  regarding  women  on 
boards. This Law, which is applicable to public companies and other public entities 
(at  the  central,  regional  or  local  level),  but  also  to  private  listed  companies, 
establishes  a  minimum  representation  of  women  on  executive  boards  and  on 
supervisory  boards:  33.3 %,  as  regards  public  companies,  from  January  2018 
onwards;  and,  as  regards  private  listed  companies,  20 %  from  January  2018 
onwards  but  increasing  to  33.3 %  from  January  2020  (Articles 4  and  5  of  Law 
No. 62/2017).10 These provisions are binding and if the set levels are not achieved 
within the indicated time limits, the act nominating the members of the executive 
and/or  supervisory  boards  may  be  declared  null  and  void,  and  the  company  in 
question may be subjected to fines and other administrative sanctions until a valid 
nomination is produced (Article 6 of Law 62/2017). Despite the fact that this piece 
of  legislation  is  only  applicable  to  listed  companies  (and  not  many  Portuguese 
companies  are  listed),  this  is  an  important  step  in  the  direction  of  more  gender-
balanced participation in decision making. 

At another level, over the years the successive  national plans for gender equality 
approved  by  the  Government  have  repeatedly  emphasised  the  importance  of  a 
gender  balance  on  the  boards  of  private  companies  as  a  condition  for  good 
governance.  Accordingly,  several  campaigns  were  developed  by  the  Government 
targeting private companies in this sense.  

10   In practice, these are only indicative dates, as the quota levels indicated in the law must be 

reached in the first assembly of the companies where the board members are appointed, which 
takes place after the time limits indicated in this provision. Therefore, some listed companies have 
not yet reached those levels. 

18 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

It  is  to  be  noted  that  these  developments  at  national  level  occurred  prior  to  the 
adoption of Directive 2022/2381. However, they align in the same direction. 

3.5.5  Positive action measures to improve the gender balance in other areas  

In  the  political  arena,  gender  quotas  have  been  imposed  for  elections  for  the 
National  Parliament, 
for  the  European  Parliament  and  for  local  political 
representatives, by Law No. 3/2006 of 21 August 2006 (known as the ‘Parity Law’ 
– ‘Lei da Paridade’). Initially, this Law established that the lists presented by political 
parties  for  these  elections  should  include  at  least  33.3 %  women  in  eligible 
positions. But the percentage of women in these lists is now fixed at 40 %, due to 
the amendment introduced by Law No. 1/2019 of 29 March 2019.  

These rules are binding to the extent that if the list of candidates does not comply 
with  the  proportion  requirements,  the  party  responsible  is  officially  notified  and 
requested to correct the list. If such a correction is not made, the list is rejected 
(Article 4 of Law No. 3/2006, as amended by Law No. 1/2019 of 29 March 2019). 

In fields other than employment, company boards and political representation, and 
including the area of goods and services (where, as indicated above, positive action 
is  expressly  mentioned  in  the  law)  the  author  has  no  information  regarding  the 
practical implementation of positive measures.  

3.6  Harassment and sexual harassment 

3.6.1  Definition and explicit prohibition of harassment 

In  Portugal,  harassment  is  explicitly  prohibited  in  the  area  of  employment 
(Article 29(1)  of  the  LC,  which  is  also  applicable  to  civil  servants),  and  in  self-
employment,  but  only  in  relation  to  discriminatory  harassment  and  sexual 
harassment (Article 5(5) and (6) of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011) and in 
access to and the supply of goods and services, also in relation to discriminatory 
harassment and sexual harassment (Article 3(c) and (d) and in Article 4(4) of Law 
No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008).  

It is important to point out that in the LC (Article 29) there is a broader concept of 
harassment, which includes discriminatory harassment and sexual harassment but 
also moral harassment practices that are not based on a discriminatory ground. On 
the contrary, in relation to self-employment and access to and the supply of goods 
and  services,  since  the  legislation  specifically  addresses  gender  equality,  the 
concept  of  harassment  is  explicitly  linked  to  discriminatory  harassment  and  to 
sexual harassment. 

Harassment and sexual harassment are defined in national legislation in line with 
the  definitions  given  by  Directive 2006/54  in  Article 2(1)(c)  and  (d)  and 
Directive 2004/113/EC in Article 2(c) and (d), with some small differences between 
them,  according  to  the  situation  in  question  (employment,  self-employment  or 
goods and services) and in the case of employment with a scope wider than that of 
Directive 2006/54. 

In  the  employment  area,  these  concepts  are  addressed  in  Article 29(2) 
(harassment)  and  in  Article 29(3)  (sexual  harassment)  of  the  Labour  Code  (as 
amended by Law No. 73/2017 of 16 August 2017) as follows:  

19 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

- 

(Article 29(2)  of  the  LC):  ‘Harassment  is  the  unwanted  behaviour,  adopted 
towards a candidate for a job, an employee or a trainee, that intends or results 
in personal constraint or in the breach of the person’s dignity or in the creation 
of an intimidating, hostile, degrading or humiliating environment’;  

(Article 29(3)  of  the  LC):  ‘Sexual  harassment  is  the  unwanted  sexual 
behaviour adopted towards a candidate for a job, an employee or a trainee, 
in  a  verbal,  non-verbal  or  physical  form,  with  the  intention  or  the  result 
indicated in the preceding concept’.11 

These  concepts  have  a  wider  scope  than  those  in  Directive 2006/54,  since  the 
national provision includes three forms of harassment: harassment in general (e.g. 
moral  harassment  or  mobbing),  which  is  not  linked  to  a  discrimination  factor; 
harassment  based  on  a  discriminatory  factor  (including  sex  but  also  other 
discriminatory  factors  indicated  in  the  law,  such  as  age,  race,  disability,  place  of 
birth, religious or political convictions, etc.); and sexual harassment, which consists 
of  sexual  behaviour.  In  this  context,  the  national  definition  of  harassment  in  the 
field of employment is therefore not only in compliance with the Directive but even 
exceeds it.  

In the author’s view, this definition complies with the EU definition in Article 2(1)(d) 
of Directive 2006/54. 

In the field of self-employment and in the field of goods and services, the law only 
mentions  discriminatory  harassment  and  sexual  harassment  (Article 5(5)  of  Law 
No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011 and Article 3(c) and (d) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 
March  2008,  respectively).  In  addition  to  this  difference,  the  legal  concepts  of 
harassment  in  these  areas  are  similar  to  the  concepts  of  the  Labour  Code,  with 
small adaptations to the situation in question.  

3.6.2  Scope of the prohibition of harassment 

As indicated above, in  Portugal, harassment is explicitly prohibited in  the area  of 
employment (Article 29(1) of the LC, which is also applicable to civil servants), in 
the area of self-employment, but only in relation to discriminatory harassment and 
sexual harassment (Article 5(5) and (6) of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011) 
and in the area of access to and supply of goods and services, also in relation to 
discriminatory  harassment  and  sexual  harassment  (Article 3(c)  and  (d)  and 
Article 4(4) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008). 

As regards harassment practices in employment relations, the Labour Code and the 
General  Law  on  Public  Employment  and  other  public  employees  (Lei  Geral  do 
Trabalho em Funções Públicas (LGTFP), approved by Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 
2014), have been amended by Law No. 73/2017 of 16 August 2017. The changes 
introduced  –  which  are  related  not  only  to  discriminatory  and  sexual  harassment 
but  to  all  forms  of  harassment  –  are  intended  to  reinforce  the  protection  of 
harassment victims in employment, by reinforcing the duties of the employer in this 
area (including imposing or approving a code of conduct in this area in companies 
with  more  than  seven  employees,  and  the  duty  to  start  a  disciplinary  procedure 
against the author of harassment practices), by increasing damage compensation 
rights and by granting protection against victimisation and dismissal to the victims 
and to witnesses of harassment practices. 

11   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

20 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3.6.3  Definition and explicit prohibition of sexual harassment 

As already indicated, sexual harassment is  explicitly prohibited in the  Portuguese 
legislation in the area of employment (Articles 29(1) and (3) of the LC, as amended 
by Law No. 73/2017 of 16 August 2017) and Article 24(1) of the Labour Code), in 
the area of goods and services (Article 4(1) and (4) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 
2008)  and  in  the  area  of  self-employment  (Article 5(1),  (5)  and  (6)  of  Law 
No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011). 

In employment relations, Article 29(3) of the LC, defines sexual harassment as:  

‘the  unwanted  sexual  behaviour  adopted  towards  a  candidate  for  a  job,  an 
employee  or  a  trainee,  in  a  verbal,  non-verbal  or  physical  form,  with  the 
intention or the result indicated in the preceding concept’.12 

In the field of self-employment and in the field of goods and services, the concept 
of  sexual  harassment  (Article 5(5)  of  Law  No. 3/2011  of  15  February  2011  and 
Article 3(c) and (d) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008, respectively) is similar 
to  the  concept  of  the  Labour  Code,  with  small  adaptations  to  the  situation  in 
question.  

3.6.4  Scope of the prohibition of sexual harassment 

As indicated above, sexual harassment is prohibited in the areas  of employment, 
self-employment and access to and supply of goods and services and the concepts 
are similar, although slightly adapted to each situation (Article 29(1) and (3) of the 
LC, Article 5(5) of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011 and Article 3(c) and (d) of 
Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008, respectively). 

3.6.5  Understanding of (sexual) harassment as discrimination 

Portuguese legislation does not specify that harassment and sexual harassment as 
well  as  any  less  favourable  treatment  based  on  the  person’s  rejection  of,  or 
submission  to,  such  conduct  amounts  to  discrimination,  in  the  sense  of 
Article 2(2)(a) of Directive 2006/54. 

This  question  is  especially  important  as  regards  employment  relations,  since 
harassment is dealt with in a specific section of the LC, aside from the provisions 
relating  to  discrimination  in  general  and  to  sex  discrimination  in  particular.  This 
systematic approach to the subject alongside the broad concept of harassment, as 
indicated  above,  makes  the  link  between  the  two  subjects  less  clear,  even  when 
harassment practices are based on a discrimination ground. 

However,  the  specific  section  of  the  Labour  Code  that  deals  with  the  so-called 
personality rights of the parties in employment relations (especially the provision 
regarding the rights of the parties to physical and moral integrity – Article 15 of the 
LC) combined with the provisions regarding the duties of the employer in relation 
to the employees (especially the duty to treat the employee respectfully and also 
the  duty  to  grant  adequate  working  conditions,  not  only  from  a  physical  point  of 
view but also from a moral point of view – Article 127(1)(a) and (c) of the LC) allow 
for  the  qualification  of  such  behaviour  as  a  severe  breach  of  legal  duties,  with 
adequate consequences in terms of damage compensation.  

12   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

21 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

3.6.6  Specific difficulties  

There  are  several  difficulties  as  regards  the  practical  implementation  of  gender 
equality and the non-discrimination principle in relation to harassment and sexual 
harassment. 

The first difficulty comes from the concept of harassment. The fact that this concept 
is extremely wide and somewhat ‘subjective’, makes it hard under the Portuguese 
legal  system  to  distinguish  real  harassment  practices  from  stress  situations  or  a 
stressful environment  in the workplace  or in the course of  employment relations. 
The  lack  of  a  clear  line  between  these  two  situations  may  result  in  increased 
difficulties in the protection of the victims of real harassment practices.  

Another difficulty comes from the fact that harassment victims often choose not to 
disclose  harassment  practices,  especially  in  the  case  of  vertical  harassment  (i.e. 
when the perpetrator is the employer or a more senior employee), for fear of losing 
their job.  

Finally, a technical difficulty comes from the fact that harassment is dealt with in a 
specific  section  of  the  LC,  aside  from  the  provisions  relating  to  discrimination  in 
general and aside from the provisions relating to sex discrimination in particular, as 
indicated  above.  This  systematic  approach  to  the  subject  alongside  the  broad 
concept of harassment, makes the link between the two subjects less clear, even 
when  harassment  practices  are  based  on  discrimination  and  must  therefore  be 
treated as such, for all purposes.  

3.7  Instruction to discriminate 

3.7.1  Explicit prohibition 

In Portugal, an instruction to discriminate is, per se, a discriminatory practice both 
in the area of employment and in the area of goods and services and with regard 
to self-employment. 

In the area of employment, under Article 23(2) of the LC ‘the order or instruction 
intended to cause damage to someone on the ground of a discrimination factor is, 
per se, a discriminatory practice’.13  

As regards goods and services, Article 4(3) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008 
also  qualifies  as  discrimination  any  instruction  or  order  intended  to  directly  or 
indirectly discriminate against the other party. 

A similar provision is established in Article 5(3) of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 
2011, as regards self-employment.  

3.7.2  Specific difficulties 

There are no specific difficulties in relation to this topic. 

3.8  Other forms of discrimination 

In Portugal, there are no other forms of discrimination prohibited in national law, 
including  discrimination  by  association  or  assumed  discrimination,  since  national 
legislation does not explicitly address these concepts. 

13   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Nevertheless,  these  forms  of  discrimination  can  be  invoked  under  the  general 
prohibition of discrimination, established in Article 25(1) of the LC and, aside from 
the field of employment relations, under the general principle of equality and non-
discrimination  established  by  Article 13  of  the  Constitution,  which  is  a  directly 
binding provision. 

Recently,  the  major  reform  of  the  LC  that  was  approved  by  Law  No. 13/2023  of 
3 April  2023  included  a  reference  to  algorithmic  discrimination  in  the  context  of 
platform work (Article 12-A (7) of the LC, added by this piece of legislation). The 
provision  expressly  indicates  that  algorithm  management  cannot  discriminate 
between  different  categories  of  platform  workers.  However,  this  provision  is  not 
linked to gender discrimination. 

3.9  Evaluation of implementation 

In  the  author’s  view,  the  EU  concepts  relating  to  gender  equality  and  the  non-
discrimination  principle  were  adequately  transposed  into  national  legislation,  and 
the scope of the protection against discriminatory practices in domestic legislation 
is wide and in line with EU law. 

The main problem in Portugal is the practical implementation of the legislation and 
the  lack  of  case  law  in  this  field,  which  makes  any  assessment  of  its  effect  very 
difficult.  

3.10 Remaining issues 

There are no remaining issues to report on this topic. 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

4 

Equal pay and equal treatment at work (Article 157 of the Treaty on 
the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  (TFEU)  and  Recast 
Directive 2006/54) 

4.1  General (legal) context 

4.1.1  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

Equal pay is a subject that always arises in political and social debate. This was also 
the case in Portugal, in 2018, in the context of the discussion and approval of Law 
No. 60/2018 of 21 August 2018, which directly focuses on the gender pay gap and 
on wage transparency. 

There  is  also  a  social  debate  on  this  subject  in  the  context  of  the  campaigns 
launched by the public agency that deals with gender equality in employment (CITE 
– Commission for Equality in Work and Employment) as well as by the Government 
in favour of equal pay and directed at employers, employers’ associations and trade 
unions.  For  instance,  for  some  years  now,  the  CITE  launches  a  campaign  on  the 
precise day of the year where, according to statistical data, women meet the annual 
pay rate of men (until now, this day has been set somewhere in November, thus 
indicating that the pay gap corresponds to more than a month’s salary in favour of 
men), which is intended to raise awareness of the annual evolution of the pay gap. 
Other  more  substantive  actions  directed  at  the  stakeholders  involved  also  take 
place,  as  well  as  the  publication  of  studies  and  other  data  in  this  area.  These 
campaigns  often  involve  the  media,  and  the  activity  of  the  CITE  in  this  area  is 
regularly published on the CITE’s website.14  

4.2  Equal pay 

4.2.1  Implementation in national law 

In Portugal, a general right to equal pay for equal work or work of the same value 
is  established  in  the  Constitution  (Article 59(1)(a))  as  a  fundamental  right  of 
workers.  

The same general principle is established in the Labour Code (Article 270), and the 
LC applies this principle both to non-discrimination in general (Article 24(2)(c)) and 
to  gender  equality  in  particular  (Article 31).  The  LC  provisions  on  equal  pay  are 
applicable both in the private sector and in the public sector and are complemented 
by  Law  No. 60/2018  of  21  August  2018,  on  equal  pay  between  men  and  women 
and pay transparency.  

4.2.2  Definition in national law 

In the LC, Article 24(1)(b) covers the principle of equal pay in relation to all grounds 
of discrimination and Article 31(1) and (2) covers this principle in relation to gender 
equality. 

Article 24(2)(c) and Article 31(2) establish the concept of remuneration in a rather 
unclear way, since apparently this concept does not rely on the broad concept of 
EU law of equal pay for the purpose of gender equality but on the national concept 
of  remuneration,  the  content  of  which  is  narrower  (in  the  sense  that  it  does  not 
cover  all  financial  advantages  granted  to  the  employee  under  an  employment 
contract – Article 258 of the LC). Nevertheless, for the purposes of the equal pay 
principle, the LC explicitly states that this principle applies not only to remuneration 

14   See: https://cite.gov.pt/web/pt. 

24 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

in a strict  sense (as indicated in Article 258 of  the LC) but also to other  financial 
benefits granted to the employee under an employment contract (Article 24(2)(c)).  

The  legislation  on  pay  transparency  (Law  No. 60/2018  of  21  August  2018),  has 
made the concept of remuneration clearer and therefore in line with Article 157(2) 
TFEU.  This  concept  of  remuneration  (Article 1(1)(b)),  that  is  valid  specifically  for 
the  purposes  of  equal  pay,  is  broader  than  the  concept  of  the  LC,  as  it  explicitly 
includes other financial advantages aside from the strict concept of salary, as in the 
case  of  the  payment  of  travel  expenses  and  other  expenses  relating  to  the 
performance of the work, bonuses, or premiums linked to productivity or seniority 
or good attendance. This broader concept of remuneration is, however, applicable 
only to sex and not to other discrimination factors. 

Therefore, national legislation meets the definition of pay in Article 157(2) TFEU. 

4.2.3  Explicit implementation of Article 4 of Recast Directive 2006/54 

Article 31(1), combined with Article 25 of the LC, transposes Article 4 Paragraph 1 
of  Recast  Directive 2006/54,  prohibiting  direct  and  indirect  discrimination  on 
grounds of sex, with regard to all aspects and conditions of remuneration. 

4.2.4  Related case law 

To  the  author’s  knowledge,  there  is  no  leading  national  case  law  nor  opinions  of 
equality  bodies  relating  to  pay  discrimination  on  the  ground  of  sex.  As  already 
indicated, in Portugal, there is almost no case law in the area of gender equality, 
with  the  exception  of  maternity  issues  and  issues  related  to  gender  equality  in 
collective agreements. 

There is, of course, some case law regarding equal pay, but these cases are related 
to other sources of discrimination rather than to the gender pay gap (for instance, 
different  pay  for  unionised  and  non-unionised  workers  on  the  basis  of  collective 
agreements).  However, these  cases are not  significant for the purpose  of gender 
pay gap issues, because the courts tend to interpret the notion of pay in a much 
narrower sense for the purpose of tackling the alleged discriminatory practices. This 
is due to the fact that in these situations they do not have to rely upon the broad 
notion of remuneration that is established in EU Law in respect of the gender pay 
gap. 

National legislation does not a have a concept of a worker, as such, although it does 
include a  concept  of an employment contract that is  established both  in the Civil 
Code  (Article 1152)  and  in  the  LC  (Article 11).  Under  these  concepts,  an 
employment contract is the contract concluded between an employer and a worker 
by which the worker performs paid mental or manual activity within the employer’s 
organisation and in a subordinate way (e.g. under the employer’s supervision and 
subject to the employer’s disciplinary power). In the public sector, there is a similar 
concept of an employment contract with a public employer (Article 6(2) of Lei Geral 
do Trabalho em Funções Públicas (General Law on Public Employment), approved 
by Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014). 

The  concept  of  a  worker  for  the  purposes  of  employment  legislation,  both  in  the 
private  and  in  the  public  sector,  comes  from  these  concepts  of  the  employment 
contract and the main aspect of this concept is the element of ‘subordination’. 

25 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

4.2.5  Permissibility of pay differences 

Under the Portuguese legal system, differences in pay are only allowed when based 
on objective criteria, common to men and women, which are productivity, seniority, 
and the lack of periods of absence. However, as regards the criteria of the lack of 
periods of absence, the law explicitly indicates that  the exercise of maternity and 
paternity  rights  (‘parenthood  rights’)  cannot  justify  different  remuneration 
(Article 31(3) and (4),  and Article 25 (6) and  (7) of the  LC and Article 2(1)(d) of 
Law No. 60/2018 of 21 August 2018). 

Nevertheless,  despite  the  formal  compliance  with  EU  law,  indirect  discriminatory 
practices cannot be completely ruled out when considering the criteria relating to 
the lack of periods of absence of the worker, because other situations of time off 
are included, including time off for reasons relating to care for other relatives, which 
is more common among women than among men. Also, indirect discrimination can 
arise here, even in situations relating to a worker’s periods of absence to take care 
of children, apart from maternity, paternity and parental leave, because the notion 
of ‘parenthood rights’ is not clear in the law and therefore tends to be interpreted 
in  a  strict  sense,  e.g.  only  in  relation  to  specific  rights  attached  to  maternity, 
paternity and parental leave.  

4.2.6  Requirement for comparators 

Under  Article 25(5)  of  the  LC  and  under  Article 4(2)  of  Law  No. 60/2018,  of  21 
August  (on  equal  pay),  when  invoking  pay  discrimination,  the  employee  must 
indicate the worker(s) in relation to whom they consider themselves to have been 
discriminated against, and it is up to the employer to prove that the difference in 
pay is objectively justified. In this sense, a comparator is required. 

The law makes no mention of the possibility of a hypothetical comparator, so in the 
author’s view it would be possible to indicate a hypothetical comparator, provided 
the employer is the same. In this sense, the claimant could invoke the fact that a 
previous employee in exactly the same job earned much more, but they could not 
invoke the fact that they are paid less than another worker who performs a similar 
job for another employer.  

However,  since  there  is  no  case  law  in  this  area,  it  is  not  possible  to  assess  the 
practical difficulties of the invocation of a hypothetical comparator. 

4.2.7  Existence  of  parameters  for  establishing  the  equal  value  of  the  work 

performed 

The  legal  definition  of  equal  work  establishes  that  there  is  equal  work  when  the 
work  is  of  a  ‘similar  nature,  quantity  and  quality’  (Article 59(1)(a)  of  the  PC  and 
Article 23(1)(c) of the LC).  

The  legal  definition  of  work  of  equal  value  considers  that  the  work  is  to  be 
considered equivalent ‘taking into consideration the qualification or the experience 
of  the  worker,  the  level  of  responsibility  involved,  the  physical  and  mental  effort 
required and the working conditions in practice’15 (Article 23 No. 1(d) of the LC).  

In the author’s view these definitions and criteria are in line with the concepts of EU 
law. 

