Guides
How a Condominium (Condomínio) Works in Portugal
What owning a flat in a Portuguese building means: shared parts, fees and the reserve fund, the yearly meeting, the manager, and how to challenge a vote.
The Portugal Brief
Politics
PS Brands the Labour Code Overhaul a 'Contrarreforma' and Drafts an Alternative Competitiveness-and-Wages Package for Late May — Carneiro Wraps Concertação Social With CGTP on Friday 22 May
PS leader José Luís Carneiro branded the Labour Code revision a 'contrarreforma' on Thursday 21 May and confirmed PS will vote against on the general phase. An alternative competitiveness-and-wages package follows next week after Carneiro wraps Concertação Social with CGTP on Friday 22 May.
Education
Conselho de Ministros Approves Universidade de Leiria e do Oeste and Universidade Técnica do Porto on Thursday 21 May — €150 Million PTRR Envelope and a 2026-2034 Horizon Frame the First Polytechnic-to-University Promotions in a Generation
Conselho de Ministros on 21 May 2026 approves the conversion of Instituto Politécnico de Leiria and Instituto Politécnico do Porto into Universidade de Leiria e do Oeste and Universidade Técnica do Porto, on a €150 million PTRR envelope running through 2034.
Environment
Zero Cuts the 2026 'Zero Poluição' Roster to 73 Beaches — Eight Costas Drop Out, Grândola Carries Six and Two River Reservoirs Make the Microbiological Cut
Zero's 2026 Zero Poluição list carries 73 beaches with no detected microbiological contamination across three bathing cycles — eight fewer than 2025. Grândola leads with six, Porto Santo with five; 23 entries in, 31 out versus last year.
Economy
Nova SBE's Balanço Social 2025 Places Açores Second on the National Poverty Map at 17.3% — 33.8 Gini, 17.4% Material Deprivation and the Sharpest Reliance on Social Transfers Frame the Regional Gap
Nova SBE's Portugal, Balanço Social 2025 places Açores at 17.3% poverty risk and 17.4% material deprivation — the highest deprivation reading and the sharpest 33.8 Gini in the country. Reframes Wednesday's national 15.4% figure as a continental average masking the regional gap.
Politics
Lusa Journalists Take the Estatutos Fight to Brussels After the 20 May Walkout — Sindicato dos Jornalistas Files a Complaint With the European Commission Over the Risk of 'Governamentalização'
Sindicato dos Jornalistas files a European Commission complaint over Lusa's revised statutes the day after the 24-hour walkout. Union frames the new estatutos as failing the EU Media Freedom Act's public-service editorial-independence test.
Markets Briefing
Markets, Business & Tech Briefing: PSI −0.22% to 9,227.99 on Sonae and Mota-Engil Drag, Stellantis FaSTLAne 2030 €60B Lifts Mangualde Read-Across, CFP Warns Permanent Spending Compromises Tax Cuts
The latest Portugal news, analysis, and what it means for expats and residents.