15   This is a rough and unofficial translation made by the author. 

26 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

4.2.8  Other relevant rules or policies 

There are no other relevant rules or policies that provide such parameters, in the 
Portuguese legislation. 

4.2.9  Job evaluation and classification systems 

Job  evaluation  and  classification  systems  are  not  public,  so  the  author  has  no 
knowledge of good examples in this area. 

In any case, employers are bound by two main rules in this respect: the rule of the 
LC  in  this  field  (Article 31(5)),  which  states  that  job  evaluation  systems  must  be 
gender neutral and must rely on objective criteria common to men and women, in 
a  way  that  excludes  all  forms  of  sex  discrimination;  and  the  rules  on  pay 
transparency that were introduced by Law No. 60/2018 of 21 August 2018, which 
include  an  ‘evaluation  plan  of  the  wage  differences  in  the  company’  that  the 
employer must put in place and which is intended to justify pay differences and to 
eliminate those with no objective justification, as indicated in Article 5 of this Law 
(see section 4.2.10 below). 

In the author’s opinion, these kinds of measures may prove to be more efficient in 
achieving the objective of eliminating pay discrimination. 

4.2.10 Wage transparency 

Several provisions of the LC on equal pay point towards wage transparency, mainly 
by  stipulating  that  remuneration  is  to  be  determined  by  criteria  common  to  men 
and women (Article 31(3)) and by stipulating that job description and job evaluation 
must rely on objective criteria, common to men and women and that such criteria 
must exclude all forms of sex discrimination (Article 31(5)). 

Another provision intended to promote transparency in relation to gender equality 
in general (including wage transparency) is Article 32 of the LC, which imposes upon 
the  employer  the  duty  to  keep  sex-segregated  records  of  recruitment  forms  and 
procedures, for a minimum period  of five years. These  records  must also include 
information that allows for the research of wage discrimination. 

However, in this area, the major legal development in recent years was the approval 
of Law No. 60/2018 of 21 August 2018. The main goal of this piece of legislation is 
to  establish  a  set  of  measures  directly  intended  to  contribute  to  a  better 
implementation of the principle of equal pay, thus complementing the provisions of 
the LC in this area. These measures are the following: 

- 

- 

- 

every year, the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs will publish detailed 
statistical  data  on  the  pay  gap  between  men  and  women,  at  general  and 
sectorial levels; and statistical data by company, profession and qualification 
level,  based  upon  the  annual  balance  sheet  provided  by  the  companies 
(Article 3); 

employers  must  implement  a  transparent  wage  policy  in  companies 
(Article 4); 

following  the  publication  of  the  statistical  data  indicated  above,  if  the 
Commission  for  Equality  in  Work  and  Employment  (CITE)  detects  wage 
inequalities  within  a  company,  it  notifies  the  employer  to  present  an 
‘evaluation plan of the wage differences in the company’ that is intended to 
justify  those  differences,  when  admissible  and  to  eliminate  those  with  no 

27 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

objective justification, and that will be put in place for a period of 12 months 
(Article 5);  

- 

- 

workers  and  union  representatives  also  have  the  right  to  ask  the  CITE  for 
advice  on  alleged  gender  pay  discriminatory  practices  within  a  company;  if 
the CITE concludes that there is wage discrimination on the ground of sex, the 
employer  is  compelled  to  eradicate  it  and  he  may  be  subjected  to  a  fine 
(Article 6); and 

the dismissal or the application of disciplinary measures against a worker up 
to one year after they have asked the CITE for the advice indicated above is 
presumed unlawful (Article 7). 

These measures are examples of possible good practices in this field, since they go 
beyond the level of protection presently granted by EU law. However, in the author’s 
opinion, some of these measures look rather complex and therefore may be difficult 
to implement in practice (mainly as regards the assessments tasks of the CITE). At 
another level, this Law repeats some of the definitions and some of the rules that 
are already in the LC, apparently with the aim of reinforcing the protection already 
granted by the LC in this field. However, since the content of both definitions and 
rules is not always equivalent, some technical problems may arise in the application 
of this legislation. 

4.2.11 Implementation  of  the  transparency  measures  set  out  by  European 
Commission’s  Recommendation  of  7  March  2014  on  strengthening  the 
principle  of  equal  pay  between  men  and  women  and/or  Directive (EU) 
2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 to 
strengthen  the  application  of  the  principle  of  equal  pay  for  equal  work  or 
work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and 
enforcement mechanisms 

Some of the points of the European Commission’s Recommendation of 7 March 2014 
are already integrated in Portuguese legislation.  

As  regards  the  information  rights  regarding  wages,  in  view  of  point  3  of  the 
Recommendation,  information  on  wages  in  the  companies,  separated  by  sex,  is 
already available to employees under Article 32(1)(g) of the LC. 

As  regards  this  topic  in  collective  bargaining  (thus  in  view  of  point  6  of  the 
Recommendation) several provisions of the LC are worth mentioning: 

- 

- 

Article 492(2)(c) of the LC indicates the measures intended to promote gender 
equality  (including  equal  pay)  as  one  of  the  mandatory  topics  of  collective 
agreements.  However,  this  rule  is  only  a  recommendation,  with  no  binding 
effect. 

Article 479  of  the  LC,  regarding  the  content  of  collective  agreements  and 
discrimination, establishes the duty of the CITE (Commission for Equality in 
Work  and  Employment)  to  inspect  all  collective  agreements  just  after  their 
publication in order to check whether they include discriminatory clauses. If 
this  is  the  case,  the  CITE  will  directly  confront  the  employer  and  request  a 
change  to  the  clause.  If  the  employer  fails  to  make  the  change,  the  CITE 
presents the case to the public attorney, who can take it to court in order to 
have those clauses declared null and void. This rule, introduced by the Labour 
Code of 2009 is in line with point 5 of the Recommendation. 

28 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

Finally, Article 26 of the LC establishes that whenever a collective agreement 
or  internal  provision  of  company  regulations  restricts  a  certain  type  of 
remuneration  to  men  or  to  women,  these  stipulations  are  automatically 
applicable to employees of both sexes, provided they perform equal work or 
work of the same value. This provision of national legislation on equal pay can 
be  very  effective  to  promote  the  practical  implementation  of  equal  pay  and 
goes beyond the requirements of EU rules regarding the sanctions applicable 
to collective agreements that do not comply with the equal pay principle. 

All these provisions were already in force before the 2014 Recommendation. 

In addition to the LC, the measures established in Law No. 60/2018 of 21 August 
2018  that  are  mentioned  above  (especially  the  ‘evaluation  plan  of  the  wage 
differences  in  the  company’  that  the  employer  must  put  in  place  and  which  is 
intended  to  justify  pay  differences  and  to  eliminate  those  with  no  objective 
justification, as indicated in Article 5 of this Law) go in this same direction. 

4.2.12 Other measures, tools or procedures 

The  measures  already  indicated  on  this  issue  are  a  good  example  of  the  various 
mechanisms that can be used to implement equal pay in practice. 

4.3  Access to work, working conditions and dismissal 

4.3.1  Definition of the (material) scope (Article 14(1) of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

Article 24 of the LC defines the material scope of the non-discrimination principle 
(including  on  the  ground  of  sex)  in  relation  to  access  to  employment,  vocational 
training,  and  working  conditions,  including  dismissal,  in  line  with  Article 14  of 
Directive 2006/54.  As  regards  sex  discrimination,  this  provision  is  complemented 
by Article 30 of the LC. 

The scope of Articles 24 and 30 of the LC is in line with the material scope of Recast 
Directive 2006/54,  as  indicated  in  Article 14,  except  for  the  reference  to  self-
employment and occupation, since self-employment is outside the scope of the LC.  

As to the personal scope of the Directive, indicated in Article 6, it is to be noted that 
in  Portugal,  the  scope  of  the  LC,  which  includes  the  provisions  implementing  the 
gender  equality  principle  and  the  non-discrimination  principle  in  the  field  of 
employment and industrial relations, is defined not on the basis of the concept of a 
‘worker’, but on the basis of the concept of an employment contract. 

In fact, national legislation does not a have a concept of a worker, as such, although 
it does include a concept of an employment contract that is established both in the 
Civil  Code  (Article 1152)  and  in  the  LC  (Article 11).  Under  these  concepts,  an 
employment contract is the contract concluded between an employer and a worker 
by which the worker performs paid mental or manual activity within the employer’s 
organisation and in a subordinate way (e.g. under the employer’s supervision and 
subject to the employer’s disciplinary power). In the public sector, there is a similar 
concept of employment contract with a public employer (Article 6(2) of Lei Geral do 
Trabalho em Funções Públicas (General Law on Public Employment), approved by 
Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014). 

The  concept  of  a  worker  for  the  purposes  of  employment  legislation,  both  in  the 
private  and  in  the  public  sector,  comes  from  these  concepts  of  the  employment 
contract and the main aspect of this concept is the element of ‘subordination’.  

29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

All  subordinate  workers  in  the  private  sector  with  an  employment  contract  are 
covered  by  the  LC  and  therefore  by  gender  equality  provisions,  which  are  also 
applicable to workers in the public sector. Therefore, atypical subordinate workers 
(such  as  workers  with  fixed-term  contracts  or  temporary  contracts,  part-time 
workers, or teleworkers) are all covered by these rules, since they all have specific 
employment contracts. 

in  Portuguese 

‘Quasi-subordinate’  workers  are  a  particular  category  of  workers  traditionally 
‘trabalhadores 
recognised 
equiparados’ (‘equivalent workers’) or ‘trabalhadores com dependência económica’ 
(‘workers  in  economic  dependence’).  This  category  of  workers  is  generally  dealt 
with  by  Article 10  of  the  LC,  and  in  the  case  of  quasi-subordinate  workers  that 
perform  their  activity  at  home  (or  at  an  equivalent  facility),  also  by  Law 
No. 101/2009 of 8 September 2009.  

legislation  under  the  expression 

Quasi-subordinate workers are recognised when, in the absence of an employment 
contract (for lack of subordination), the worker is economically dependent on the 
creditor of the work in a substantial way (mainly because he works only for him) – 
see Article 10(1) of the LC and Article 1 of Law No. 101/2009. If this is the case, 
the law extends some labour protection rules to this category of workers, despite 
their  formal  qualification  as  independent  workers.16  In  the  LC,  this  extension  is 
contemplated  in  Article 10,  and  includes  the  LC  provisions  in  the  field  of  gender 
equality. Therefore, in the private sector these workers are covered.  

By contrast, there is no similar provision in the public sector, so in this area quasi-
subordinate workers are not covered by gender equality rules. 

4.3.2  Implementation of the exception on occupational activities (Article 14(2) of 

Recast Directive 2006/54) 

The  exception  to  non-discrimination  and  gender  equality  principles  in  access  to 
employment  based  on  occupational  activities  is  possible  under  the  Portuguese 
legislation, provided the conditions of Article 25(2) of the LC are met, e.g. provided 
that the different treatment is based on objective and essential reasons which are 
linked to that specific occupation, due to its nature or to the context in which the 
work is to be performed, and under the condition that the  objective is legitimate 
and the different treatment is proportional.  

These conditions are established by the Labour Code in relation to all discrimination 
grounds, including gender.  

The author is not aware of specific assessments by the Portuguese State in relation 
to these occupational activities. 

4.3.3  Protection against the non-hiring, non-renewal of a fixed-term contract, non-
continuation of a contract and dismissal of women connected to their state 
of pregnancy and/or maternity 

The Labour Code protects women in relation to pregnancy, maternity, adoption and 
other situations related to the reconciliation of professional and family life. 

This principle is developed in specific areas, such as the non-renewal of fixed-term 
employment contracts and the dismissal of women during pregnancy and/or while 
on maternity leave.  

16   This is even though, from an economic point of view, these workers seem to constitute a separate 

category between workers and independent persons.  

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

The  refusal  to  renew  a  fixed-term  contract  with  such  workers  must  be 
communicated  to  the  CITE  (Commission  for  Equality  in  Work  and  Employment) 
(Article 144(3) of the LC).  

Dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave, as well as during parental leave, 
is unlawful and therefore forbidden (Article 53 of the PC, and Articles 338 and 63(2) 
of the LC).  

Also, if the worker is dismissed on these grounds, the dismissal is null and void and 
they have the right to be reinstated, but if they decide not to go back, they have 
the right to accrued damage compensation (calculated at double the basis of 15 to 
45 days per year of the employment contract (Article 63(8) and Article 392(1) of 
the LC). 

In  addition  to  this  general  prohibition,  if  any  form  of  dismissal  occurs  while  the 
worker is pregnant or during any type of leave (e.g. collective dismissal or other 
objectively motivated dismissal), the dismissal is still presumed unlawful and has to 
follow  a  different  procedure  involving  the  CITE  (Commission  for  Equality  in  Work 
and Employment), which has to approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the 
LC).  

4.3.4  Implementation of the exception on the protection for women in relation to 
pregnancy and maternity (Article 28(1) of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

Article 24(3)(b) of the LC explicitly indicates that the non-discrimination principle in 
access  to  employment,  during  an  employment  contract  or  in  vocational  training 
does not prevent the adoption of  specific measures aiming to protect pregnancy, 
maternity, paternity, adoption and other situations related to the reconciliation of 
professional and family life. 

4.3.5  Particular difficulties 

There are no particular difficulties in this area, in the Portuguese legal system. 

4.3.6  Positive action measures (Article 3 of Recast Directive 2006/54)  

The  Portuguese  legislation  allows  for  positive  action  measures  in  the  course  of 
employment relations, under the general provision of Article 27 of the LC. 

In  relation  to  discrimination  on  the  grounds  of  maternity  and  parenthood, 
Article 30(3)  of  the  LC  states  that,  as  regards  economic  activities  dominated  by 
workers of one sex, workers of the underrepresented sex have priority in access to 
professional  training.  The  same  priority  is  generally  granted  to  workers  with  low 
academic  qualifications  or  no  specific  skills,  as  well  as  to  workers  responsible  for 
single-parent families, and to those who have been on leave for reasons related to 
maternity, paternity or  adoption.  This provision may  clearly  favour  women,  since 
they are more likely to be in the situations described by the rule. 

Also, outside the LC but with a direct impact in employment relations, it is worth 
mentioning the measures outlined in Article 7 of Law No. 62/2017 of 1 August 2017, 
which  imposes  upon  the  companies  the  duty  to  produce  annual  equality  plans, 
intended to achieve equal opportunities and the equal treatment of women and men 
and to promote the reconciliation of professional and family life within the company, 
and with the specific intention of promoting gender-balanced access to subordinate 
leadership positions in the company. Given the fact that women are less represented 
in those positions, this  provision is a positive action measure in the  sense of the 

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

concept of positive action included in Article 27 of the LC. This is a very important 
provision because until now, these plans were not mandatory. 

4.4  Evaluation of implementation 

In the author’s opinion, the Portuguese experience shows that the granting of the 
rights related to equal pay and to equal treatment in employment relations by the 
law is not enough to eliminate the gender pay gap and the different treatment of 
men and women in the course of an employment contract. 

As  regards  pay,  the  regular  studies  and  surveys  on  equal  pay,  conducted  by  the 
CITE  (Commission  for  Equality  in  Work  and  Employment)  show  a  persistent  and 
relevant pay gap between men and women. In this respect, the most recent general 
survey published by the CITE and relating to 202117 indicates that the gender pay 
gap has decreased when compared to previous years but is still high (13.3 % for 
basic salary, and 16.1 % when taking into consideration total earning capacity). The 
survey also found that the pay gap is more severe in higher positions (24.9 % in 
favour  of  men,  when  only  the  basic  salary  is  considered,  and  25.2 %  when 
considering  total  earning  capacity),18  despite  the  fact  that  women  have  better 
qualifications than men.19  

As  regards  equal  treatment  in  the  course  of  employment  relations,  the  same 
surveys reach similar conclusions. In this respect, the most recent general survey 
published by the CITE, which relates to 2021, includes the following information: 

- 

- 

- 

the  number  of  Portuguese  women  who  are  professionally  active  almost 
matches  the  number  of  men  (49.5 %  of  women  compared  to  50.5 %  of 
men);20 

most men and women work full time (in 2021, part-time contracts represented 
only  7.9 %  of  the  total  number  of  employment  contracts,  and  90.2 %  of 
women in employment worked full time compared with 94 % of men);21 and 

despite the fact that Portuguese women gain higher levels of education and 
qualification  than  men,22  there  are  fewer  women  than  men  in  high-ranking 
and managerial positions (of those in such positions, 62.1 % are men and only 
37.9 % are women).23 

There are a number of reasons for this situation. In the author’s opinion one of the 
sources of the problem is the traditional stigma that is still attached to the social 
roles  of  men  and  women  in  public  and  private  life  and  the  unbalanced  share  of 
family and care responsibilities between workers of the two sexes. In fact, inequality 
in  the  reconciliation  of  professional  and  family  life  leads  to  shorter  working  time 
(women  who  have  to  take  care  of  their  children  tend  to  avoid  overtime  work  or 
night work, which bring more pay), to undervalued work, and to shorter careers, 

17   CITE (2022) Relatório sobre o Progresso da Igualdade entre Mulheres e Homens no Trabalho, no 
Emprego e Formação Profissional 2021 (Report on the Progress of Equality between Men and 
Women 2021), available at https://cite.gov.pt/relatorio-da-lei-10. This is the most recent general 
report of the CITE, published in 2022 and relating to 2021. It will be cited hereafter as CITE 2022 
Report.  

18   CITE 2022 Report, p. 41. 
19   CITE 2020 Report, p. 42 et seq.  
20   CITE 2022 Report, p. 27. 
21   CITE 2022 Report, p. 71. 
22   CITE 2022 Report, pp. 15 and 21. According to the data for 2021, 45.7 % of women as compared 
with 35.9 % of men have a bachelor’s degree and the percentage of women is higher than the 
percentage of men at all levels of education. 

23   CITE 2022 Report, p. 36.  

32 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

and  increases  the  difficulties  in  promotion  and  in  training  for  women.  All  these 
factors involve or lead to lower pay and to fewer professional opportunities.  

In any case, these data show that the practical implementation of the legislation in 
this field is still weak24. In the author’s opinion, that is the reason why pay gap and 
equal  treatment  issues  must  be  tackled  at  both  the  legal  and  the  practical  level. 
Examples of good practice can also make a difference here.  

4.5  Remaining issues 

There are no remaining issues to report on these topics. 

24   According to the 2024 Report on Gender Equality in the EU, the largest pay gaps in 2022 were 

recorded in Latvia, Portugal and Romania (at least 9.0 pp). Report available at: 
https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/965ed6c9-3983-4299-8581-
046bf0735702_en?filename=2024%20Report%20on%20Gender%20Equality%20in%20the%20EU
_coming%20soon.pdf. 

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5  Work-life balance issues: pregnancy, maternity, family-related leave 
and  flexible  working  arrangements  (Directive 92/85,  relevant 
provisions of Directives 2006/54, and Directive 2019/1158) 

5.1  General (legal) context 

5.1.1  Overview of national acts on work-life balance issues 

In Portugal, work-life balance issues are dealt with in the Portuguese Constitution 
(PC)  of  1976  and  in  the  Labour  Code  of  2009,  and  also  by  certain  acts  on  more 
specific issues. 

Under the Portuguese Constitution, the right to an adequate reconciliation between 
work  and  family  life  is  granted  as  a  fundamental  right  of  all  workers 
(Article 59(1)(b)) and the State must implement policies and legal measures aimed 
at reaching that goal (Article 67(h) of the PC).  

Prior to the approval of the first Labour Code (2003), these issues were dealt with 
by  the  Maternity  and  Paternity  Act of  1984,  but  the  Labour  Code  repealed  that 
Act and integrated the provisions relating to maternity, paternity and reconciliation 
issues. Today, these issues are dealt with by the Labour Code of 2009, which is now 
in  force  (Articles 33  to  65).  The  Labour  Code  was  amended  in  this  area  by  Law 
No. 90/2019  of  4  September  2019,  in  order  to  reinforce  some  rights  related  to 
paternity, maternity and reconciliation, by Law No. 83/2021 of 6 December 2021, 
in relation to the right to telework in the context of care, and by Law No. 13/2023 
of 3 April 2023, which formally transposed Directive 2019/1158, as regards carer’s 
leave, and which has also reinforced some rights related to parenting.  

Complementing the Labour Code in this area are two further pieces of legislation: 

- 

- 

Decree-Law  No. 91/2009  of  9  April  2009,  on  social  protection  attached  to 
pregnancy  risks  and  also  to  maternity,  paternity  and  parental  leave;  this 
Act was recently changed by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023 in order 
to  adapt  to  the  changes  introduced  in  this  respect  to  the  LC  by  Law 
No. 13/2023 of 3 April 2023. 

Law  No. 102/2009  of  10  September  2009,  on  health  and  safety  in  the 
workplace, which transposed Directive 92/85 as regards the special protection 
of the health and safety of working women, while pregnant, on maternity leave 
and while breastfeeding.  

The LC and the complementary legislation to the LC have transposed all relevant 
provisions  regarding  the  maternity  and  parental  leave  directives.  As  already 
mentioned above, Directive 2019/1158 was transposed into national legislation by 
Law No. 13/2023 of 3 April 2023 (as indicated in Article 1(a) of this Law) with regard 
to the few aspects where a formal transposition was required – mainly related to 
care leave.  

These  provisions  are  applicable  to  employees  in  the  private  sector,  but  also  to 
employees in the public sector (Law No. 35/2014, of 20 June 2014, known as the 
General  Law  on  Public  Employment,  Lei  Geral  do  Trabalho  em  Funções  Públicas, 
Article 4(1)(c) and (d)).  

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

After a long period of discussion that started as long ago as 2022, a major reform 
of the Labour Code and other legislative acts related to employment and industrial 
relations  was  approved  by  the  National  Parliament  and  entered  into  force  in  May 
2023 (Law No. 13/2023 of 3 April 2023). This piece of legislation was complemented 
later by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023, which amended Law No. 91/2009 
of 9 April 2009 regarding social protection in relation to maternity, paternity and 
the reconciliation of professional and family life.  

In the context of this reform, the topic of work/life balance was, of course, discussed 
in  several  forums.  The  new  legal  provisions  cover  the  topics  of  paternity  leave, 
parental leave, adoption leave and care leave, as well as other measures intended 
to  protect  workers  with  caring  responsibilities  within  the  family  aside  from 
parenting.  

5.2  Pregnancy and maternity protection 

5.2.1  Definition in national law (Article 2 of Directive 92/85) 

The concepts of ‘pregnant worker’, ‘worker who has recently given birth’ and ‘worker 
who is breastfeeding’ are established in national law, in Article 36(1)(a)(b) and (c) 
of the LC, as follows: 

- 

- 

- 

a pregnant worker is a worker carrying a child who informs the employer of 
her situation, in writing and by presenting a medical certificate (a); 
a worker who has recently given birth is a worker in labour or during the period 
of 120 days after giving birth who informs the employer of her situation, in 
writing and by presenting a medical certificate or a birth certificate (b); and 
a  worker  who  is  breastfeeding  is  a  worker  who  breastfeeds  her  child  and 
informs the employer of her situation, in writing and by presenting a medical 
certificate (c). 

These concepts comply with the concepts of Directive 92/85, in the sense that these 
workers must inform the employer of their situation as a condition of access to the 
relevant protection rules.  

However,  these  concepts  go  a  little  beyond  those  of  the  Directive,  since  it  is 
established  that  the  protection  rules  regarding  maternity  and  paternity  are 
applicable not only if the worker has formally informed the employer of her condition 
but  also,  regardless  of  that  formal  communication,  whenever  the  employer  has 
direct knowledge of the worker’s condition (Article 36(2) of the LC). 

Therefore, these concepts are wider in domestic law than in European law. 

5.2.2  Obligation to inform employer (Article 2 of Directive 92/85) 

As  indicated  above,  workers  must  inform  the  employer  of  their  situation  as  a 
condition of access to the relevant protection rules. However, these concepts go a 
little beyond the concepts of the Directive since it is established that the protection 
rules  regarding maternity and paternity are applicable not  only if the  worker has 
formally informed the employer of her condition but also, regardless of that formal 
communication,  whenever  the  employer  has  direct  knowledge  of  the  worker’s 
condition (Article 36(2) of the LC). 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.2.3  Case law on the definition of a pregnant worker, a worker who has recently 
given birth and/or a worker who is breastfeeding and the obligation to inform 
the employer 

To  the  author’s  knowledge,  there  is  no  case  law  on  the  definition  of  a  pregnant 
worker, a worker who has recently given birth or a worker who is breastfeeding. 

5.2.4  Implementation of protective measures (Articles 4-6 of Directive 92/85) 

Under the Portuguese legislation, pregnant women are protected as regards working 
conditions relating to the activity performed, working-time arrangements, including 
night  work,  and  pregnancy-related  illnesses,  including  antenatal  examinations, 
miscarriage and abortion.  

In relation to working conditions, all types of work that may be dangerous either 
for the woman or for the baby are forbidden or restricted and the woman is entitled 
to  change  to  non-dangerous  work  or,  if  such  a  change  is  not  possible,  to  go  on 
leave, paid by social security (Article 62 of the LC). The list of activities forbidden 
or restricted during pregnancy is part of the legislation concerning health and safety 
in the workplace: Law No. 102/2009 of 10 September 2009, Articles 51 et seq. The 
legislation  on  social  security  benefits  relating  to  all  leave  regarding  pregnancy, 
maternity and paternity is Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, now changed 
by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023.  

In relation to pregnancy-related illnesses, women have the right to go on paid leave 
in the event of pregnancy risks affecting their ability to work, as well as in the event 
of miscarriage or abortion, and to normal sick leave in the event of other illnesses 
during pregnancy (Articles 37 and 38 of the LC). They also have the right to attend 
antenatal examinations, with no loss of salary (Articles 46 and 65(2) of the LC). 

There are no problems in the implementation of EU law at national level in this area. 

5.2.5  Case law on issues on protective measures 

To the author’s knowledge, there is no case law in this area. 

5.2.6  Prohibition of night work (Article 7 of Directive 92/85) 

In relation to working-time arrangements, pregnant women are entitled to refuse 
night work, overtime work and flexible working-time arrangements and as regards 
night work, they are entitled to be transferred to a day-time position or, if such a 
position is not available, to go on leave paid by social security (Articles 60, 59 and 
58, respectively, of the LC). 

5.2.7  Case law on the prohibition of night work 

To the author’s knowledge, there is no case law in this area. 

5.2.8  Prohibition of dismissal (Article 10(1) of Directive 92/85) 

Dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave, as well as during parental leave, 
is unlawful and therefore forbidden under Article 53 of the Portuguese Constitution 
and Articles 338 and 63(2) of the LC.  

In  addition  to  this  general  prohibition,  if  an  individual  dismissal  on  a  disciplinary 
ground occurs while the worker is pregnant or during parental leave, the dismissal 
is still presumed unlawful (Article 63 (2) of the LC). 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Finally,  any  form  of  dismissal  involving  a  worker  who  is  pregnant  or  on  parental 
leave  (e.g.  individual  dismissal  on  a  disciplinary  ground  but  also  objectively 
motivated  dismissals  on  business-related  grounds)  has  to  follow  a  different 
procedure involving the CITE (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment), 
which must approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the LC). If this procedure 
is not followed by the employer, the dismissal is null and void (Article 381 (d) of the 
LC). 

5.2.9  Employer’s obligation to substantiate a dismissal in writing (Article 10(2) of 

Directive 92/85) 

Under the Portuguese Constitution and legislation, all forms of dismissal (including 
disciplinary dismissal, collective dismissal or other objectively motivated dismissal) 
must have substantiated grounds, which need to be communicated to the worker 
in  writing,  and  every  form  of  dismissal  must  respect  a  specific  and  quite  strict 
procedure. 

This general rule also applies if the dismissed worker is pregnant or on maternity 
leave or parental leave.  

The  lack  of  an  adequate  motive  or  failure  to  follow  an  adequate  procedure,  as 
established by law, makes the dismissal null and void and grants the employee the 
right to reinstatement (Articles 351 et seq. and 381 et seq. of the LC).  

5.2.10 Protection against dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave 

Table 2: Protection against dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave 

Specific 
procedure? 
Yes.  

The strict 
procedure of 
Article 63 of 
the LC is 
applicable  

Yes/no  Protected 

Exceptions 

Yes. 

period 
The whole 
pregnancy and 
the whole period 
of maternity 
leave (called 
‘initial parental 
leave’ in 
Portuguese 
legislation). 

None on the grounds of 
maternity, pregnancy or 
paternity.  

Disciplinary dismissal with other 
grounds and dismissal for 
objective entrepreneurial 
reasons can occur, but only by 
following the strict procedure of 
Article 63 of the LC, and under 
the condition that the CITE 
(Commission for Equality in 
Work and Employment) issues a 
legal opinion in favour of the 
dismissal. If the opinion of the 
CITE is against the dismissal, 
the question must be decided by 
the court.  

5.2.11 Employment rights (Article 11(1) of Directive 92/85)  

If  an  employee  is  made  redundant  during  her  maternity  leave,  the  payment  for 
maternity leave as such will cease, since this payment is granted by the public social 
security system to workers with an employment contract. However, this  payment 
will be replaced by unemployment allowance,  which is also granted by the public 
social security system. 

37 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

If  the  dismissal  occurs  outside  the  strict  legal  requirements  indicated  above 
(substantive and formal requirements) it is null and void (Article 381 of the LC). In 
this  case,  the  worker  has  the  right  to  be  reinstated;  but  if  they  decide  not  to  go 
back, they have the right to accrued damage compensation (calculated at double 
the basis of 15 to 45 days per year of the employment contract (Article 63(8) and 
Article 392(1) of the LC). 

5.2.12 Case law on the protection against dismissal and the maintenance of income 

and other employment rights 

There  are  examples  of  case  law  relating  to  the  dismissal  of  pregnant  women,  or 
women or men using maternity, paternity or parental leave, but they are not very 
frequent, at least at the level of the courts of appeal (in Portugal these are the only 
courts that publish their judgments).  

For instance, in 2017, there was a judgment of the Court of Appeal of Lisbon, in a 
case relating to the dismissal of a worker during parental leave (Acórdão do Tribunal 
da  Relação  de  Lisboa  de  13/09/2017  –  Proc.  No. 26175/15.6T8LSB.L1-4)  and  in 
2018  this  case  went  up  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  Justice  (Acórdão  do  Supremo 
Tribunal de Justiça of 6 June 2018). This case will be described below in this report, 
in the context of parental leave.  

5.3  Maternity leave 

5.3.1  Maternity leave in national law (Article 8(1) and (2) of Directive 92/85) 

Maternity  leave  (which  is  called  ‘initial  parental  leave’  by  the  LC)25  is  granted  to 
women and to men and is in fact divided into several types of leave:  

- 

- 

- 

‘initial obligatory parental leave just for the mother’ with a minimum duration 
of 42 days after giving birth (Article 41(1) of the LC, as amended by Law no. 
13/2023 of 3 April);  
‘initial parental leave’ for the remaining time up to 120 days or 150 days after 
childbirth,  according  to  the  choice  of  the  parents,  which  can  be  divided 
between both parents and taken simultaneously (Article 40 of the LC); and 
‘initial parental leave of one of the parents in replacement of the other parent’ 
(e.g.  leave  for  the  father  to  replace  the  mother  who  died  during  the  leave) 
(Article 42 of the LC), which lasts for the remaining part of maternity leave.  

Maternity leave can be extended in several situations, such as premature birth with 
health complications for the child or in the case of  the hospitalisation of the child 
(Article 40(7), (8) and (9) of the LC). 

It is worth mentioning some specific provisions which have been established by law 
in  order  to  promote  the  taking  of  leave  by  the  father  and  the  sharing  of  leave 
between  both  parents:  if  after  the  initial  period  of  maternity  leave  (e.g.  ‘initial 
parental leave’) the other parent takes this leave for 30 days or for 2 periods of 15 
days,  the  total  duration  of  maternity  leave  (120  or  150  days)  is  extended  by  30 
more days (Article 40(3) of the LC); also, if the parents choose to take the longer 
leave of 150 days, the last 30 days can be taken simultaneously by both parents 
(Article 40(2) of the LC, introduced by Law No. 120/2015 of 1 September 2015) or 
a further 30 days per child may be added in case of multiple births  (Article 12(3) 
of  Decree-Law  No. 91/2009  of  9  April  2009,  as  amended  by  Decree-Law 
No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023).  

25   This specific type of leave corresponds to ‘maternity leave’, as regulated by EU law. The Portuguese 
term for this type of leave (‘initial parental leave’) intends to draw attention to the fact that both 
parents can take it, but the phrase can be misinterpreted. 

38 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.3.2  Maintenance  of  income  and  other  employment  rights  (Article 11(2)  of 

Directive 92/85)  

In relation to employment rights, Article 65 of the LC states that all  employment 
rights (except pay rights) are kept during maternity and parental leave, as well as 
in other situations related to pregnancy and maternity, such as the need to change 
from night work to a day-time job, leave for safety reasons or for medical reasons 
due to pregnancy, and  also miscarriage and abortion leave,  or time  off to attend 
antenatal appointments. 

5.3.3  Paid maternity leave (Article 11(3) and (4) of Directive 92/85)  

In Portuguese legislation, all forms of leave related to maternity (maternity leave, 
adoption  leave,  as  well  as  pregnancy-related  leave,  such  as  miscarriage  and 
abortion leave, leave for pregnancy-related sickness and leave related to night work 
and  to  dangerous  work,  when  there  is  no  alternative  day-time  job  available)  are 
paid by the public social security system. 

The exception is time off to attend antenatal examinations and for the purposes of 
breastfeeding, where the period of absence is paid by the employer. 

The social security allowances concerning the forms of leave related to pregnancy, 
abortion and maternity are established by Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, 
as amended by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023, which introduced important 
changes to the amount of social benefits.  

The amount paid varies according to the type of leave and the length of the leave 
chosen by the worker:  

- 

- 

- 

- 

maternity leave (meaning ‘initial parental leave’, as it is called in Portugal), 
when  taken  as  the  120-day  option,  as  well  as  the  leave  due  to  pregnancy 
risks, and also adoption leave, are paid on a basis of 100 % of the average 
salary  of  the  worker  (Decree-Law  No. 91/2009  of  9  April  2009,  Articles  29, 
30(a), 31 and 34); 

maternity leave when taken as the 150-day option is paid on a basis that can 
range from 80 % to 100 % of the average salary of the worker, depending on 
how the parents  share  the leave (Decree-Law  No. 91/2009 of 9 April  2009, 
Articles 30(b)  and  (c),  and  Article 34,  as  amended  by  Decree-Law 
No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023); 

maternity leave when taken as the 180-day option is paid on a basis that can 
range from 80 % to 90 % of the average salary of the worker, depending on 
how the parents  share  the leave (Decree-Law  No. 91/2009 of 9 April  2009, 
Articles 30(d)  and  (e),  as  amended  by  Decree-Law  No. 53/2023  of  5  July 
2023); and 

other  pregnancy-related  leave,  such  as  pregnancy-related  sickness  leave, 
leave in the case of abortion, and leave related to night work and to dangerous 
work,  when  there  is  no  alternative  job  available,  are  paid  on  the  basis  of 
100 % of the salary (Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, Articles 18, 19 
and 35, as amended by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023). 

There is no ceiling on the amount paid.  

39 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Under  the  Portuguese  system  the  right  to  maternity  leave  and  to  other  forms  of 
parental leave is not subject to special conditions for eligibility, including seniority 
in the company. On the contrary, a minimum period of six months of contributions 
to  the  public  social  security  system  is  required  to  have  access  to  the  public 
allowances attached to those types of leave (Article 25 of Decree-Law No. 91/2009 
of 9 April 2009). 

Employers  may  have  to  supplement  the  statutory  maternity  benefits  up  to  the 
normal  remuneration  on  the  basis  of  a  collective  agreement  stipulating  such  an 
obligation or if they have agreed to do so in the employment contract. 

5.3.4  Right  to  return  to  the  same  or  an  equivalent  job  (Article 15  of 

Directive 2006/54) 

Under Article 65(5) of the LC, at the end of maternity leave or of any other form of 
parental leave, the woman has the right to return to her previous activity – as does 
the man when he takes maternity, paternity or parental leave.  

If  any  improvement  in  working  conditions  to  which  the  worker  would  have  been 
entitled  during  their  absence  has  occurred  in  the  meantime,  they  are  entitled  to 
take advantage of it, since they cannot be penalised in relation to any right attached 
to  the  employment  contract  due  to  the  exercise  of  maternity/paternity  rights 
(Article 65(1)  of  the  LC,  and  also  Article 35-A  of  the  LC,  as  amended  by  Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019).  

5.3.5  Case law on maternity leave 

To the author’s knowledge, there is no case law concerning the use of maternity 
leave.  

5.3.6  Table on maternity leave 

Table 3: Maternity leave 

Duration 

Obligatory 
period 

Yes, there is 
an obligatory 
period of 
leave, but 
just for the 
mother (first 
42 days after 
giving birth) 
– Article 41 
(2) LC. 

-  120 or 150 
days, upon 
the choice 
of the 
parents 
(Article 40 
(1) LC);  
-  extended 
length in 
several 
situations, 
(Article 40 
(3 to 9) of 
the LC). 

Possibility 
to share 
maternity 
leave? 

Yes, except 
for the 
obligatory 
period of the 
leave for the 
mother (first 
42 days after 
giving birth) 
– Article 40 
(1) and 
Article 41 
(2) LC. 

Payment or 
allowance 

Yes, a social 
security 
allowance is 
granted on a 
basis of 100 % 
or between 80 
and 90 % of the 
average salary 
of the worker 
respectively for 
the 120-day 
leave and longer 
leaves of 150 or 
180 days 
depending on 
the choice of the 
parents on the 
alternative use 

Right to 
return after 
the end of 
maternity 
leave 
Yes, under 
Article 65(5) of 
the LC, at the 
end of 
maternity leave 
or of other 
form of 
parental leave, 
the woman has 
the right to 
return to her 
previous job – 
as does the 
man when he 
takes 
maternity, 
paternity or 
parental leave. 

40 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

of the leave – if 
the leave is 
shared the 
payment is 
higher (Decree-
Law 
No. 91/2009 of 
9 April 2009, 
Article 30). 

5.4  Paternity leave 

5.4.1  Paternity leave in national law (recital 26 Directive of 2006/54 and Articles 

3(a) and 4 of Directive 2019/1158)  

Portuguese legislation provides for an autonomous paternity leave, which is called 
‘initial parental leave just for the father’ (Article 43 of the LC). Changes have already 
been made a few times to the features of this leave. 

This leave is divided into two periods, the first period is compulsory and the second 
is  non-compulsory.  The  length  of  this  leave  used  to  be  10  days  from  when  the 
mother gives birth, followed by 10 more days during maternity leave, but an extra 
five days of compulsory leave was added by an amendment to the LC in 2015. The 
provisions were then amended by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019 in order 
to increase again the duration of the compulsory part of the leave up to 20 days 
and the non-compulsory part of the leave to 5 days. More recently, Law No. 13/2023 
of 3 April 2023 has fixed the compulsory period of paternity leave at 28 days, to be 
taken as a minimum period of 7 days in the first 42 days following the birth of the 
child  (Article 43  of  the  LC).  After  taking  this  leave,  the  father  is  also  entitled  to 
seven days' non-compulsory leave, consecutive or interpolated, provided that it is 
taken at the same time as the mother's initial parental leave (Article 43(2) of the 
LC).  

In  short,  both  the  total  duration  of  the  leave  and  its  compulsory  period  have 
increased over the years, which is important as a proactive measure to promote the 
exercise of paternity rights. 

Paternity  leave  is  an  individual  right  of  the  father  and  it  is  granted  on  a  non-
transferable basis for the whole duration of the leave. Furthermore, this leave does 
not depend upon the marital status of the parents and is also granted to same-sex 
partners (Article 33-A LC). 

5.4.2  Paid paternity leave (Article 8(1) and (2) of Directive 2019/1158) 

Paternity leave (including the compulsory part and the non-compulsory part of the 
leave) is paid by social security on the basis of 100 % of the average salary of the 
father (Article 15 of Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, as amended by Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019). 

Since  it  started  to  be  paid  by  the  social  security  system,  paternity  leave  is 
increasingly being taken by the fathers, including in the non-compulsory period. In 
this respect, the annual report of the CITE on the evolution of gender equality in 
employment mentioned earlier indicates that, in 2021, 70.8 % of working fathers 
took up the compulsory period of paternity leave and 64.7 % also took advantage 
of the non-compulsory period of the leave.26 

26   CITE Report 2022, pp. 69-70. 

41 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.4.3  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  paternity  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

The worker on paternity leave is granted the same level of protection given in the 
case of maternity leave and parental leave.  

In  this  context,  dismissal  during  such  leave  is  unlawful  and  therefore  forbidden 
(Article 53 of the Portuguese Constitution, and Articles 338 and 63(2) of the LC). In 
addition, if the worker is dismissed on the ground of applying for or using paternity 
leave, the dismissal is null and void and he has the right to reinstatement. However, 
if  the  worker  decides  not  to  go  back,  he  has  the  right  to  accrued  damage 
compensation  (calculated  at  double  the  basis  of  15  to  45  days  per  year  of  the 
employment contract (Article 63(8) and Article 392(1) of the LC). 

In addition to this general prohibition, any disciplinary dismissal that occurs while 
the worker is on paternity leave is presumed unlawful. And all forms of dismissal 
that may occur during the leave (including disciplinary dismissal but also collective 
dismissal  or  other  objectively  motivated  dismissal)    must  follow  a  different 
procedure involving the CITE (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment), 
which has to approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the LC).  

If, in the end, an employee is made redundant during paternity leave, the payment 
for paternity leave as such will cease, since this payment is granted by the public 
social  security  system  to  workers  with  an  employment  contract,  but  it  will  be 
replaced  by  unemployment  allowance,  also  granted  by  the  public  social  security 
system. 

5.4.4  Case law on paternity leave 

The author is not aware of case law in this area. 

5.4.5  Table on paternity leave 

Table 4: Paternity leave 

Who is 
entitled? 

Duration 

Biological 
father of 
the child or 
equivalent 
(Article 43 
(1) LC). 

28 days 
(compulsory 
period), plus 
7 days (non-
compulsory 
period) – 
Article 43 (1) 
and (2) LC. 

Possibility 
to share 
paternity 
leave? 
Paternity 
leave is 
granted on a 
non-
transferable 
basis for the 
whole 
duration. 

Qualifying 
conditions 
for 
allowance 
Six months of 
paid 
contributions 
to the social 
security 
system  
(Article 25 of 
Law 
No. 91/2009, 
of 9 April 
2009). 

Payment or 
allowance 

Paternity leave 
(including the 
compulsory part 
and the non-
compulsory part 
of the leave) is 
paid by social 
security on the 
basis of 100 % of 
the average salary 
of the father 
(Article 15 of 
Decree-Law 
No. 91/2009 of 9 
April 2009, as 
amended by Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 
September 2019). 

42 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.5  Adoption leave 

5.5.1  Adoption leave in national law (recital 27 of Directive 2006/54) 

In  Portugal,  adoption  leave  is  an  autonomous  leave  (and  in  this  sense,  different 
from maternity leave, paternity leave, parental leave or care leave), but it follows 
the pattern of maternity leave (in Portuguese, ‘initial parental leave’) – Article 44 of 
the LC. 

Adoption  leave  is  granted  to  both  parents  on  the  same  conditions  as  those 
established for the ‘initial parental leave’ (meaning for a period of 120 or 150 days 
and paid accordingly), provided the adopted child is younger than 15 and is not the 
son/daughter  of  the  husband,  wife  or  life  partner  of  the  adoptive  parent 
(Article 44(1) and (4)).  

The parents can divide the full period of the leave between them (Article 44 of the 
LC) and, if they choose to take the longer leave of 150 days,  they can also take 
advantage of the right to take the last 30 days simultaneously (Article 40(2) of the 
LC). The leave is also extended in the case of multiple adoptions (Article 44(3)). 

In addition to adoption leave, adoptive parents can enjoy all other rights linked to 
parenthood and work-life balance, except those related to the biological condition 
of parents, as indicated in Article 33-A of the LC, as amended by Law No. 90/2019 
of 4 September 2019. This includes the right to parental leave, time-off for force 
majeure reasons, etc.  

5.5.2  Legal  protection  of 

the 

right 

to  adoption 

leave 

(Article 16  of 

Directive 2006/54) 

Considered as a maternity and paternity-related right, adoption leave is protected 
in the same way as maternity and parental leave. 

Dismissal  during  this  leave  is  unlawful  and  therefore  forbidden  (Article 53  of  the 
Portuguese Constitution, and Articles 338 and 63(2) of the LC). In addition, if the 
worker  is  dismissed  on  the  ground  of  applying  for  or  using  adoption  leave,  the 
dismissal is null and void and they have the right to reinstatement. However, if they 
decide  not  to  go  back,  they  have  the  right  to  accrued  damage  compensation 
(calculated at double the basis of 15 to 45 days per year of the employment contract 
(Article 63(8) and Article 392(1) of the LC). 

In addition to this general prohibition, any disciplinary dismissal that occurs while 
the worker is  on adoption leave is presumed unlawful. And all forms  of dismissal 
that may occur during the leave (including disciplinary dismissal but also collective 
dismissal or other objectively motivated dismissal) must follow a different procedure 
involving the CITE (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment), which has 
to approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the LC).  

If, in the end, an employee is made redundant during adoption leave, the payment 
for adoption leave as such will cease, since this payment is granted by the public 
social security system to workers with an employment contract, although it will be 
replaced  by  unemployment  allowance,  which  is  also  granted  by  the  public  social 
security system. 

5.5.3  Case law on adoption leave 

The author is not aware of case law in this area. 

43 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.6  Parental leave 

5.6.1  Parental 

leave 

in  national 

law  (Article 5  (1),  (2)  and  (4)  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Before  embarking  on  the  topic  of  parental  leave  it  is  important  to  establish  the 
context of such leave in the Portuguese system.  

In national legislation, the forms of child-related leave, apart from maternity leave, 
adoption  leave  and  paternity  leave,  are  parental  leave  and  time-off  to  assist 
children.  

However, the term parental leave has a broad sense (that includes maternity leave) 
and  a  strict  sense.  In  the  strict  sense  (which  corresponds  to  the  EU  concept  of 
parental leave, e.g. leave taken after maternity leave to take care of a child), there 
are several types of leave for childcare purposes:  

- 

- 

- 

the strict parental leave, which in Portuguese is known as ‘additional parental 
leave’  (‘licença  parental  complementar’),  taken  after  maternity  leave 
(Article 51 LC); 

several ‘special leaves of absence for the care of children’ (called ‘licenças para 
assistência a filho’) to take care of small children, disabled children or children 
with  a  long-term  illness,  including  cancer,27  which  can  be  taken  after  strict 
parental leave (Articles 52 and 53 LC, as amended by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 
September 2019); and 

‘grandparent’s leave’ (e.g. the right to a leave of absence from work to assist 
a daughter younger than 16 who has given birth, for a maximum of 30 days 
– Article 50 of the LC). 

Aside from these forms of leave, there is also the right to time-off for force majeure 
reasons, to attend children. As regards children, these time-off situations can last 
up to 30 or 15 days per year, according to the age of the child (less or more than 
12 years old, respectively (Article 49 of the LC). Therefore, despite the fact that this 
situation is formally qualified as time off, in substance it corresponds to a form of 
leave. 

Portuguese legislation regarding parental leave is applicable to both the public and 
the private sector, according to the same terms. As regards private workers, this 
issue  is  dealt  with  in  the  LC  (Articles  51,  52  and  53).  The  same  provisions  are 
directly applicable to public servants, based on a reference to Article 4 of the  Lei 
Geral  do  Trabalho  em  Funções  Públicas  (General  Law  on  Public  Employment), 
approved by Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014, which regulates the employment 
contracts of civil servants. 

The scope of the national legislation in the field of parental leave is wide, since the 
LC applies not only to open-ended employment contracts, but also to employment 
relationships  relating  to  part-time  workers, 
fixed-term  contract  workers, 
teleworkers, or persons with an employment relationship with a temporary agency. 

As to the workers entitled to the leave, Article 33-A(1) of the LC, introduced by Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019, made it clear that this leave – like other forms 
of  maternity  and  paternity-related  leave  and  other  related  protective  measures 

27   The specific mention of cancer, as a separate ground for this leave, was added by Law No. 90/2019 

of 4 September 2019. 

44 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

established  by  the  Labour  Code  –  is  applicable  to  persons  who  have  ‘parenthood 
rights’, regardless of the biological condition of the father and/or mother. 

The right to parental leave is an individual right of each parent and the law does 
not allow for the transfer of the right from one parent to the other (Article 51(2) of 
the LC). This being the case, the right to retain a minimum period of the leave for 
the individual use of one of the parents (as prescribed in Article 5(2) of the Work-
Life Balance (WLB) Directive) does not apply in national law. 

The total duration of parental leave in Portuguese legislation, which is the same in 
the public and the private sector, as indicated above, depends on whether the leave 
is  taken  on  a  full-time  basis  or  on  a  part-time  basis  and  also  on  whether  one  is 
considering  the  strict  ‘additional  parental  leave’  (e.g.  the  leave  that  follows 
maternity leave and can be taken until the child is six years old – Article 51 of the 
LC) or the extended concept of parental leave (thus including some of the period of 
the ‘special leave for the  care  of children’ taken after ‘parental leave in the strict 
sense’ (Articles 40(2), 51(1) and 52 LC)).  

When taking into account the strict concept of parental leave, the total duration of 
the leave is three months (on a full-time basis) or 12 months (on a part-time basis), 
or a combination of the two (Article 51(1) LC). However, this period can be followed 
by  the  so-called  ‘special  leave  for  the  care  of  children’,  which  can  last  up  to  two 
years,  or  three  years  for  the  third  child  and  four  years  for  disabled  children  or 
children with a long-term illness (Articles 52 and 53 LC), in successive periods of 
six months.  

So,  when  considering  these  two  types  of  leave  together,  it  is  fair  to  say  that 
Portuguese legislation complies with Article 5(1) of Directive 2019/1158. 

5.6.2  Period of notice (Article 5(3) of Directive 2019/1158) 

The right to parental leave depends on a notice period of 30 days prior to the leave 
(Article 51(5) LC, as regards parental leave in the strict sense, and Article 52(6), as 
regards ‘special leave for the care of children’). The request must be made in writing 
and must indicate the form and the length of the leave required. There is no length 
of service requirement in order to benefit from parental leave or special leave, but 
only in order to benefit from the social security allowance attached to it. 

5.6.3  Postponement of parental leave (Article 5(5) of Directive 2019/1158) 

Both additional parental leave and special leave for care of children are rights of the 
worker which prevail over the needs of the employer, so the leave cannot be refused 
by the employer. Also, to ensure that the leave is taken for the right purpose, the 
law forbids the worker  to perform another professional activity incompatible with 
care while on leave (Article 51(4) LC). 

The  only  situation  where  the  granting  of  parental  leave  may  be  postponed  for 
reasons related to the operation of the organisation is when both parents work for 
the  same  employer  and  they  both  wish  to  take  the  leave  simultaneously.  In  this 
case, the employer can postpone the leave of one of the parents on the ground of 
imperative operational reasons of the business until the end of the leave of the other 
parent (Article 51(3) LC).  

45 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

5.6.4  Flexible take-up of parental leave (Article 5(6) of Directive 2019/1158) 

Parental leave in the strict sense (meaning in Portuguese ‘additional parental leave’ 
– Article 51 LC) can be taken on a full-time or a part-time basis, or in a combined 
arrangement.  When  taken  on  a  part-time  basis,  parental  leave  can  last  up  to  12 
months; when taken on a full-time basis, it can last up to three months.  

The most recent amendment of this legal provision, introduced by Law No. 13/2023 
of 3 April 2023, allows collective agreements to establish a different form of parental 
leave,  to  be  taken  by  both  parents  in  alternate  periods  of  half-day  working  for  a 
maximum  period  of  three  months  each  which  means  six  months  altogether 
(Article 51 (1) (e) of the LC)).  

‘Special leave for the care of children’ (or extended parental leave) can be taken on 
a full-time basis (Articles 52 and 53). 

Parental  leave  can  be  taken  in  a  piecemeal  way,  in  a  maximum  of  three  periods 
(Article 51(2) of the LC). 

5.6.5  Special rules for adoptive parents, parents with a disability and parents of 
(Article 5(8) 

long-term 

illness 

children  with  a  disability  or  a 
Directive 2019/1158) 

The age limit of the child for the purposes of taking parental leave in the strict sense 
is six years old (Article 51(1) of the LC). However, this age limit does not apply in 
the case of disabled children or children with a long-term illness, including cancer 
(Article 53(1) of the LC, as amended by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019). 

Also, the parents of these children are entitled to several ‘special leaves of absence 
for  the  care  of  children’  (called  ‘licenças  para  assistência  a  filho’)  to  take  care  of 
small  children,  disabled  children  or  children  with  a  long-term  illness,  including 
cancer,  which  can  be  taken  after  strict  parental  leave  (Articles 52  and  53  LC,  as 
amended by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019). 

Adoptive  parents  can  take  parental  leave  under  exactly  the  same  conditions  as 
biological parents. 

5.6.6  Paid parental leave (Article 8(1) and (3) of Directive 2019/1158) 

Under the Portuguese system, parental leave is not remunerated by the employer. 
However, some collective agreements establish that the employer must cover the 
difference between the amount of the social security allowance attached to parental 
leave and the amount of the salary that the worker would be entitled to if they were 
not on leave. 

The public social security system provides for  an allowance during  the  first three 
months of parental leave (Article 16 of Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, as 
amended by Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023). This allowance is granted in 
all sectors, provided the worker has a minimum of six months of contributions to 
the  social  security  system  (Article 25  of  this  Law).  The  amount  of  the  allowance 
varies from 20 % to 40 % of the average salary of the worker, depending upon the 
specific model of the leave (Article 33 of this Law). 

Before the changes introduced in Decree-Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009 and by 
Decree-Law No. 53/2023 of 5 July 2023, the Portuguese legislation did not comply 
with EU Law in this respect because the allowance was only granted for a period of 
three  months  and  only  when  the  leave  was  taken  immediately  after  the  end  of 

46 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

maternity leave by the other parent (Article 16 of Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009). 
Since  such  conditions  are  not  prescribed  in  the  Directive,  the  Portuguese  legal 
system was not in full compliance with the Directive as regards the payment of the 
leave. The present rule has solved only one of these problems by eliminating the 
requirement to take the leave immediately after maternity leave. However, the fact 
that  only  the  first  three  months  are  paid  is  still  not  in  compliance  with 
Directive 2019/1158, since the other special leaves that can follow parental leave 
in the strict sense do not include a right to compensation except in one particular 
situation. Moreover, it might be questioned whether a parental leave allowance of 
20%-40%  of  the  average  salary  of  the  worker  fulfils  trh  requireemtns  of  the 
Directive to facilitate both parents taking parental leave. 

5.6.7  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  parental  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Considered as a paternity-related right, parental leave is protected by law. 

At the end of the leave the worker has the right to return to their previous job or to 
an equivalent post and to keep all the rights attached to that job, including for the 
purposes of length of service (Article 65 of the LC).  

According  to  the  same  provision,  parental  leave  is  suspended  based  on  illness  of 
the worker, if she/he informs the employer and submits a medical certificate, and 
shall continue immediately after the termination of that impediment; on the other 
hand, parental leave cannot be suspended for the convenience of the employer and 
does not prejudice the  right of the worker to have access to periodic information 
issued by the employer to all employees. 

Dismissal  during  this  leave  is  unlawful  and  therefore  forbidden  (Article 53  of  the 
Portuguese Constitution, and Articles 338 and 63(2) of the LC). In addition, if the 
worker  is  dismissed  on  the  ground  of  applying  for  or  using  parental  leave,  the 
dismissal is null and void and they have the right to reinstatement. However, if they 
decide  not  to  go  back,  they  have  the  right  to  accrued  damage  compensation 
(calculated at double the basis of 15 to 45 days per year of the employment contract 
(Article 63(8) and Article 392(1) of the LC). 

In addition to this general prohibition, any disciplinary dismissal that occurs while 
the  worker  is  on  parental  leave  is  presumed  unlawful.  And  all  forms  of  dismissal 
that may occur during the leave (including disciplinary dismissal but also collective 
dismissal  or  other  objectively  motivated  dismissal),  must  follow  a  different 
procedure involving the CITE (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment), 
which has to approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the LC).  

If, in the end, an employee is made redundant during parental leave, the payment 
for adoption leave as such will cease, since this payment is granted by the public 
social security system to workers with an employment contract, although it will be 
replaced  by  unemployment  allowance,  which  is  also  granted  by  the  public  social 
security system. 

5.6.8  Case law on parental leave 

There are not many judicial actions regarding parental leave.  

For instance, in 2017, there was a judgment of the Court of Appeal of Lisbon, in a 
case relating to the dismissal of a worker during parental leave (Acórdão do Tribunal 
da Relação de  Lisboa de 13/09/2017 – Proc.  No. 26175/15.6T8LSB.L1-4). In this 
case, the court had no doubt about considering the dismissal null and void, because 

47 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

when on parental leave the worker cannot be dismissed without the previous and 
positive  advice  of  the  CITE  and  the  employer  did  not  ask  for  the  CITE’s  advice. 
However, in 2018, this case went up to the Supreme Court of Justice (Acórdão do 
Supremo Tribunal de Justiça of 6/06/2018 – Proc. No. 26175/15.6T8LSB.L1-4) and 
this decision was reversed, because the court considered that, since the dismissal 
procedure  started  when  the  worker  was  already  back  from  parental  leave,  the 
protective measures of the Labour Code for those situations (including the need to 
ask the advice of the CITE) were no longer applicable. 

Qualifying 
conditions 
for payment 
or 
allowance? 
The allowance 
is provided 
only in the 
first 3 months 
(Article 16 of 
Law 
No. 91/2009 
of 9 April 
2009).  

This allowance 
is granted in 
all sectors, 
provided the 
worker has a 
minimum of 
six months of 
contributions 
to the social 
security 
system 
(Article 25 of  
Law 
No. 91/2009 
of 9 April 
2009). 

5.6.9  Table on parental leave 

Table 5: Parental leave 

Duration and 
period 

Possibility to 
share 
parental 
leave? 

Flexibility (e.g. 
full-time, part-
time, 
piecemeal? 

Payment or 
allowance? 

No, the right to 
parental leave 
is an individual 
right of each 
parent and the 
law does not 
allow for the 
transfer of the 
right from one 
parent to the 
other 
(Article 51(2) 
of the LC). 

When taken on 
a part-time 
basis, parental 
leave can be 
up to 12 
months; when 
taken on a full-
time basis, it 
can be up to 
three months. 
Collective 
agreements 
can establish 
this leave with 
a part-time to 
be divided 
between both 
parents with an 
overall 
duration of 6 
months 
(Article 51 LC). 

Yes, the public 
social security 
system 
provides for 
an allowance 
in the first 
three months 
of parental 
leave.  

The amount of 
the allowance 
ranges from 
20 % to 40 % 
of the average 
salary of the 
worker, 
according to 
the scheme 
chosen by the 
parents 
regarding the 
use of the 
leave 
(Article 33 of 
this Law). 

Yes, parental 
leave in the strict 
sense (meaning 
in Portuguese 
‘additional 
parental leave’ – 
Article 51 LC) can 
be taken on a 
full-time or a 
part-time basis, 
or in a combined 
arrangement. 
When taken on a 
part-time basis, 
parental leave 
can be up to 12 
months; when 
taken on a full-
time basis, it can 
be up to three 
months; specific 
part-time 
arrangements to 
take this leave 
can be 
established by 
collective 
agreements. 

‘Special leave for 
the care of 
children’ (or 
extended 
parental leave) 
can be taken on a 
full-time basis 
(Articles 52 and 
53). 

48 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Parental leave 
can be taken in a 
piecemeal way, in 
a maximum of 
three periods 
(Article 51(2) of 
the LC). 

5.7  Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

5.7.1  Prohibition of surrogacy 

Traditionally, surrogacy was not permitted in Portugal, so if the situation arose, all 
the  rights  attached  to  pregnancy  and  maternity,  including  the  leave,  would  be 
recognised  for  the  woman  who  gives  birth,  since  for  all  purposes,  she  would  be 
considered the mother of the child. The LC provisions in this field are also based on 
the traditional recognition of the woman who gives birth as the mother of the child. 

However, Law No. 25/2016 of 22 August 2016 changed Law No. 32/2006 of 26 July 
2006 to regulate medically assisted pregnancy. This legislation allows for surrogacy 
under  very  strict  conditions,  which  are  now  indicated  in  Article 8  of  Law 
No. 32/2006.  

If these conditions are met, the woman carrying the child renounces all rights and 
duties attached to maternity (Article 8(1)) and the child will be considered for all 
purposes  as  the  son/daughter  of  the  beneficiaries  of  the  surrogacy  procedure 
(Article 8(7)).  

Also,  in  this  respect,  Article 33-A  of  the  LC,  introduced  by  Law  No. 90/2019  of  4 
September 2019, has made it clear that parenthood rights are to be recognised for 
the  persons  ‘entitled  with  parenthood  rights’,  and  this  includes  non-biological 
parents. 

5.7.2  Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

The absence of other references to parental rights in Law No. 32/2006 of 26 July 
2006,  as  amended  by  Law  No. 25/2016  of  22  August  2016,  made  it  difficult  to 
assess the consequences of surrogacy not only in relation to parental leave but also 
in  relation  to  the  protection  of  the  surrogate  mother  during  pregnancy  and 
immediately after giving birth.  

These issues were later dealt with by a complementary act to this law (implementing 
Decree  No. 6/2017  of  31  July  2017),  in  which  Article 6  establishes  the  following: 
the woman carrying the child is granted the right to leave after giving birth with the 
same duration of abortion leave (i.e. between 14 and 30 days leave, upon medical 
determination,  as  indicated  in  Article 37(1)  of  the  LC);  she  also  has  the  right  to 
short leaves  of absence justified by pregnancy; the legal parents of the child are 
entitled to all maternity and paternity rights attached. 

In the view of the author, this legislation still needs to be complemented by the LC, 
as  regards  the  provisions  relating  to  the  protection  of  female  workers  who  are 
pregnant,  since  a  literal  interpretation  of  Article 6  of  Implementing  Decree 
No. 6/2017 of 31 July 2017 does not grant the necessary protection to the surrogate 
mother  during  pregnancy  and  a  lower  protection  of  these  women  would  be 
unacceptable. It would also constitute a violation of gender equality law, taking into 
consideration that provisions related to pregnancy and maternity are part of gender 
equality regulations.  

49 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

In  this  sense,  the  author  considers  that  maternity  rights  related  to  pregnancy 
(including  pregnancy  leave,  health  and  safety  protection  measures  during 
pregnancy,  and  protection  against  dismissal),  established  by  the  LC,  must  be 
granted to the woman who gives birth, alongside the leave relating to abortion, and 
the leave after giving birth, granted by Article 6 of Implementing Decree No. 6/2017 
of 31 July 2017. In this sense, the surrogate mother’s renunciation of all rights and 
duties attached to maternity (as indicated in Article 8(1) of Law No. 32/2006 of 26 
July  2006,  as  amended  by  Law  No. 25/2016  of  22  August  2016)  is  of  no 
consequence as regards the maternity rights indicated immediately above.  

It is also to be noted that, after coming into force, Law No. 25/2016 of 22 August 
2016 was brought before the Constitutional Court by some members of Parliament. 
The  Constitutional  Court,  in  its  judgment  No. 225/2018  (Acórdão  do  Tribunal 
Constitucional  No. 225/2018,  of  7  May  2018),28  considered  that  some  of  the 
provisions of Law No. 32/2006 of 26 July 2006, as amended by Law No. 25/2016 of 
22 August 2016, were against the Portuguese Constitution, because they offended 
the  principle  of  human  dignity  in  relation  to  the  child  and  also  in  relation  to  the 
surrogate mother.  

Article 8  of  this  Act is  among  the  provisions  judged  unconstitutional,  namely  as 
regards  the  prohibition  imposed  upon  the  surrogate  mother  to  withdraw  her 
declaration renouncing all rights and duties attached to maternity after the signing 
of  the  surrogate  pregnancy  contract.  The  Court  considered  that  the  surrogate 
mother can change her mind and decide to keep the child until giving birth, since 
another solution would be contrary to human dignity.  

Law  No. 32/2006  of  26  July  2006,  was  amended  by  Law  No. 90/2021  of  16 
December  2021  (which  entered  into  force  on  1  January  2022).  This  piece  of 
legislation  introduced  several  rules  regarding  surrogacy  contracts,  which  are 
intended to admit this  contract in more strict  situations and to  keep it under the 
control  of  a  public  agency,  and  extends  the  protection  granted  to  the  surrogate 
mother  as  regards  information  rights,  counselling  and  medical  assistance 
(Article 13-A). However, the major change is the formal recognition of the right of 
the surrogate mother to revoke her decision and keep the child, provided that she 
does so before the official registration of the child, which must be done in the days 
following birth (Article 8(10)). This amendment is in line with the judgment of the 
Constitutional Court described above. 

Naturally,  if  the  surrogate  mother  decides  to  keep  the  child,  all  maternity  rights 
(including the right to maternity and parental leave) have to be granted to her.  

5.7.3  Case law on child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

The author is not aware of case law regarding surrogacy leave. 

5.8  Carers’ leave 

5.8.1  Carers’  leave  in  national  law  (Articles  3(1)(c),  (d)  and  (e)  and  6  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Law No. 13/2023 of 3 April 2023 has added a new section to the LC, dedicated to 
the rights of workers with care responsibilities within the family aside from parenting 
(Articles  101-A  to  101-G).  These  rules  transpose  Directive 2019/1158  in  this 
respect, and in one sense they go beyond the requirements of the Directive. 

28   Published in the Official Journal on 07/05/2018 (www.dre.pt). 

50 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

In short these rights are the following:  

- 

- 
- 
- 
- 
- 

- 

right to a care leave of five working days per year for the purpose of assisting 
a severely dependent person (Article 101-B LC);  
right to work part-time (Article 101-C LC);  
right to flexible working time arrangements (Article 101-D LC);  
right to accrued protection in relation to dismissal (Article 101-F LC);  
right to refuse extra work (Article 101-G LC);  
right to time-off for 15 days per year for force majeure reasons related to the 
dependent person (Article 252(2) LC); and 
right  to  work  remotely,  provided  the  activity  performed  allows  for  remote 
work, and for a maximum period of four years (Article 166-A (5)).29 

Specifically  as  regards  the  ‘carer’s  leave’,  Article 101-B  LC  is  fully  in  line  with 
Article 6 of Directive 2019/1158. And the fact that this leave is accompanied by the 
time-off measure of Article 252 of the LC (described below) allows for the conclusion 
that the Portuguese legal system goes beyond the requirements of the Directive.  

However,  a  major  problem  arises  from  the  notion  of  worker  with  care 
responsibilities, which  is established  at national level, because this notion is very 
strict.  

In fact, under Article 101-A LC, all rights that are now granted to the worker with 
care  responsibilities  depend  upon  the  fact  that  they  already  formally  qualify  as  a 
‘secondary  informal  carer’  under  the  Legal  Statute  of  Informal  Carers  (Law 
No. 100/2019 of 6 September 2019 and Decree No. 1/2022 of 10 January 2022). 
However,  the  qualification  of  such  carers  as  established  by  this  Legal  Statute  is 
extremely difficult, as it depends upon very strict conditions.  

As a result, it is possible to anticipate that most workers with care responsibilities 
will not be able to take the care leave established in Article 101-B, because they do 
not formally qualify as ‘secondary informal carers’ under the applicable legal statute.  

So, in the author’s view, the transposition into national legislation of the care leave 
as well as the other rights related to carers does not fully comply with the Directive, 
mainly  due  to  the  fact  that  the  notion  of  ‘worker  with  care  responsibilities’  at 
national  level  is  much  more  strict  than  the  equivalent  notion  that  comes  out  of 
Article 3/1(d), Article 6 and Recital 27 of the Directive.  

5.8.2  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  carers’  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

The workers who take carers’ leave are protected in the same way as other workers 
who take parental leave or maternity leave by Article 65 of the LC. Protection from 
dismissal is  expressly indicated in  Article 101-F LC. Dismissal during  this leave is 
unlawful  and  therefore  forbidden  (Article 53  of  the  Portuguese  Constitution  and 
Articles  338  and  63(2)  of  the  LC).  In  addition,  if  the  worker  is  dismissed  on  the 
ground of applying for or using carers’ leave, the dismissal is null and void and they 
have the right to reinstatement. However, if they decide not to go back, they have 
the right to accrued damage compensation (calculated at double the basis of 15 to 
45 days per year of the employment contract (Article 63(8) and Article 392(1) of 
the LC). 

29   This last provision was introduced in the LC by Law No. 83/2021 of 6 December 2021. 

51 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

In addition to this general prohibition, any disciplinary dismissal that occurs while 
the worker is on care leave is presumed unlawful. And all forms of dismissal that 
may  occur  during  the  leave  (including  disciplinary  dismissal  but  also  collective 
dismissal  or  other  objectively  motivated  dismissal),  must  follow  a  different 
procedure involving the CITE (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment), 
which has to approve the dismissal in advance (Article 63 of the LC).  

5.8.3  Case law on carers’ leave 

The author is not aware of any case law in this area. 

5.9  Time off for force majeure 

5.9.1  Time off for force majeure (Article 7 of Directive 2019/1158) 

The LC establishes several time-off situations for force majeure reasons that may 
last for different periods of time and may also be justified for the urgent need to 
take care of a dependent person within the family who may or may not be a young 
children. These situations are the following:  

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

time off from work on grounds of force majeure for urgent family reasons in 
the case of sickness or accident of the child, for a maximum of 30 days per 
year, or a maximum of 15 days per year to take care of a child under 12 or 
over 12, respectively, and, regardless of age, for a disabled or chronically ill 
child. These time limits can be exceeded in the case of hospitalisation of the 
child and also in the case of a second (or further) child (Article 49 LC); 

time off from work on grounds of force majeure for urgent family reasons, to 
assist  the  spouse  or  partner  or  other  dependant,  in  cases  of  sickness  or 
accident for a maximum period of 15 days per year, or 30 days in the case of 
disability or chronic illness (Article 249(2)I and Article 252 of the LC); 

time off to assist a grandchild, son/daughter of a child aged under 16 years 
old, who still lives with the family, and who gives birth to a child, for the 30 
days following the birth (Article 50(1) of the LC); 

time off to attend a medical consultation, linked to pregnancy (Article 46 of 
the  LC)  or  medical  examinations  related  to  medically  assisted  procreation 
(Article 46-A  of  the  LC,  as  amended  by  Law  No. 90/2019  of  4  September 
2019); 

time off, including for the father (to be), in case of abortion or miscarriage of 
up to three days (Article 38-A LC, added by Law No. 13/2023, of 3 April 2023);  

time  off  in  case  of  death  of  a  relative  (the  duration  depending  upon  the 
situation) (Article 249 (1)(b) and Article 251 LC);  

time off  for the purposes  of breastfeeding for  two periods  of  one hour each 
per day (Article 47  of the  LC); this right is also granted to the father if the 
baby is bottle-fed; 

time off to travel from one of the Portuguese islands to another island for the 
purpose  of  giving  birth,  for  an  adequate  period  (Article 35(1)(f),  introduced 
by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019);  

52 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

- 

- 

time off to travel from one of the Portuguese islands to another island for the 
purpose of accompanying a pregnant woman in childbirth (Article 249(1)(f) of 
the LC, introduced by Law No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019); 

time off to attend school meetings for a child for a maximum period of three 
hours in each school term (Article 249(1)(g) of the LC, as amended by Law 
No. 90/2019 of 4 September 2019); and 

time off to attend to a grandchild in urgent situations, when the father or the 
mother of the child is under 16 years old and still lives with  their mother or 
father (Article 50(3) of the LC). 

With the exception of time-off related to the death of a relative or to abortion and 
the  need  to  assist  a  grandchild,  the  right  to  time  off  is  conditional  on  the 
requirement  that  the  absence  of  the  worker  is  inevitable,  in  the  sense  that  they 
cannot  be  replaced  in  caring  for  the  child  or  the  family  member  of  the  family  in 
need. Given this requirement of force majeure reasons, the time-off is therefore not 
granted on an automatic basis. 

Only as regards time off for reasons related to the death of a relative or to abortion, 
to attend a medical consultation linked to pregnancy or fertility and for the purpose 
of breastfeeding, is the time-off period paid in full by the  employer. In the other 
situations either the absence of the worker is not paid or it involves a right to social 
security allowance that varies according to the specific situation.  

5.9.2  Legal protection of the right to time-off for force majeure (Articles 10 and 

11 of Directive 2019/1158) 

The  workers  who  take  time-off  for  reasons  related  to  pregnancy,  maternity, 
paternity or assistance to other members of the family are protected in the same 
way as other workers who take parental leave or maternity leave, by Article 65 of 
the LC. 

5.9.3  Case law on time off for force majeure 

There is no case law in this area. 

5.10 Flexible working time arrangements (FWAs) 

5.10.1 Right to FWAs (Article 3(1)(d) and (f) and 9 of Directive 2019/1158) 

Under  the  Portuguese  legislation,  when  returning  from  parental  leave  or  from 
maternity leave, workers can request several changes to their working hours and/or 
patterns for the purpose of reconciling work and family life: reduced working time; 
more flexible working time arrangements; and telework. 

As regards reduced working time, the following measures are established in the LC: 

- 

- 

working mothers who are breastfeeding (and also fathers, if the baby is bottle-
fed) have the right to refuse night work, overtime work and flexible working-
time arrangements instated by the company on the ground of entrepreneurial 
reasons, while breastfeeding or until the child is one year old (Articles 58, 59 
and 60 LC); 

a  parent  of  a  disabled  child  or  a  child  under  one  year  old  with  a  long-term 
illness has the right to a reduction of working time of five hours per week to 
take care of the child (Article 54 LC); and 

53 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

a  parent  with  a  child  under  12  years  old  (or  in  the  case  of  a  disabled  or 
chronically  ill  child,  without  age  limit)  can  work  part  time,  for  a  maximum 
period  of  2,  3  or  4  years  (depending  upon  the  number  of  children  and  the 
disability situation) (Article 55 LC). 

With respect to the adjustment of working patterns, for a better accommodation of 
work with family responsibilities, the Portuguese Labour Code offers the following 
possibilities: 

- 

- 

a  worker  with  family  responsibilities  has  the  right  to  change  to  a  part-time 
job, for two years (three years for a third child and four years for a disabled 
child  or  a  child  with  a  long-term  illness),  provided  the  child  is  under  12  or 
independently of that age limit for a disabled child or child with a long-term 
illness (Article 55 LC); and 

a worker with a child under 12 (or independently of that age limit for disabled 
children or children with a long-term illness) has the right to perform the job 
under flexible working-time arrangements (Article 56 LC). 

In addition to these schemes, some limitations to the application of flexible working-
time arrangements on the grounds of entrepreneurial reasons (such as adaptable 
working  time  and  banking  of  hours  established  in  collective  agreement  or  by 
company regulation), which may have a negative impact on reconciliation of family 
and  working  life,  are  now  imposed  by  the  LC  (in  the  changes  introduced  by  Law 
No. 120/2015  of  1  September  2015):  since  then,  these  flexible  working-time 
arrangements  determined  by  collective  agreements  or  by  company  regulations 
cannot be imposed on workers with children under three without the specific and 
written consent of the  working parent (Articles 206(4)(b) and 208-B(3)(b) of the 
LC). 

Finally, as regards the right to work from home or remotely, the LC was changed 
by Law No. 120/2015 of 1 September 2015, in order to introduce the legal right to 
telework for work-life balance purposes, as a specific right inscribed in the section 
of the LC that deals with telework (Article 166(3)). However, as a consequence of 
the COVID-19 pandemic, this section of the LC was subjected to minor changes in 
2020  and  then  to  major  changes  introduced  by  Law  No. 83/2021  of  6  December 
2021 (entered into force on 1 January 2022). These changes are of a general nature, 
but  also  deal  with  the  right  to  telework  for  the  purpose  of  taking  care  of  young 
children and for other reconciliation purposes. The issue of the right to telework for 
reconciliation purposes is now dealt with in Article 166-A of the LC, as amended by 
Law No. 83/2021 of 6 December 2021, in the following way: 

- 

- 

A  worker  with  a  child  up  to  three  years  old  has  the  right  to  telework  if  the 
professional activity performed is compatible with this form of work and the 
employer  can  provide  the  necessary  means  to  make  that  change  possible 
(Article 166-A(2)  –  this  provision  corresponds  to  the  system  that  had  been 
established by Law No. 120/2015 of 1 September 2015, in Article 166(3) of 
the LC. 

This right to change to telework can, however, be extended until the child is 
eight years old in the situations indicated in Article 166-A(3) of the LC – e.g. 
in the case of single parents or if only one parent has a professional activity 
compatible  with  telework;  or,  if  both  parents  work  and  their  activities  are 
compatible with telework, provided they share the right to telework between 
them in successive and equal periods that can last up to 12 months each. 

54 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

A new right to telework for a maximum period of four years for the purpose 
of taking care of other dependants with a serious health condition or disability 
within the family is now recognised for workers who are qualified as ‘secondary 
informal  carers’  under  the  specific  domestic  legislation  on  informal  care 
(‘Estatuto  do  Cuidador  Informal’),  approved  by  Law  No. 100/2019  of  6 
September 2019 (Article 166-A(5) of the LC, as amended by Law No. 83/2021 
of 6 December 2021).  

It is important to note that in 2020 and 2021 and in the context of the COVID-19 
pandemic,  special  legislation  was  approved  allowing  for  a  general  right  to  work 
remotely  from  home  in  all  situations  where  working  from  home  was  possible 
(Decree-Law No. 10-A/2020 of 13 March 2020, Article 29). This right was granted 
both to the employer and to the employee provided that the technical conditions for 
remote work were met, so the agreement of the parties was no longer needed.  

Despite the provisional  nature  of this measure  (it lasted only for the peak of the 
pandemic situation and was justified for health reasons and not linked to the right 
to  telework  for  work-life  balance  purposes  described  above,  which  was  already 
granted  by  the  LC),  the  practical  result  of  this  legislation  was  that  working  from 
home or remotely has become very common and widely accepted, unlike before. In 
practice,  this  development  contributed  to  the  spread  of  such  work,  for  work-life 
balance purposes, too, after the end of the peak of the crisis. Such work now comes 
under the umbrella of the provisions of the LC regarding the right to telework for 
reconciliation purposes, introduced by Law No. 83/2021 of 6 December 2021, but 
remains  outside  the  scope  of  the  right  to  telework  and  is  simply  based  on  the 
agreement of the parties.  

5.10.2 Duration of FWAs (recital 35 and Article 9(1) and (3) of Directive 2019/1158)  

The duration of FWAs varies according to each measure, as already indicated:  

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

working mothers who are breastfeeding (and also fathers, if the baby is bottle-
fed) have the right to refuse night work, overtime work and flexible working-
time arrangements instated by the company on the ground of entrepreneurial 
reasons, while breastfeeding or until the child is one year old (Articles 58, 59 
and 60 LC); 

a  parent  of  a  disabled  child  or  a  child  under  one  year  old  with  a  long-term 
illness has the right to a reduction of working time of five hours per week to 
take care of the child (Article 54 LC); 

a  parent  with  a  child  under  12  years  old  (or  in  the  case  of  a  disabled  or 
chronically  ill  child,  without  age  limit)  can  work  part  time,  for  a  maximum 
period  of  2,  3  or  4  years  (depending  upon  the  number  of  children  and  the 
disability situation) (Article 55 LC); 

a  worker  with  family  responsibilities  has  the  right  to  change  to  a  part-time 
job, for two years (three years for a third child and four years for a disabled 
child  or  a  child  with  a  long-term  illness),  provided  the  child  is  under  12  or 
independently of that age limit for a disabled child or child with a long-term 
illness (Article 55 LC); 

a worker with a child under 12 (or independently of that age limit for disabled 
children or children with a long-term illness) has the right to perform the job 
under flexible working-time arrangements (Article 56 LC); 

55 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

- 

the  right  to  perform  the  job  under  flexible  working-time  arrangements  is 
available for workers until the child reaches the age limits; in cases of caring 
for disabled children or children with a long-term illness the age limit does not 
apply (Article 56 LC); 

telework to assist a child can last until the child is three years old (Article 166-
A(2) of the LC), but it can, however, be extended until the child is eight years 
old in the situations indicated in Article 166-A(3) of the LC – e.g. in the case 
of single parents or if only one parent has a professional activity compatible 
with telework; or, if both parents work and their activities are compatible with 
telework,  provided  they  share  the  right  to  telework  between  them  in 
successive and equal periods that can last up to 12 months each; and 

- 

telework for carers has a maximum period of four years (Article 166-A(5) of 
the LC, as amended by Law No. 83/2021 of 6 December 2021).  

5.10.3 Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  FWAs  (Articles  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Workers  benefiting  from  paternity  leave,  parental  leave  and  time-off  situations 
related to family and caring have the right to return to their jobs or to equivalent 
jobs  with  conditions  that  are  not  less  favourable  and  to  benefit  from  any 
improvement in working conditions (Article 51(1) and (5) LC).  

5.10.4 Case law on FWAs and legal protection of the right to FWAs 

There  have  not  been  many  decisions  of  the  appeal  courts  in  relation  to  flexible 
working-time  arrangements.  Nonetheless,  a  recent  judgment  of  the  Portuguese 
Supreme  Court  (Supremo  Tribunal  de  Justiça)  is  worth  mentioning.  In  this 
judgment,  from  12  October  2022,30  the  Court  decided  that  the  notion  of  flexible 
working-time  arrangements  in  Article 56  of  the  LC  did  not  include  the  periods  of 
weekly rest, so it was admissible for a young working mother who was employed in 
a flexible working-time scheme established for entrepreneurial reasons to make use 
of that provision to get back to a working time arrangement that would allow her 
the  weekly  rest  periods  on  Saturdays  and  Sundays,  since  only  the  weekends 
coincide  with  the  closure  of  the  child’s  school.  This  judgment  is  very  interesting 
because it allows for a request to change to a fixed working-time arrangement for 
the purposes of reconciling family and working life. 

5.11 Evaluation of implementation 

In Portugal, legislation on flexible working-time arrangements is mostly adopted for 
entrepreneurial reasons (this is the case for adaptable working-time arrangements 
and banking of hours). In this context, these arrangements may have a negative 
impact on the reconciliation of family and working life, instead of facilitating it. This 
is  why  the  law  tends  to  impose  more  limitations  on  these  schemes  in  their 
application to workers with young children, as explained above (Articles 206(4)(b) 
and 208-B(3)(b) of the LC).  

In  view  of  the  negative  repercussions  of  flexible  working-time  arrangements 
adopted for entrepreneurial reasons, some  changes were introduced in the LC by 
Law  No. 120/2015  of  1  September  2015.  This  was  intended  to  impose  some 
limitations  on  these  flexible  working-time  arrangements  on  the  ground  of 
entrepreneurial  reasons  (such  as  adaptable  working  time  and  ‘banking  of  hours’, 
which is a system by which the employer and  the employee, having agreed on a 

30   See: www.dgsi.pt (Supremo Tribunal de Justiça). 

56 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

certain total number of working hours for a certain period of time, keep a register 
of the number of hours worked every day and may be either in credit or in debt to 
each other, until the agreed time limits are reached). Due to these changes to the 
LC, flexible working-time arrangements determined by collective agreements, or by 
the internal regulation of the company, can no longer be imposed on workers with 
children under three without the specific and written consent of the working parent 
(Articles 206 No. 4(b) and 208-B No. 3(b) of the LC).  

In  the  view  of  the  author,  these  provisions  may  play  an  important  role  in  the 
promotion of reconciliation between family and professional life. 

5.12 Remaining issues 

There is nothing further to report on this topic. 

57 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

6 

Occupational 
Directive 2006/54) 

social 

6.1  General (legal) context 

security 

schemes 

(Chapter 

2 

of 

6.1.1  Issues related to gender equality and social security 

A  brief  overview  of  the  Portuguese  social  security  system  as  regards  the 
occupational  social  security  system  is  essential  before  answering  the  questions 
asked about this topic. 

In  Portugal,  occupational  social  security  schemes  are  rare,  due  to  the  universal 
scope of the general public social security system. In addition, over the years almost 
all specific social security schemes (some of which cover many benefits and others 
have  a  more  limited  scope)  have  been  integrated  into  the  public  social  security 
scheme. 

The Portuguese legislation regarding occupational social security systems are Law 
No. 27/2020 of 23 July 2020, and Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997. 
The  first  law  regulates  the  trust  funds  that  deal  with  professional  social  security 
schemes  and  has  transposed  Directive 2016/2341/EU.  The  second  law  deals 
specifically with equal treatment of men and women in relation to professional social 
security schemes and has transposed Directive 86/378/EEC, including the changes 
introduced by Directive 96/97/EC and by Directive 2006/54, into national law. 

Professional social security systems are intended either to complement or to replace 
the  legal  and  public  statutory  social  security  system  (Article 2  of  Decree-Law 
No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997). Old-age pensions, as well as invalidity pensions 
and  survivors’  and  other  family-support  pensions  can  integrate  these  systems 
(Article 4  of  Decree-Law  No. 307/97  and  Article 4(a)(b)I  and  Article 17  of  Law 
No. 27/2020 of 23 July 2020).  

To some extent, the fact that professional social security systems have no practical 
meaning in the country explains the answers to some of the questions asked about 
this topic.  

6.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

The author is not aware of societal or political debate on gender equality in relation 
to occupational social security schemes. There are no pending legislative proposals 
in this area. 

6.2  Direct and indirect discrimination 

Article 6(1)  of  Decree-Law  No. 307/97  of  11  November  1997,  explicitly  prohibits 
direct and indirect sex discrimination. 

6.3  Personal scope 

The  personal  scope  of  national  legislation  in  this  area  is  defined  in  Article 3  of 
Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997, completely in line with Article 6 of 
Directive 2006/54. 

58 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

6.4  Material scope 

The  material  scope  of  national  legislation  in  this  area  is  defined  in  Article 4  of 
Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997, completely in line with Article 6 of 
Directive 2006/54. 

6.5  Exclusions 

Portugal  has  applied  the  exclusions  allowed  by  the  Directive,  in  relation  to  the 
material scope of the legislation. These exclusions are defined in Article 5 of Decree-
Law  No. 307/97  of  11  November  1997,  completely  in  line  with  Article 8(1)  of 
Directive 2006/54, the exclusions being exactly the same. 

6.6  Laws  and  case  law  falling  under  the  examples  of  sex  discrimination 

mentioned in Article 9 of Directive 2006/54 

Article 7  of  Decree-Law  No. 307/97  of  11  November  1997,  includes  a  list  of 
discriminatory  practices  in  the  field  of  occupational  social  security  schemes  that 
meet the examples of discrimination stated in Article 9 of Directive 2006/54.  

As  regards  case  law,  the  author  has  no  knowledge  of  actions  brought  before  the 
courts to deal with these issues. 

6.7  Actuarial factors 

As  far  as  the  author  knows,  the  actuarial  factors  used  by  these  schemes  are  the 
same as those used by statutory schemes. Nevertheless, Decree-Law No. 307/97 
of 11 November 1997 establishes as a general principle that actuarial rules used to 
determine the amount of the benefit must not be discriminatory and must promote 
gender equality (Article 7).  

The  author  has  no  specific  information  as  to  whether  sex  is  used  as  an  actuarial 
factor. 

6.8  Difficulties 

The  main  difficulties  regarding  this  area  rely  on  the  fact  that,  in  addition  to  the 
general provisions on gender equality established by Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 
November 1997 (i.e. the establishment of a gender equality principle in this area 
(Article 6)  and  the  prohibition  of  discriminatory  practices,  complemented  by  the 
examples  of  discriminatory  practices  in  this  area  (Article 7(1)I  and  (f)),  the 
occupational social security systems differ significantly, due to their private nature 
and also depending on whether they are complementary to or meant to replace the 
statutory scheme.  

When they are complementary to the statutory social security system, professional 
occupational  systems  are  based  on  the  model  of  the  statutory  old-age  pension 
system that they mean to complement. When they replace the legal system (which 
is very rare) they are based on private conditions, usually agreed upon in collective 
agreements or in private pension plans within companies, which are impossible to 
trace. 

6.9  Evaluation of implementation 

The precedent analysis allows for the conclusion that EU law in the field of gender 
equality in occupational social security schemes has been transposed into domestic 

59 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

legislation.  In  fact,  the  transposition  of  EU  law  in  this  respect  was  made  in  the 
strictest, ‘copy and paste’ manner.  

However,  this  is  of  no  consequence,  since,  as  indicated  above,  in  Portugal, 
occupational  social  security  schemes  are  rare,  due  to  the  universal  scope  of  the 
general public social security system. In addition, over the years almost all specific 
social security schemes (some of which cover many benefits; others having a more 
limited scope) have been integrated into the public social security scheme, so the 
practical meaning of such schemes today is of no significance.  

6.10 Remaining issues 

The author has nothing to add on this topic. 

60 

 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

7 

Statutory schemes of social security (Directive 79/7) 

7.1  General (legal) context 

7.1.1  Overview of national acts 

A  brief  overview  of  the  Portuguese  social  security  system  is  essential  before 
answering the questions asked.  

In Portugal, the  right to social security protection is a universal and fundamental 
right (Article 63(1) of the Portuguese Constitution), which must be granted by the 
Portuguese State. Therefore, the social security system is a public statutory system.  

The situations contemplated by Directive 79/7 are covered at national level by the 
Lei de Bases da Segurança Social (Social Security General Law) – Law No. 4/2007 
of 16 January 2007). However, there is no specific legislation explicitly transposing 
this Directive. 

The Social Security General Law establishes two social security systems. The first 
one is the ‘system of social citizenship protection’, which covers three subsystems: 
the ‘social action subsystem’ (intended to promote actions in the social field); the 
‘solidarity subsystem’ (intended to  eradicate poverty in situations that do not fall 
under the ‘contribution’ system); and the ‘family protection subsystem’ (intended 
to  compensate  people  for  specific  family  charges).  The  second  social  security 
system is the ‘contribution system’, which is intended to compensate the social risks 
of  persons  with  a  professional  activity,  and  is  based  on  the  contributions  of 
employers and employees.  

This  second  and  more  general  system  (‘contribution  system’)  covers  social 
protection  related  to  sickness,  invalidity  and  old-age  pensions,  family  allowances 
(in  situations  related  to  maternity,  paternity  and  adoption), 
involuntary 
unemployment,  accidents  at  work  and  occupational  diseases,  in  the  sense  of 
Article 3 of Directive 79/7.  

The contribution system is developed by the Código dos Regimes Contributivos de 
Segurança Social – CRCSS (Social Security Contribution System Code), approved 
by  Law  No. 110/2009  of  16  September  2009.  This  Code  deals  with  the  various 
benefits granted in the  contribution  system to  employees, self-employed persons 
and other specific categories of workers, with the exception of public servants (who 
are covered by a specific regulation in the area of social security). Specific legislation 
related to each benefit complements this Code. Consequently, the Portuguese legal 
system in this area is rather complex.  

7.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

More  generally,  issues  related  to  statutory  pensions  are  regularly  debated, 
especially  in  relation  to  retirement  age,  and  also  taking  into  consideration  the 
financial sustainability of the public system of pensions, but these discussions lack 
a gender dimension. 

7.2  Implementation  of  the  principle  of  equal  treatment  for  men  and 

women in matters of social security 

The principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security is 
implemented in national legislation.  

61 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

The main acts in the field of statutory social security are the following: 

- 

- 

- 

Portuguese  Constitution  (Article 63(1)),  establishing  the  right  to  social 
security as  a universal  and fundamental right  of  all citizens,  which must be 
granted  by  the  Portuguese  State.  Therefore,  the  social  security  system  is  a 
public statutory system; 

Lei  de  Bases  da  Segurança  Social  (Social  Security  General  Law)  (Law 
No. 4/2007  of  16  January  2007),  covering  the  situations  contemplated  by 
Directive 79/7  at  national  level.  However,  there  is  no  specific  legislation 
explicitly transposing this Directive; 

Código  dos  Regimes  Contributivos  de  Segurança  Social  –  CRCSS  (Social 
Security Contribution System Code). The major social security system created 
by  the  Social  Security  General  Law  is  developed  by  this  Code,  which  was 
approved by Law No. 110/2009 of 16 September 2009. This Code deals with 
the  several  benefits  granted  in  the  contribution  system  to  employees,  self-
employed persons and other specific categories of workers, with the exception 
of  public  servants  (who  are  covered  by  a  specific  regulation  in  the  area  of 
social  security). This  system (‘contribution system’)  covers  social protection 
related  to  sickness,  invalidity  and  old-age  pensions,  family  allowances  (in 
situations  related  to  maternity,  paternity  and  adoption),  involuntary 
unemployment, accidents at work and occupational diseases, in the sense of 
Article 3 of Directive 79/7; and 

- 

Specific  legislation  related  to  each  benefit  complements  this  Code  (in  this 
sense,  for  instance,  Decree-Law  No. 187/2007  of  10  May  2007,  on  old-age 
and invalidity pensions).  

As indicated above, the Portuguese legal system in this area is rather complex.  

The principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security is 
established by the Social Security General Law (Article 7). It is one of the so-called 
‘general principles’ of the Portuguese social security system. 

Another principle of this system of relevance to gender equality is the ‘principle of 
positive differentiation’ (Article 10 of the Social Security General Law), which allows 
for  flexibility  in  the  benefits,  taking  into  account  a  certain  number  of  factors, 
including family and social factors, such as a very low level of income of the family, 
or the number of dependents of the family, or the fact that it is a one-parent family, 
or the  fact that a  member of the family  has a disability.  However, these positive 
differentiation factors are developed in more specific legislation. 

7.3  Personal scope 

The personal scope of national legislation in this area is defined in Article 51 of the 
Social Security General Law and in Article 24 of the CRCSS, which are in line with 
Article 2(1) of Directive 79/7.  

7.4  Material scope 

The material scope of national legislation in this area is defined in Article 52 of the 
Social Security General Law and in Articles 19 and 28 of the CRCSS, which are in 
line with Article 3(1) of Directive 79/7. 

62 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Family  benefits  are  a  specific  subsystem  under  the  above-mentioned  ‘system  of 
social citizenship protection’ (Article 44 et seq. of the Social Security General Law), 
which is regulated by specific legislation. The same applies to survivors’ pensions. 

7.5  Exclusions 

In Portugal, the general retirement age is the same for men and women, but it is 
fixed every year according to the so-called ‘sustainability factor’ established for that 
same year (currently, the retirement age is fixed at 66 years and 4 months).31 In 
some situations, the retirement age is lower, due to a number of criteria, such as 
career  length  or  the  professional  activity  (Articles 20  to  22  of  Decree-Law 
No. 187/2007 of 10 May 2007). 

However, this is not a mandatory age, as it depends upon the worker’s intention to 
apply for retirement when they reach the legal age and provided that they meet the 
other requirements to access a pension (a minimum number of working years with 
paid  contributions,  for  example).  Only  public  servants  have  an  age  limit  for 
continuing to work, which is fixed at 70 (Article 291 of the General Law on Public 
Employment –  Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014), but not  even this  age limit is 
absolutely binding.  

Also, except in public service, a claimant can receive an old-age pension while still 
working, if they so wish and the employer agrees to it.  

In  Portugal,  the  equalisation  of  the  pensionable  age  for  men  and  women  was 
approved  in  1993.  At  the  time,  arguments  were  presented  to  the  effect  that  the 
equalisation had only taken place for economic reasons. Also, the application of this 
new rule resulted in some problems during the transition period, especially because 
there was an adjustment period to implement the new age limit, but the minimum 
period of contributions was also changed at the same time (from a minimum of 10 
years of work with paid contributions to a minimum of 15 years) and the new rule 
on  this  minimum  period  had  no  transition  period.  However,  since  this  transition 
period came to an end some time ago, this rule no longer gives rise to any problems. 

In Portugal, maternity leave, paternity leave, parental leave and other special types 
of leave for care purposes are credited as corresponding with professional activity 
for  the  purposes  of  the  formation  of  pension  rights  (Article 22  of  Decree-Law 
No. 91/2009  of  9  April  2009).  Apart  from  these  mechanisms,  there  are  no  other 
crediting mechanisms in relation to the pensionable age for persons who have raised 
children or performed other care work within the family. 

7.6  Actuarial factors 

The  author  has  no  specific  information  on  the  topic  of  actuarial  factors  linked  to 
social security benefits.  

Nevertheless,  due  to  the  gender  equality  principle  established  in  Article 7  of  the 
Social Security General Law, actuarial rules used to determine the amount of the 
benefit cannot be discriminatory and must promote gender equality.  

7.7  Difficulties 

On the one hand, some difficulties in this area arise from the complexity of national 
legislation that makes it difficult to detect discriminatory situations.  

31   Portaria No. 307/2021, of 17 December 2021. The age limit established by this Act came into force 

on 1 January 2023. 

63 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

On the other hand, the Portuguese social security system has been subject to an 
overall  reform  for  the  past  decade,  mostly  for  reasons  related  to  the  economic 
sustainability of the system itself.32 In this sense, new principles on the subject have 
been developed by the law, such as reinforcing the economic strength of the system 
and promoting active ageing. 

In  the  pursuit  of  these  goals,  several  legal  measures  regarding  old-age  pensions 
have  been  approved  by  Decree-Law  No. 187/2007  of  10  May  2007,  such  as  new 
rules to calculate the old-age pension, a maximum limit for this pension, a pension 
bonus for those who choose not to apply for their pension when they reach pension 
age and a reduction in the pension for those who apply for it before reaching that 
age because they comply with other alternative requirements (for instance, working 
for a certain number of years). More recently, a new set of measures was adopted 
in  this  area  by  Decree-Law  No. 119/2018  of  27  December  2018,  which  have 
repealed  some  of  the  more  constraining  measures  imposed  by  the  previous 
legislation, under the financial crisis. 

In a global overview, all these measures seem to be gender neutral, but some of 
them can in fact have discriminatory results against women. The best example of 
these discriminatory effects is the present rule regarding the formula to calculate 
the amount for old-age and invalidity pensions: unlike the previous rule, this rule 
takes into account not only the best 10 years of the last 15 years of contributions 
to the social security system, but all years of contributions, to calculate the value 
of the pension.33  

This formula may have a disproportionate effect on women’s and on men’s pensions, 
according to the salary gender gap, since this gap may be more relevant at different 
stages of the career. We have no information as to whether the gender factor was 
even  taken  into  consideration  when  this  measure  was  approved,  but  we  cannot 
ignore this negative effect.  

In the author’s opinion and on the whole, the reform of the social security system 
in  Portugal  has  not  taken  into  consideration  the  fact  that  men  and  women  have 
different  working  patterns,  with  women  having  lower  participation  rates  in  the 
formal labour market, lower pay and fragmented careers due to maternity and to 
care activities. With the exception of leave due to maternity and paternity reasons, 
which is taken into consideration for the purpose of building up pension rights as 
indicated above (Article 22 of Decree-Law No. 91/2009 from 9 April 2009), these 
reforms have not taken into account the issue of gender equality. 

7.8  Evaluation of implementation 

In the area of statutory social security benefits, there is no reason to say that the 
implementation of EU law in Portugal has not been done, but the lack of data in this 
field makes it impossible to evaluate the practical result of the implementation of 
gender equality principles in this area.  

At another level, it is important to point out that the national social security system 
is  largely  built  on  the  traditional  model  of  employment  and  therefore  is  largely 
supported by the contributions of both the employees and the employers, the latter 
being the major contributors to the system.  

32   One must take into consideration that the system has a universal scope – in the sense that every 
citizen has the right to social security protection – as well as a public nature, depending almost 
exclusively upon the national budget for social security, which is part of the national annual budget. 
In this situation, the problem of the economic sustainability of the system is of major significance. 

33   This new formula to calculate the value of old-age pensions was introduced by Decree-Law 

No. 35/2005 from 19 February 2005, which changed Decree-Law No. 329/93 from 25 September 
1993. The same rule is now established in Article 29 of Decree-Law No. 187/2007 of 10 May 2007. 

64 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

This system is therefore not well equipped to face the challenges attached to other 
forms of work that do not fall under the traditional employment contract model, as 
is  the  case  of  independent  work  and  other  forms  of  work,  such  as  remote  work, 
work through digital platforms, co-work or smart work. 

The questions related to the implementation of EU gender equality law as regards 
social security benefits may have to be addressed differently in these new models 
of work but this analysis is yet to be done. 

7.9  Remaining issues 

The author has nothing to add on this topic. 

65 

 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

8 

Self-employed  workers  (Directive 2010/41/EU  and  some  relevant 
provisions of the Recast Directive) 

8.1  Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU 

Directive 2010/41  has  not  been  expressly  transposed  into  Portuguese  legislation, 
because national legislation was considered to already comply with the Directive. 

Four acts are to be taken into consideration for the several purposes of the Directive, 
in the field of employment and in the field of social security: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Law  No. 3/2011  of  15  February  2011,  which  establishes  the  general 
framework for the protection of the self-employed as regards the prohibition 
of discrimination in the access to and in the development of independent work 
in the private sector, in the public sector, and in the cooperative sector; 

Law  No. 110/2009  of  16  September  2009,  which  approved  the  Código  dos 
Regimes Contributivos do Sistema Previdencial de Segurança Social – CRCSS 
(Social Security Contribution System Code), which includes some provisions 
regarding social security for independent workers, including assisting spouses, 
and separate provisions applicable to the members of company boards; 

The  Labour  Code  (LC),  which  extensively  regulates  equality  and  non-
discrimination  in  employment,  which  is  important  because  these  provisions 
are also applicable to the category of ‘quasi-subordinate’ workers (Article 10) 
and,  under  the  new  General  Law  for  Civil  Servants,  also  to  workers  of  the 
public  sector,  including  independent  workers  (Article 4(1)I  and  (d)  of  Civil 
Servants General Law – Law No. 35/2014 of 20 June 2014); and 

Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, which establishes social security provisions 
attached to maternity and paternity rights. These provisions are applicable to 
subordinate  workers  in  the  private  sector  and  in  the  public  sector  and  to 
independent workers (Article 4(1)). 

8.2  Personal scope 

8.2.1  Scope 

The scope of Portuguese legislation in this field is determined by the concept of self-
employment. However, the law defines self-employment for the purposes of non-
discrimination  provisions  in  the  access  to  and  in  the  development  of  self-
employment in a slightly different way from  self-employment for the  purposes  of 
social security rights. 

For the purposes of non-discrimination in the access to and in the development of 
independent work, Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011 defines independent work 
in accordance with Directive 2010/41/EU, in Article 2(2), as a professional activity 
developed outside an employment contract or a legally equivalent situation.  

This concept is wide, accommodating very different situations, such as traditionally 
independent  professions  (doctor,  attorney  at 
law,  or  architect);  small 
entrepreneurs;  independent  workers  in  agriculture,  in  commerce  or  in  services; 
members of the boards of companies; workers in cooperatives; etc. However, this 
concept does not explicitly mention assisting spouses. 

66 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

For the purposes of social security, the Social Security Contribution System Code 
(CRCSS)  defines  an  independent  worker  as  a  person  performing  a  professional 
activity  outside  an  employment  contract  or  a  legally  equivalent  situation,  or  a 
person  performing  a  professional  activity  for  another  person  without  being 
integrated  in  the  social  security  scheme  applicable  to  subordinate  workers 
(Article 132 of the CRCSS).  

Following  this  general  definition,  this  Code  indicates  several  categories  of 
independent workers (Articles 133 and 134), which include the following situations: 
persons  pursuing  a  gainful  activity  for  their  own  account;  business  partners; 
persons  developing  independent  work  in  agriculture,  including  running  a  farm  or 
operating a business in this area; small entrepreneurs; authors and artists. Other 
categories of independent workers also fall under the scope of the CRCSS, under 
specific social security schemes – this applies to workers in the cooperative sector 
(Article 135 of the CRCSS), members of company boards (Article 61 of the CRCSS), 
and ‘quasi-subordinate’ workers (Article 71 of the CRCSS).  

The CRCSS explicitly mentions the category of assisting spouses or life partners of 
independent workers, defining them as those who perform a regular and permanent 
(but  not  necessarily 
their  partners 
(Article 133(1)I). Under the category of independent workers for the  purposes of 
social security, the Code also mentions independent workers in agriculture and small 
entrepreneurs and their spouses or life partners (Article 134(1)(a) and (b)).  

full-time)  professional  activity  with 

As  a  general  conclusion  to  this  point,  we  would  say  that  Portuguese  legislation 
includes  a  wide  concept  of  self-employment,  but  this  concept,  and  therefore  the 
scope of the applicable rules, are not the same for all purposes. Also, the category 
of assisting spouses or life partners is only explicitly recognised and covered for the 
purposes of social security provisions.  

8.2.2  Definitions 

As indicated above, Portuguese legislation defines self-employment for the purposes 
of  non-discrimination  provisions  in  the  access  to  and  in  the  development  of  self-
employment and for the purposes  of social  security  rights, but not in exactly the 
same sense. 

For the purposes of non-discrimination in the access to and in the development of 
independent work, Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011 defines independent work 
in accordance with Directive 2010/41/EU, in Article 2(2), as a professional activity 
developed outside an employment contract or a legally equivalent situation.  

For the purposes of social security, the Social Security Contribution System Code 
(CRCSS)  defines  an  independent  worker  as  a  person  performing  a  professional 
activity  outside  an  employment  contract  or  a  legally  equivalent  situation,  or  a 
person  performing  a  professional  activity  for  another  person  without  being 
integrated  in  the  social  security  scheme  applicable  to  subordinate  workers 
(Article 132 of the CRCSS).  

Under this definition, and as indicated above, the Code indicates several categories 
of independent workers. 

8.2.3  Categorisation and coverage  

For the purposes of non-discrimination in the access to and in the development of 
independent  work  (Law  No. 3/2011  of  15  February  2011),  the  concept  of  self-
employment  accommodates  very  different  situations,  such  as  traditionally 

67 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

law,  or  architect);  small 
independent  professions  (doctor,  attorney  at 
entrepreneurs;  independent  workers  in  agriculture,  in  commerce  or  in  services; 
members of the boards of companies; workers in cooperatives; etc. 

For the purposes of social security, the Social Security Contribution System Code 
(CRCSS) includes in the definition of independent worker, or treats as independent 
workers, the following professional categories: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

persons pursuing a gainful activity for their own account, business partners, 
authors and artists (Articles 133 and 134); 

small entrepreneurs (Articles 133 and 134);  

persons developing independent work in agriculture, including running a farm 
or operating a business in this area (Article 134(1)(a) and (b)); 

specific  categories  of  independent  workers  under  specific  social  security 
schemes,  like  workers  in  the  cooperative  sector  (Article 135),  members  of 
company  boards  (Article 61),  and  ‘quasi-subordinate’  workers  (Article 71); 
and 

assisting spouses or life partners of independent workers, who are defined as 
those  who  perform  a  regular  and  permanent  (but  not  necessarily  full-time) 
professional activity with their partners (Article 133(1)I).  

8.2.4  Recognition of life partners 

As indicated just above, the concept of self-employment is wide, so all categories 
are covered, including life partners. 

8.3  Material scope 

8.3.1  Implementation of Article 4 of Directive 2010/41/EU 

As  indicated  above,  Directive 2010/41  has  not  been  formally  transposed  into 
Portuguese  legislation  because  national  legislation  was  considered  to  already 
comply with the Directive.  

Although Directive 2010/41 has not been transposed into national law, the principle 
of equal treatment in independent work is established in national law. Article 3 and 
Article 5(1) of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011, establish that no one can be 
subjected to different treatment in the access to and during the undertaking of self-
employment, due to a discriminatory ground.  

8.3.2  Material scope 

The protection against discriminatory practices in self-employment includes direct 
and  indirect  discrimination  and  discriminatory  harassment  (including  sexual 
harassment) (Article 5(2), (3), (5) and (6) Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011) 
and  covers  the  access  to  self-employment  (including  advertisements,  selection 
criteria  and  the  affiliation  of  the  worker  to  professional  associations),  and  the 
undertaking of independent work (including pay, access to vocational training and 
the  conditions  for  the  termination  of  the  contract)  –  Article 3(2)  and  (3),  and 
Article (4), specifically as regards equal pay. An instruction to discriminate is also 
qualified as discriminatory practice (Article 5(3)). 

68 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

The main differences between national legislation and Article 4 of Directive 2010/41 
concern two points.  

First,  national  legislation  considers  all  grounds  of  discrimination  together,  so  sex 
discrimination is not treated separately.  

Secondly, the principle of non-discrimination in relation to self-employment makes 
no  explicit  reference  to  the  launching  or  creation  of  a  business  or  company  by 
independent workers (as expressed in Article 4(1) of Directive 2010/41), since the 
perspective of national law is more focused on the rights of the independent worker 
in  relation  to  the  counterparts  of  their  work  and  the  duties  of  the  counterpart  in 
relation to the independent contractor. From this perspective, under national law, 
equality issues relating to the creation of a business would more likely be dealt with 
by  Law  No. 14/2008  of  12  March  (which  transposed  Directive 2004/113),  for 
instance,  to  deal  with  different  conditions  granted  to  a  person  in  the  access  to 
financial credit to start a business or create a company. Apart from this issue, and 
to say the least, national legislation is not clear as to the extension of the protection 
to the creation of a company or the establishment of a new business.  

8.4  Positive action 

Positive  action  is  not  dealt  with  by  Law  No. 3/2011  of  15  February  2011,  but  is 
allowed by the Portuguese Constitution, especially in favour of women (since under 
Article 9(h)  of  the  Constitution,  the  active  promotion  of  gender  equality  is  a 
fundamental goal of the State), and by the Labour Code (Article 27).  

In practice, several positive action measures have been approved in recent years in 
the area of self-employment, especially in the area of the participation of women in 
decision-making, by legally imposing a women’s quota on the boards of companies 
in the public sector and in private companies subjected to public regulation (Law 
No. 67/2013 of 28 August 2013, Article 17(8)),34 and finally by imposing a minimum 
representation  of  the  underrepresented  sex  on  executive  boards  and  supervisory 
boards of public companies and of private listed companies (Law No. 62/2017 of 1 
August 2017), as already indicated. In the view of the author, this kind of positive 
action is necessary and quite effective. 

8.5  Social protection 

Social  protection  for  the  self-employed  is  granted  by  the  Social  Security 
Contribution System Code (CRCSS) but the legal framework is complex.  

It  is  also  important  to  say  that  the  provisions  of  the  CRCSS  in  this  field  were 
significantly amended by Decree-Law No. 2/2018 of 9 January 2018, which entered 
into  force  on  1  January  2019.  These  changes  tend,  in  general,  to  submit 
independent workers to a more demanding system, in terms of contributions.  

Most categories of self-employed persons are covered by the social security scheme 
of independent workers (Articles 132 et seq. of the CRCSS). Some categories can 
choose their social security system – this is the case for workers in the cooperative 
sector, since the by-laws of the cooperative can choose to place their workers under 
the social security provisions applicable to subordinate workers (e.g. workers who 
perform their activity under an employment contract)  or under the social security 
provisions  applicable  to  the  self-employed  (Article 135  of  the  CRCSS).  Other 

34   As regards this particular point it is important to take into consideration that due to the wide 

concept of self-employed persons under national legislation, board members are to be qualified as 
a specific category of independent workers, since they are not engaged under an employment 
contract. 

69 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

categories  of  independent  workers  are  subjected  to  the  general  social  security 
scheme applicable to subordinate workers, with some specificities, as in the case of 
the  members  of  company  boards  (Article 61  of  the  CRCSS),  and  in  the  case  of 
‘quasi-subordinate’  workers  (e.g.  formally  independent  workers  that  depend 
economically on only one client, in the sense that most of their income arises from 
that  one  client)  (Article 71  of  the  CRCSS).  Finally,  independent  workers  who 
perform at least 50 %35 of their activity for a sole beneficiary fall under a specific 
provision (Article 140(1) of the CRCSS, as amended by Decree-Law No. 2/2018 of 
9 January 2018).  

The major differences in the social protection granted under these various schemes 
concern the amount and the responsibility for the payment of contributions and the 
social  benefits  attached  to  each  scheme.  In  the  general  social  security  scheme 
applicable  to  subordinate  workers,  both  the  employer  and  the  employee  pay  the 
contributions to the public social security system at different rates that are much 
higher for the employer than for the employee (Article 53 of the CRCSS). As regards 
independent workers, only the worker pays the contribution, and unlike before, the 
worker can no longer choose the rate of such contribution, which is determined on 
the  basis  of  his  median  income  and  variable  according  to  the  category  of  the 
independent  worker  (Article 168,  as  amended  by  Decree-Law  No. 2/2018  of  9 
January  2018)36  –  the  general  percentage  of  these  contributions  is  now  fixed  at 
instance 
21.4 %  (general  rule)  and  25 % 
(Article 168(1) of the CRCSS, introduced by Decree-Law No. 2/2018 of 9 January 
2018).  As  regards  ‘quasi-subordinate’  workers,  there  is  a  contribution  by  both 
contractors  but  at  a  lower  rate  than  the  rate  of  the  contribution  in  the  general 
system for subordinate workers and their employers. Finally, the beneficiary of the 
activity of an independent worker is also charged a small contribution (between 7 % 
and 10 %) to the social security system, despite the qualification of the worker as 
an independent worker (Article 168(7) of the CRCSS).  

for  small  entrepreneurs, 

for 

As to the social security benefits attached to this system, the major difference lies 
in the fact that, unlike subordinate workers, independent workers are not protected 
against involuntary unemployment. However, social benefits attached to sickness, 
including professional illnesses, invalidity and  old-age pensions,  survival pension, 
and maternity and paternity are granted (Article 141 of the CRCSS). Healthcare is 
granted to all persons under the National Health Care System. 

In general, these schemes are mandatory.  

Assisting  spouses  and  life  partners  of  independent  workers  are  included  in  the 
scheme  of  their  partner  (Article 133(1)I  and  Article 134(1)(a)  and  (b)  of  the 
CRCSS), on a mandatory basis. 

8.6  Maternity benefits 

National legislation grants maternity and paternity benefits to independent workers 
– not exactly by according the right to maternity or paternity leave (since they do 
not have an employer as such) but by granting the right to social security allowances 
related to maternity, paternity and parental leave. These issues are dealt with by 
Law No. 91/2009 of 9 April 2009, in the same way for subordinate workers and for 
self-employed persons. 

35   Before this amendment, this percentage was 80 %. 
36   Before this amendment of Article 168 of the CRCSS, the independent worker was able to choose 

the low-level contribution model, that covered fewer situations but was of course not so severe in 
terms of contributions.  

70 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

The amount of maternity allowance is calculated on the same basis for subordinate 
and independent workers, by taking into account the salary/average income of the 
worker  and  corresponding  to  an  average  of  100 %  of  the  average  income  of  the 
worker  –  in  this  sense,  the  amount  of  the  allowance  is  in  accordance  with  the 
requirements  of  Article 8(3)  of  the  Directive 2010/41.  Since  the  social  security 
scheme  of  those  workers  is  mandatory,  the  allowance  is  also  granted  on  a 
mandatory basis. 

The  problem  regarding  this  allowance  comes  from  the  fact  that  Portugal  has  not 
expressly transposed Directive 2010/41. In fact, Article 40(b) of Law No. 91/2009 
of 9 April 2009, grants self-employed persons the right to maternity, paternity or 
parental allowances ‘during the period in which the worker remains unfit to work’ 
and Article 42 states that the allowance is incompatible with professional activity – 
in other words, as regards maternity, the minimum period of 14 weeks of time off, 
prescribed by Article 8(1) of Directive 2010/41, is not imposed or even specifically 
addressed by national law. Under these circumstances, but also given the fact that 
self-employment is seldom compatible with long absences from work, independent 
workers tend to take advantage of the time off and of the corresponding allowances 
for much shorter periods than subordinate workers.  

There  are  no  specific  provisions  concerning  assisting  spouses  or  life  partners  in 
respect of time off on the grounds of maternity and inherent allowances. 

8.7  Occupational social security 

8.7.1  Implementation of provisions regarding occupational social security 

The  national  legislation  implementing  EU  non-discrimination  provisions  on 
occupational  social  security  schemes  (Decree-Law  No. 307/97  of  11  November 
1997) is also applicable to self-employed persons (Article 3 of this Law). 

Therefore, all considerations set out above under section 8.6 also apply here. 

8.7.2  Application  of  exceptions  for  self-employed  persons  regarding  matters  of 
occupational social security (Article 11 of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

Article 5 of Decree-Law No. 307/97 of 11 November 1997 (which deals with gender 
equality in occupational social security, as indicated above) uses the exceptions for 
self-employed persons regarding matters of occupational social security mentioned 
in Article 11 of Recast Directive 2006/54. 

8.8  Prohibition of discrimination 

Article 14(1)(a)  of  Recast  Directive 2006/54  is  implemented  in  national  law  as 
regards  self-employment,  by  Article 3(1),  (2)  and  (3)  of  Law  No. 3/2011  of  15 
February 2011.  

Non-discrimination in this area is directly related to equal opportunities, which must 
be granted in the access to independent work (including advertisements, selection 
criteria and the affiliation of the worker to professional associations), in professional 
training, and in the conditions in which the work is performed (including pay and 
the  conditions  for  the  termination  of  the  contract)  –  Article 3(2)  and  (3),  and 
Article 4, specifically as regards equal pay, of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011. 

71 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Any  practice  that  favours  or  causes  damage  to  these  workers,  performed  by  the 
beneficiary  of  the  work  and  based  on  any  discriminatory  factor,  is  prohibited, 
including  direct  and  indirect  discriminatory  practices  and  harassment  practices 
(Articles 3 and 5 of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011). 

These principles are compatible with specific legal regulations concerning protection 
against discrimination of foreigners, which fall under the scope of  Directive 96/71 
on posting of workers within the European Union in the framework of the provision 
of  services.  In  addition,  the  principles  are  also  compatible  with  the  regulations 
concerning  the  protection  of  pregnancy,  maternity  and  paternity,  adoption  and 
other situations related to the reconciliation of professional and family life. 

8.9  Evaluation of implementation 

In the author’s view, EU law in this field was adequately implemented at national 
level, with the exception of the right to maternity leave which, as indicated above, 
is  in  practice  not  taken  (or  is  taken  for  much  shorter  periods)  by  independent 
workers. 

8.10 Remaining issues 

The author has nothing to add in relation to this topic. 

72 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

9 

Goods and services (Directive 2004/113) 

9.1  General (legal) context 

9.1.1  Specific  problems  of  discrimination  in  the  online  environment/digital 

market/collaborative economy 

Aside from common knowledge, which indicates that the evaluation of work made 
by algorithms and access to jobs through digital platforms are not gender neutral, 
the author has no means to identify specific problems of discrimination in the online 
environment or in the digital market. 

9.1.2  Political and societal debate 

The  author  is  not  aware  of  any  political  and/or  societal  debate  on  this  topic  in 
Portugal. 

9.2  Prohibition of direct and indirect discrimination 

Directive 2004/113  has  been  transposed  into  national  legislation  by  Law 
No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008, which was later changed by Law No. 9/2015 of 11 
February 2015, in view of the Test-Achats judgment. 

Articles 1  and  4  of  Law  No. 14/2008  explicitly  prohibit  direct  and  indirect  sex 
discrimination in access to and the supply of goods and services.  

9.3  Material scope 

The material scope of national legislation in this area is defined in Article 2 of Law 
No. 14/2008  of  12  March  2008,  which  is  completely  in  line  with  Article 3  of 
Directive 2004/113.  

9.4  Exceptions 

The exact same exceptions to the material scope of Directive 2004/113 have been 
established in Article 2(2)(b) and (c) of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008. 

9.5  Justification of differences in treatment  

Article 4(5)  of  the  Directive has  not  been  transposed  as  such  into  national 
legislation. 

Only where insurance and financial contracts are concerned, and more specifically 
with  regards  to  actuarial  factors  (Article 6  of  Law  No. 14/2008),  the  law  allowed 
differences in individual obligations and prices regarding these contracts, provided 
that  they  were  based  on  objective  and  proportional  criteria,  which  had  to  be 
confirmed  by  actuarial  data  certified  by  the  Instituto  de  Seguros  de  Portugal 
(Portuguese  Insurance  Institute)  and  should  be  reviewed  every  five  years 
(Article 6(2),  (3)  and  (4)).  However,  in  the  amendment  introduced  to  Law 
No. 14/2008 by Law  No. 9/2015 of 11 February 2015, in view of the  Test-Achats 
judgment, Article 6(2), (3) and (4) was eliminated, so there are no differences in 
treatment at national level to be reported. 

73 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

9.6  Actuarial factors 

Article 6(1)  of  Law  No. 14/2008  of  12  March  2008,  includes  the  exact  same 
provision  of  Article 5(1)  of  Directive 2094/113,  ensuring  that  the  use  of  sex  as  a 
factor in the calculation of premiums and benefits for the purposes of insurance and 
related financial services shall not result in differences in individuals’ premiums and 
benefits. 

9.7  Interpretation  of 
Directive 2004/113 

exception 

contained 

in  Article 5(2)  of 

As regards the exception of Article 5(2) of Directive 2004/113, as indicated above, 
where insurance and financial contracts are concerned, and more specifically with 
regards  to  actuarial  factors  (Article 6  of  Law  No. 14/2008),  Law  No. 14/2008 
allowed differences in individual obligations and prices regarding these contracts, 
on the condition that they were based on objective and proportional criteria, which 
had to be confirmed by actuarial data certified by the Portuguese Insurance Institute 
and should be reviewed every five years (Article 6(2), (3), and (4)).  

However, in the amendment introduced to Law No. 14/2008 by Law No. 9/2015 of 
11 February 2015, in view of the  Test-Achats judgment, Article 6(2), (3) and (4) 
was eliminated.  

9.8  Positive action measures (Article 6 of Directive 2004/113) 

Article 4(7)  of  Law  14/2008  of  12  March  2008,  is  equivalent  to  Article 6  of  the 
Directive in the sense of allowing positive action in this area.  

However, the Law does not indicate concrete situations in which positive action may 
be taken, and to date, the author has no knowledge of any positive action taken in 
the scope of this rule. 

9.9  Specific problems related to pregnancy, maternity or parenthood 

Law  No. 14/2008  of  12  March  2008  provides  specific  protection  for  pregnant 
women,  for  women  who  have  recently  given  birth  and  for  women  who  are 
breastfeeding, in Article 4(6) (in line with Article 4(2) of the Directive), in Article 7 
(which  corresponds  to  Article 5(3)  of  the  Directive)  and  in  Article 5.  This  last 
provision,  which  goes  beyond  the  Directive,  explicitly  prohibits  any  request  of 
information from a woman requiring access to goods and services concerning her 
possible state of pregnancy, except for reasons related to the protection of her own 
health. 

However, Law No. 14/2008 includes no specific definition of pregnancy or maternity 
discrimination. As a matter of fact, in this respect, national legislation is not as clear 
as  the  Directive as  to  what  concerns  the  formal  qualification  of  maternity  and 
pregnancy discrimination as direct discriminatory practices, since the provisions of 
Article 4(1)(a) of the Directive (which establish this relationship very clearly) have 
not been transposed with the exact same content into the corresponding national 
provision (Article 4(1) of Law No. 14/2008).  

This being the case, one must conclude that the specific Portuguese legislation relies 
on  the  general  prohibition  of  sex  discrimination  established  in  other  national 
legislation (where the formal qualification of pregnancy/maternity discrimination as 
gender discrimination is established) for the purpose of this provision.  

74 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

In  this  context,  and  even  considering  the  other  provisions  of  this  legislation 
regarding  the  protection  of  pregnant  women  or  women  on  maternity  leave 
(Article 4(6), Article 5 and  Article 7), in the author’s  view, this issue should have 
been addressed more clearly in this law, mainly in the form of a general qualification 
provision, as included in the Directive. The lack of this provision may even create 
the wrong impression that these women are only to be considered as discriminated 
against when treated differently in the areas specifically covered by these provisions 
(information regarding pregnancy and clauses of insurance and financial contracts). 

In the author’s opinion, discrimination in relation to pregnancy and maternity in the 
context of goods and services takes place mainly in the access to health services 
attached to insurance  contracts, given the widespread practice of  establishing an 
initial  period  during  which  the  contract  has  no  effect  and  this  period  may  cover 
pregnancy time. 

9.10 Evaluation of implementation 

In the author’s view, EU law in this field was adequately implemented at national 
level. 

9.11 Remaining issues 

The author has nothing to add in relation to this topic. 

75 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

10  Violence  against  women  and  domestic  violence  in  relation  to  the 

Istanbul Convention 

10.1 General (legal) context 

10.1.1 Surveys  and  reports  on  issues  of  violence  against  women  and  domestic 

violence 

Violence against women and domestic violence is a matter of great concern to the 
Portuguese authorities, given the number of situations reported every year. This is 
certainly a subject that has been closely watched in recent years in Portugal. 

On a regular basis, the Comissão para a Cidadania e Igualdade de Género – CIG 
(Agency for Citizenship and Gender Equality) publishes surveys and studies on these 
topics.  The  CIG  paper,  ‘Prevenção  e  Combate  à  Violência  contra  as  mulheres  e 
violência doméstica – 2018’ (‘Prevention of and Action on Violence Against Women 
and  Domestic  Violence  –  2018’),37  contains  some  figures  on  the  crimes  in  these 
areas, as well as relevant data on the protective actions and networks that are in 
place in Portugal.  

Surveys  and  other  useful  information  on  the  topic  of  domestic  violence  are  also 
disclosed online on the Website on Domestic Violence,38 which the CIG launched in 
2019. 

10.1.2 Overview of national acts on violence against women, domestic violence and 

issues related to the Istanbul Convention 

In this field, several acts are worth mentioning. 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Parliament  Resolution  No. 4/2013  of  14  December  2012,  and  Presidential 
Decree  No. 13/2013,  both  published  in  the  Official  Journal  (Diário  da 
República)  of  21  January  2013,  approving  and  ratifying  the  Istanbul 
Convention; 

Criminal  Code,  as  regards  most  crimes  against  women  indicated  in  the  IC, 
although in some cases under a different name; 

Civil  Code,  as  regards  non-consensual  marriage  and  attacks  on  personal 
rights, such as the right to physical or moral integrity and the right to privacy; 

Labour Code, as regards discriminatory and sexual harassment in employment 
and  also  regarding  the  repercussions  of  domestic  violence  in  employment 
relations; 

Law  No. 112/2009  of  16  September  2009,  which  establishes  the  legal 
framework  regarding  domestic  violence.  This  piece  of  legislation  has  been 
amended several times, and is complemented by more specific legislation on 
the same topic,  such as Law  No. 104/2009  of  14 September 2009 (right to 
damage  compensation 
the  victims  of  domestic  violence),  and 
Implementing  Decree  No. 2/2018  of  24  January  2018  (shelter  homes  and 
other  protective  emergency  measures  for  victims  of  domestic  violence). 
Ministers’  Resolution  No. 139/2019  of  19  August  2019,  which  establishes  a 
number of measures intended to combat domestic violence; and the National 
Plans for the Prevention and Combat of Domestic Violence; and 

for 

37   This study, on domestic violence, is available at https://www.cig.gov.pt/wp-

content/uploads/2018/11/AF_CIG_ViolDomestica_A4.pdf.  

38   This website can be found at https://www.cig.gov.pt/portal-violencia-domestica/. 

76 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

- 

The National Plans for Gender Equality, that also deal with the issue of violence 
against  women;  the  plan  that  is  currently  in  force  is  the  National  Plan  for 
Equality  and  Non-Discrimination  2018-2030  (‘Estratégia  Nacional  para  a 
Igualdade  e  Não  Discriminação  2018-2030),39  which  was  approved  by 
Ministers’ Resolution No. 61/2018, of 21 May 2018. 

10.1.3 National provisions on online violence including online harassment 

The author is not aware of specific provisions related to online violence and online 
harassment. However, the legislation indicated above does not exclude the online 
environment of such practices, in their one specific context.  

10.1.4 Political and societal debate 

Violence against women and domestic violence is a matter of great concern to the 
Portuguese  authorities,  given  the  number  of  situations  reported  every  year,  so 
societal  and  political  debate  on  these  issues  is  quite  frequent,  and  these  issues 
attract  the  attention  of  the  media  quite  regularly.  In  short,  there  is  a  great 
awareness of this subject at several levels. 

10.2 Ratification of the Istanbul Convention 

Portugal  has  approved  and  ratified  the  Istanbul  Convention  (IC),  by  Parliament 
Resolution No. 4/2013 of 14 December 2012, and Presidential Decree No. 13/2013, 
both  published  in  the  Official  Journal  (Diário  da  República)  of  21  January  2013. 
Portugal was in fact the first country of the EU to ratify the IC, and the ratification 
was made without any reservations. 

In general, before the accession of Portugal to the IC, the topics of the Convention 
were already covered by national legislation, as mentioned above, in several areas: 
the  Criminal  Code  (as  regards  most  crimes  against  women,  indicated  in  the  IC, 
although in some cases under a different name); the Civil Code (as regards non-
consensual marriage and attacks on personal rights, such as the right to physical 
or  moral  integrity  and  the  right  to  privacy);  the  Labour  Code  (as  regards 
discriminatory and sexual harassment); and more specifically in respect to domestic 
violence,  Law  No. 112/2009  of  16  September  2009,  which  establishes  the  legal 
framework regarding domestic violence and other specific legislation on the same 
topic,  such  as  Law  No. 104/2009  of  14  September  2009  (right  to  damage 
compensation  for  the  victims  of  domestic  violence),  and  Implementing  Decree 
No. 1/2006,  of  25  January  2006  (shelter  homes  for  female  victims  of  domestic 
violence). The issue of violence against women is also taken into consideration at a 
domestic level by the national plans for gender equality and the national plans for 
the prevention and combat of domestic violence. 

In  the  author’s  view,  the  national  legal  framework  complies  with  the  obligations 
under the Convention.  

Since the accession, some amendments to the Criminal Code have been introduced, 
following several proposals that have been presented to Parliament regarding some 
of the issues covered by the IC. Law No. 83/2015 of 5 August 2015 has changed 
the  Criminal  Code  by  introducing,  as  autonomous  crimes,  the  crime  of  genital 
mutilation40 (Mutilação genital feminine – Article 144-A of the Criminal Code), the 

39   See: https://www.cig.gov.pt/estrategia-nacional-para-a-igualdade-e-a-nao-discriminacao-2018-

2030-portugal-igual/. 

40   Previously this offence fell under the scope of the crime of ‘Serious offence to physical integrity’ 

(‘Ofensa à integridade física grave’) as in Article 144(1)(a) of the Criminal Code. 

77 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

crime  of  stalking  (Perseguição  –  Article 154-A)  and  the  crime  of  forced  marriage 
(Casamento forçado – Article 154-B).  

Finally,  Law  No. 112/2009  of  16  September  2009,  on  domestic  violence,  was 
amended by Law No. 129/2015 of 3 September 2015, in the sense of making the 
administrative  response  to  domestic  violence  more  efficient  and  also  specifically 
directed at preventing homicide in this context.  

78 

 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

11  Compliance  and  enforcement  aspects  (horizontal  provisions  of  all 

directives)  

11.1 General (legal) context 

11.1.1 Issues related to the pursuit of a discrimination claim 

The author has no information regarding this topic. 

11.1.2 Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

The author has no information regarding this topic. 

11.1.3 Gender mainstreaming 

Gender  mainstreaming  is  a  topic  known  to  and  addressed  by  academics,  but  the 
author has no information regarding specific surveys or studies on this topic. 

11.2 Victimisation 

There is no explicit reference to the topic of victimisation in relation to discrimination 
in the Portuguese legal system.  

However,  in  the  area  of  employment,  it  is  strictly  forbidden  for  the  employer  to 
oppose  in  any  way  the  exercise  of  the  employee’s  rights  and  to  react  to  such 
exercising of those rights with any sanction, dismissal or less favourable treatment 
of the worker. This strict prohibition is established in Article 129(1)(a) of the LC and 
includes the prohibition of victimisation on the grounds of applying for or exercising 
gender equality rights. 

11.3 Access to courts 

11.3.1 Difficulties and barriers related to access to courts 

In  Portugal,  alleged  victims  of  discrimination  practices  have  free  access  to  the 
courts. 

In the field of employment, individual complaints can be brought directly before the 
courts  (labour  court  for  private  employees,  and  administrative  court  for  public 
employees) by the victim’s lawyer.  

The alleged victims also have the right to seek counsel and to report discriminatory 
practices to the legal authorities in this area: the Autoridade para as Condições de 
Trabalho  (ACT)  (Labour  Inspectorate)  and  the  Comissão  para  a  Igualdade  no 
Trabalho e no Emprego (CITE) (Commission for Equality in Work and Employment). 

At another level, in accordance with the Labour Code (Article 443(1)(d)), and, more 
generally,  in  accordance  with  the  principles  of  civil  procedural  legislation  (Labour 
Procedural  Code,  Article 5(1)),  class  actions  are  possible  in  order  to  defend 
collective interests. Therefore, in the field of discrimination in employment relations, 
these  actions  are  allowed  in  all  cases  where  a  collective  interest  regarding  the 
promotion of equality is recognised in the entity that initiates the proceedings. Also, 
collective  representatives  of  a  victim  of  discrimination  (e.g.  trade  unions)  can 
promote judicial actions on the victim’s behalf or assist the victim in those actions 
(Labour Procedural Code, Article 5(2)).  

79 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Despite this general picture, judicial proceedings regarding gender discriminatory 
practices  in  Portugal  are  quite  rare.41  In  contrast,  as  regards  employment,  the 
number of situations where the CITE acts in this area (since the Commission must 
give advice on various matters related to gender equality, such as the dismissal of 
pregnant women, the refusal to give access to part-time work or the non-renewal 
of a fixed-term job for childcare reasons) is well documented42 and can amount to 
dozens of written advisory reports per year, in addition to support and counselling 
activities for discriminated workers.  

The difference between the reduced number  of actions brought before the courts 
and the intense work of the CITE gives grounds for the conclusion that the practical 
implementation of gender equality provisions is still difficult and the more effective 
action in view of this practical implementation in fact takes place outside the courts.  

In  relation  to  self-employment  and  to  the  access  to  and  supply  of  goods  and 
services,  the  access  to  courts  is  also  available  with  no  restrictions,  both  to  the 
alleged victim and to collective bodies. In this last sense, the law establishes the 
rights and competences of other private and public organisations to assist victims 
of discrimination, including the right to intervene in judicial proceedings in the field 
of self-employment (Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011, Articles 1 and 8) and as 
regards gender equality in the access to and supply of goods and services (Article 11 
of Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008). 

11.3.2 Availability of legal aid 

In relation to judicial proceedings, in the event of economic difficulties, the person 
has the right to a public lawyer for this purpose and does not have to pay the costs 
of the proceedings. 

Apart  from  judicial  proceedings,  the  alleged  victims  also  have  the  right  to  seek 
counsel and to report discriminatory practices to the legal authorities in this area: 
the Autoridade para as Condições de Trabalho (ACT) (Labour Inspectorate), and the 
Comissão  para  a  Igualdade  no  Trabalho  e  no  Emprego  (CITE)  (Commission  for 
Equality in Work and Employment).  

Outside the area of employment, victims of discrimination can ask for legal support 
from the Comissão para a Cidadania e Igualdade de Género (CIG) (Commission for 
Equality and Citizenship).  

11.4 Horizontal effect of the applicable law 

11.4.1 Horizontal effect of relevant gender equality law 

Gender  equality  law  in  Portugal  has  a  horizontal  effect  in  the  sense  that  the 
provisions can be invoked in private relations and directly against the other party, 
because  the  legal  provisions  in  this  field  are  written  in  acts  that  are  directly 
applicable to private parties, such as the Labour Code, the Civil Code, or in more 
specific legislation in the area of gender equality, including ‘domestic’ legislation per 
se and legislation ratifying international treaties, or transposing EU directives, that 
become ipso jure part of the national legislative system.  

41   For an overview of case law in this area see Sá Fernandes, M. P., Martins Da Rocha, R. A., 

Cerqueira, M. (2006), 22 Anos de Jurisprudência portuguesa sobre Igualdade Laboral em razão do 
Sexo (1979-2001), Lisboa, CITE, 2006 (this book is also available in https://cite.gov.pt/web/pt). 

42   See: https://cite.gov.pt/web/pt (Pareceres) and also Relatótio CITE 2020, pp. 95 et seq. 

80 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Even  some  provisions  in  the  area  of  gender  equality,  which  are  indicated  and 
qualified as fundamental rights by the  Constitution, have horizontal  effect, in the 
sense  that  they  are  immediately  binding  provisions  and  can  therefore  also  be 
invoked between private parties (Article 18(2)  of the PC).  The non-discrimination 
principle  (including  on  the  ground  of  sex),  the  equality  principle  in  the  access  to 
employment,  or  the  equal  pay  principle,  are  good  examples  of  provisions  of  the 
Portuguese Constitution that can be directly invoked between private parties.  

In fact, only the so-called ‘programmatic’ provisions (i.e., provisions directed at the 
State) and the non-binding principles written in international treaties, in EU law, or 
at national level, programmatic provisions written in the Portuguese Constitution or 
legislation, have no horizontal effect under the Portuguese system. 

11.4.2 Impact of horizontal direct effects of the charter after Bauer  

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (CFREU) is often quoted 
and called-upon at national level, including by the courts. However, the question of 
the  horizontal  direct  effect  of  the  provisions  of  the  Charter  as  regards  gender 
equality at national level does not arise because the national legal provisions in this 
field already cover the topics dealt with by the Charter.  

11.5 Burden of proof 

National legislation provides for a shift of the burden of proof in sex discrimination 
cases  in  the  areas  of  employment,  self-employment  and  access  to  and  supply  of 
goods and services. 

In  the  field  of  employment,  the  provisions  on  the  burden  of  proof  have  been 
transposed into national legislation by the Labour Code (LC, Article 25(5) and (6)), 
which  applies  the  rule  of  the  shift  of  the  burden  of  proof  to  all  actions  regarding 
discriminatory  practices  (gender  included),  maternity,  paternity,  reconciliation  of 
work  and  family  life  and  carers  rights,  with  the  exception  of  actions  based  on 
harassment practices. 

In relation to gender equality in the access to and supply of goods and services, the 
shift of the burden of proof in sex discrimination cases is established in Article 9 of 
Law No. 14/2008 of 12 March 2008, in accordance with EU law. 

In  the  field  of  self-employment,  the  shift  of  the  burden  of  proof  is  established  in 
Article 7 of Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011. 

The national provisions on the burden of proof comply with EU law, with the possible 
exception  of  actions  related  to  discriminatory  harassment,  where  the  shift  of  the 
burden of proof is not explicitly established by the Labour Code. 

11.6 Remedies and sanctions  

11.6.1 Types of remedies and sanctions 

National  law  establishes  different  types  of  sanctions  for  breaches  of  EU  gender 
equality law, depending on the type and context of the breach. Since the criteria for 
the application of the sanctions differ according to the nature of the breach and the 
type  of  liability  involved,  the  sanctions  are  not  interrelated  and  the  same  breach 
can give rise to the application of more than one sanction. 

When a breach of equality law involves a crime, a criminal sanction is applicable, 
under the Criminal Code. 

81 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

When  a  breach  of  equality  law  causes  economic  or  moral  damage  to  the  victim, 
damage  compensation  is  applicable  under  the  Civil  Code  (Article 483)  and  in  the 
field of employment, also under the Labour Code (Article 28). 

In the field of employment, a breach of equality provisions can also give ground to 
the  application  of  administrative  fines  by  the  Autoridade  para  as  Condições  de 
Trabalho – ACT (Labour Inspectorate). If a breach of equality law in employment 
relations results in dismissal, the dismissal is unlawful and therefore null and void, 
giving the right to reinstatement or to damage compensation, as the worker chooses 
(Article 63, Article 381(b) and (d) and Article 391 LC). 

A  specific  sanction  for  the  breach  of  gender  equality  provisions  in  collective 
agreements is the remedy established in Article 26 of the LC: whenever a collective 
agreement or a company regulation  restricts  a certain type  of remuneration  or a 
certain professional category or activity only to men or to women, these stipulations 
are considered automatically applicable to employees of both sexes, provided they 
perform equal work or work of the same value. This provision can be very effective 
to promote the practical implementation of equal pay and equal treatment in the 
course of employment, due to the immediate effect of this remedy, and also goes 
beyond EU law. 

A specific sanction has been established concerning the breach of maternity rights: 
under Law No. 133/2015 of 7 September 2015, companies convicted by the court 
for  having  illegally  dismissed  pregnant  workers,  recent  mothers  or  workers  who 
were  breastfeeding,  cannot  benefit  from  public  allowances  or  public  financial 
benefits of any kind for a period of two years after the court’s judgment.  

Finally,  in  relation  to  harassment  practices  in  employment  relations,  Law 
No. 73/2017 of 16 August 2017 has reinforced the protection of harassment victims 
by granting them accrued rights to damage compensation, by imposing upon the 
employer the duty to approve a code of conduct in relation to harassment practices 
in  the  company  as  well  as  the  duty  to  start  a  disciplinary  procedure  against 
harassment  perpetrators,  and  by  extending  the  protection  against  dismissal  to 
witnesses of harassment practices who denounce such practices (Article 29(4), (5) 
and (6) and Article 127(1)(k) and (l)).  

11.6.2 Effectiveness, proportionality and dissuasiveness 

In the author’s view, the remedies and sanctions established in national legislation 
are effective, proportional and dissuasive.  

11.7 Equality body  

In Portugal two official bodies deal with gender discrimination: the Comissão para 
a Igualdade no Trabalho  e no Emprego – CITE (Commission  for Equality in Work 
and  Employment);  and  the  Comissão  para  a  Cidadania  e  Igualdade  de  Género  – 
CIG (Agency for Gender Equality and Citizenship).  

In addition, the Labour Inspectorate (Autoridade para as Condições de Trabalho – 
ACT),  has  inspection  powers  over  employers’  activities  and  organisations  and  is 
competent to apply administrative fines in matters related to employment.  

1. 

Commission for Equality in Work and Employment (CITE) 

The CITE (https://cite.gov.pt/web/pt) was created prior to the accession of Portugal 
to the European Union, by the Equality Act of 1979 (Decree-Law No. 392/79 of 20 
September, Articles 14 and 15), which at the time was the general law regarding 

82 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

gender  equality  in  the  field  of  employment.  Now,  the  by-laws  of  the  CITE  are 
established in Decree-Law No. 76/2012, of 26 March 2012. 

As to the nature of this body, the CITE is a public body that depends directly on the 
Government  and  is  financed  by  a  public  institution  (Instituto  do  Emprego  e 
Formação  Profissional  –  Institute  for  Employment  and  Professional  Training). 
Despite  its  public  nature,  the  CITE  is  a  tripartite  organisation,  since  it  includes 
members appointed by the Government, but also members appointed by the major 
unions  and  members  appointed  by  the  major  employer’s  organisations  (e.g. 
representatives of the main social partners).  

This composition and the financing model give rise to the conclusion that the CITE 
cannot  be  considered  as  a  completely  independent  body.  However,  it  has  some 
independence in its actions, given the fact that non-governmental organisations are 
represented at the agency and, in fact, the decisions of this agency are approved 
by voting in a council that includes the non-governmental organisations.  

The  general  purpose  of  the  CITE  (described  in  Articles 2  et  seq.  of  Decree-Law 
No. 76/2012 of 26 March 2012) is the promotion of gender equality in employment 
and in vocational training, to reinforce the protection of maternity and paternity and 
to promote the reconciliation of family and working life. This agency deals both with 
the private and the public sector.  

To  achieve  this  purpose,  the  CITE  has  the  following  responsibilities:  promotional 
activities, e.g. awareness raising, and dissemination of information in these areas; 
analysis and monitoring, e.g. conducting or commissioning research and surveys, 
publishing reports and making legal recommendations to the ministers in charge of 
employment  and  of  civil  servants  in  order  to  improve  legislation  in  the  areas 
indicated  above;  giving  an  opinion  in  matters  regarding  gender  equality,  such  as 
dismissal of pregnant workers or workers on maternity, paternity or parental leave, 
part-time  work  for  family  reasons,  and  fixed-term  contracts  (in  these  cases 
employers are obliged to ask the  opinion of the CITE before taking the measure, 
and a negative  opinion  is binding and can only be challenged before the courts); 
working with the employers and with the Labour Inspectorate in actions regarding 
discrimination  at  company  level  (such  as  visits,  denouncing  discriminatory 
practices,  etc.),  namely  after  receiving  a  complaint  of  a  victim  of  discrimination; 
giving  assistance  to  victims  of  discrimination,  by  providing  advice;  analysing 
collective  agreements  after  their  publication  to  check  whether  they  include 
discriminatory  clauses  (if  this  is  the  case,  the  agency  can  directly  challenge  the 
employer to correct the discriminatory clause and if the employer does not comply 
with this request, present the case to the public prosecutor, who can take it to court 
in order to have these clauses declared null and void). 

In practice, the role of the CITE has been very important over the years.  

2. 

Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality (CIG) 

The second public body in the field of gender equality is the CIG. In Portugal, an 
official  body  with  wide  responsibilities  in  the  field  of  women’s  rights  and  gender 
equality has existed since 1977. This body has had different names over the years: 
Comissão  da  Condição  Feminina,  created  in  1977  and  replaced  in  1991  by  the 
Comissão  para  a  Igualdade  de  Género  e  os  Direitos  da  Mulheres  (CIDM),  and 
replaced  again,  in  2006,  by  the  present  agency,  Comissão  para  a  Cidadania  e 
Igualdade de Género (CIG), the by-laws of which are now included in Implementing 
Decree No. 1/2012 of 3 January 2012. 

83 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

The  CIG  (www.cig.gov.pt)  is  a  governmental  body,  directly  depending  on  the 
Presidency of the Council of Ministers, so it is not independent. Nevertheless, the 
CIG  has  a  scientific  advice  body,  where  private  experts  in  gender  equality  are 
represented and it works closely with private associations and NGOs in this area. 

The goals of the CIG, as defined in Decree No. 1/2012 of 3 January 2012 are the 
following: to contribute to the improvement of education regarding citizenship; to 
promote gender equality in all areas; to protect maternity and paternity; to promote 
equality  in  the  participation  of  men  and  women  in  all  areas  of  life;  to  promote 
reconciliation of family and working life; to fight domestic violence, gender violence 
and human trafficking and to give support to the victims of such practices.  

In  pursuit  of  these  goals,  the  CIG  has  broad  competence  in  relation  to  gender 
equality,  including  in  the  areas  of  gender  violence  and  domestic  violence, 
reconciliation of family and professional life, women’s studies, education and self-
employment.  In  these  areas,  the  CIG  develops  studies  and  performs  research, 
provides  legal  information  and  advice,  edits  publications  and  disseminates 
information, and works with NGOs in the different areas related to gender equality.  

In practice, the more important role of this body has been in the area of legal advice 
(especially as regards domestic violence, gender violence and maternity/paternity 
issues) and in the publication of gender studies.  

11.8 Social partners  

Social  partners  can  play  a  major  role  in  the  enforcement  of  gender  equality  law 
since,  under  the  Portuguese  Constitution  (Article 56(2)(a))  and  under  the  Labour 
Code  (Article 470),  all  bills  regarding  employment  and  industrial  relations  issues 
must  be  presented  to,  and  must  be  discussed  with  the  social  partners,  and  the 
breach  of  this  stipulation  makes  the  Act unconstitutional  and  therefore  not 
applicable.  

Due to this  rule, all legal provisions concerning labour law are, in fact, discussed 
with the social partners on a regular basis, and this includes provisions on gender 
equality. In Portugal, within the context of the Conselho Económico e Social (Social 
and Economic Council), the social partners and the Government meet regularly in a 
permanent  committee  (Comissão  Permanente  da  Concertação  Social  (CPCS)  – 
Social  Council  Permanent  Committee)  and  in  practice,  the  legislation  related  to 
employment and to industrial relations is discussed and actively ‘negotiated’ in this 
committee by the social partners and the Government.  

Gender equality law in the area of employment also has to be discussed at this level 
so the social partners can play a very active role here. However, in practice, it is 
only in recent years that the importance of gender equality issues in employment 
has been recognised by the social partners.  

11.9 Other relevant bodies 

There are no other relevant bodies to be mentioned in the area of gender equality. 

11.10 Evaluation of implementation 

In the author’s view, EU law related to equality bodies has been well implemented 
in Portugal. 

84 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

11.11 Remaining issues 

At  another  level,  collective  agreements  can  be  a  very  important  instrument  to 
promote the practical implementation of legal provisions on gender equality. To this 
end,  two  provisions  of  the  Labour  Code  are  worth  mentioning:  the  provision 
concerning  the  content  of  collective  agreements;  and  the  provision  on  the 
assessment of collective agreements by the CITE.  

The  LC  establishes  that  collective  agreements  should  implement  the  necessary 
measures  to  enforce  equality  (Article 492(2)(d)).  However,  this  rule  is  not 
mandatory and equality issues are not an important issue in collective bargaining. 
This  situation  could  change  if  these  issues  were  to  be  considered  as  mandatory 
content of collective agreements, since these agreements are binding and may be 
declared to be generally applicable.  

The  LC  also  establishes  a  system  of  assessment  of  the  content  of  collective 
agreements by the CITE, performed during the first 30 days after the publication of 
these agreements and designed to check them for possible discriminatory clauses 
and promote elimination of such clauses by the court (Article 479). This system has 
already proved to be very efficient, either because the CITE has convinced the social 
partners to change the clause in question, or, when this does not happen, because 
the court has declared the clause null and void.  

85 

 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

12  Overall assessment  

The following transposition problems were mentioned in this report: 

- 

- 

- 

-  

The extension of the specific provision on the shift of the burden of proof to 
legal actions related to harassment is not clear, because harassment is treated 
in a separate section of the LC (Article 29) and that rule is integrated in the 
section  of  the  LC  (Article 25  No. 5)  dedicated  to  equality  and  non-
discrimination. 

Social  security  protection,  namely  as  regards  maternity  protection  and  the 
reconciliation of family and professional life, is much less developed in relation 
to  self-employment  than  in  employment  relations  and  this  entails  gender 
discrimination in the area of self-employment, as women tend to assume most 
of the care responsibilities. 

The  social  security  compensation  for  the  taking  of  parental  leave  under 
national law is limited to the first three months of leave. The fact that only the 
first three months are paid is still not in compliance with Directive 2019/1158, 
since the other special leaves that can follow parental leave in the strict sense 
do not include a right to compensation except in one particular situation. 

The  notion  of  worker  with  care  responsibilities  established  at  national  level 
(‘secondary informal carer’) is very strict, as it depends upon very restrictive 
conditions. As a result, it is possible to anticipate that most workers with care 
responsibilities will not be able, in practice, to take the care leave and other 
flexible working arrangements set up by law. 

Besides the specific problems mentioned above, in the author’s  view,  Portuguese 
legislation  formally  complies  with  EU  law.  In  some  areas,  the  level  of  protection 
granted by national legislation goes beyond EU law, as in the case of the various 
types of family-related leave, in relation to positive action, or as regards the very 
active role of the CITE in collective agreement evaluation and in direct work with 
the employers as regards pay transparency and equal pay plans. 

However,  when  looking  beyond  the  legal  framework,  the  material  weaknesses  of 
the system are very apparent, especially on four points. 

First, although the law establishes many protective measures, the State does not 
always finance them where needed, and therefore some of these measures do not 
work in practice (this is true for  some  of the  maternity and paternity measures). 
Secondly, there is no practical implementation of the legal measures by collective 
agreements, with or without the assistance of the State. Thirdly, there is no relevant 
case law describing gender equality (aside from those indicated in section 11.11 in 
relation to collective agreement provisions with a discriminatory content), since in 
Portugal  hardly  any  cases  have  been  decided  in  this  area.  Finally,  the  regular 
surveys conducted by the CITE in relation to pay show that the pay gap between 
men and women is still significant (in 2021, still 13.3 % for basic pay and 16.1 % 
when considering the total earning capacity and up to 25.2 % in higher positions),43 
thus leading to the conclusion that even regarding such a traditional issue as equal 
pay, there is still a lot to be done. 

This situation indicates some difficulties in the practical implementation of the legal 
provisions in this area. The system exists in law, but its practical effectiveness is 
weak. 

43   CITE Report 2022, p. 41. 

86 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Given that the Portuguese legal system is already very comprehensive and generally 
in line with EU Law, as indicated above, more important are the actions intended to 
raise  social  awareness  on  equality  issues  at  all  levels  and  aiming  to  promote  the 
practical implementation of the legal provisions already in place.  

At this level, in recent years, the following topics seem to be attracting the attention 
of the relevant stakeholders (politicians, social partners, public agencies and NGOs 
in this area, and the media) by way  of public  debates and campaigns, legislative 
proposals  and  a  variety  of  implementation  programmes:  domestic  violence  and 
more broadly, violence against women; reconciliation of family and working life; the 
gender  pay  gap,  which  periodically  emerges;  and  gender  equality  in  decision 
making, including a discussion on the possibility of enlarging the quota legislation 
approved in 2017 to private but non-listed companies.  

Still at this more practical level, it is also worth mentioning the importance of the 
formal and informal work performed by both equality agencies, in their own fields, 
and  the  role  of  the  Labour  Inspectorate  in  the  active  implementation  of  gender 
equality, especially in the field of employment.  

Finally, the author notes that in the period covered by this report (1 January 2022 
to  1  January  2023)  a  major  reform  of  the  legislation  relating  to  employment 
contracts  and  industrial  relations,  which  also  dealt  with  gender  equality  and 
work/life balance, was discussed between the social partners and the Government 
and later on at the National Parliament.  

87 

 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Portugal – 2024 

Bibliography 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Comissão para a Cidadania e Igualdade de Género (CIG) (2018), Prevenção e 
Combate  à  Violência  contra  as  mulheres  e  violência  doméstica  –  2018 
(Prevention of and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence 
– 2018), CIG ed., Lisbon, 2018, available at:  
https://poise.portugal2020.pt/documents/10180/79366/Infografia+Viol%C3
%AAncia+contra+as+Mulheres+%28CIG+2018%29.pdf/ac219674-6c51-
4a16-ac91-616d92992f8d. 

Comissão  para  a  Igualdade  no  Trabalho  e  no  Emprego  (CITE)  (2022), 
Relatório  sobre  o  Progresso  da  Igualdade  entre  Homens  e  Mulheres  2021 
(Report on the Progress of Equality between Men and Women 2021), available 
at https://cite.gov.pt/relatorio-da-lei-10. 

Palma-Ramalho,  M.  do  Rosário  (2020)  (2023)  (2023)  (2023),  Tratado  de 
Direito  do  Trabalho  (Treaty  on  Labour  Law),  I  –  Dogmática  Geral 
(Fundamentals on Labour Law), 6th edition), Coimbra (Almedina Ed.), 2020, 
II  –  Situações  Laborais  Individuais  (Employment  Contract),  9th  edition, 
Coimbra (Almedina Ed.), 2023, III – Situações Laborais Colectivas (Industrial 
Relations), 4th edition, Coimbra (Almedina Ed.), 2023, and IV – Contratos e 
Regimes  Especiais  (Special  employment  contracts  and  specific  regulation), 
2nd. Coimbra (Almedina Ed.), 2023. 

Palma-Ramalho, M. do Rosário (2009),  O direito da igualdade no Código do 
Trabalho  –  contributo  para  uma  reflexão  (Equality  provisions  in  the  Labour 
Code  –  some  reflections):  A  Reforma  do  Código  do  Trabalho,  Coimbra 
(Coimbra Ed.), pp. 173-189. 

Palma-Ramalho,  M.  do  Rosário  /  Coelho  Moreira,  T.  (2018)  (coord.),  A 
Igualdade  nas  Relações  de  Trabalho  (Equality  in  Employment  Relations), 
Estudos APODIT 5, Lisboa (AAFDL Ed.).  

Other references to be included in the bibliography at EU level 

- 

- 

- 

Palma-Ramalho,  M.  do  Rosário  (2009),  Direito  Social  da  União  Europeia 
(European Union Social Law), Coimbra (Almedina Ed.). 

Palma-Ramalho,  M.  do  Rosário  (2009),  ‘Reconciling  Family  and  Professional 
Life  and  the  Gender  Equality  Principle  in  Employment’,  European  Gender 
Equality Law Review (EGELR), 2009/2, pp. 7-15. 

Palma-Ramalho, M. do  Rosário (2003),  Garantir a Igualdade Remuneratória 
entre Mulheres e Homens na União Europeia (also translated into English and 
published under the title Guaranteeing Equal Pay between Women and Men in 
the European Union), Lisboa (CITE Ed.). 

88 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
GETTING IN TOUCH WITH THE EU 

In person 

All over the European Union there are hundreds of Europe Direct information centres. 
You can find the address of the centre nearest you at:  
https://europa.eu/european-union/contact_en.  

On the phone or by email 

Europe Direct is a service that answers your questions about the European Union.  
You can contact this service: – by freephone: 
00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (certain operators may charge for these calls), –  
at the following standard number: +32 22999696, or – by email via: 
https://europa.eu/european-union/contact_en. 

FINDING INFORMATION ABOUT THE EU 

Online 

Information about the European Union in all the official languages of the EU is available 
on the Europa website at: https://europa.eu/european- union/index_en.  

EU publications 

You can download or order free and priced EU publications from: 
https://publications.europa.eu/en/publications. Multiple copies of free publications may 
be obtained by contacting Europe Direct or your local information centre  
(see https://europa. eu/european-union/contact_en). 

EU law and related documents 

For access to legal information from the EU, including all EU law since 1951 in all the 
official language versions, go to EUR-Lex at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/. 

Open data from the EU 

The EU Open Data Portal (http://data.europa.eu/euodp/en) provides access to datasets 
from the EU. Data can be downloaded and reused for free, for both commercial and non-
commercial purposes. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

PDF  

ISBN: 978-92-68-13321-7 doi: 10.2838/10007