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Social trends, demographics, and community issues in modern Portugal.

The historic Paco das Escolas courtyard and clock tower of the University of Coimbra, Portugal's oldest university

A Record 21,000 Exam Re-Mark Requests Swamp Portugal's Grading System

The Júri Nacional de Exames received about 21,000 exam re-grade requests this year — roughly triple the norm — overwhelming a marking system slowed by digital exams and delaying the ficha ENES that students need to apply to university within a three-day window.

The Portugal Brief 10 Aug 2026

A partial solar eclipse showing a crescent Sun against a dark sky as the Moon covers part of the solar disc

Portugal's First Total Solar Eclipse Since 1912 Arrives Wednesday, and Doctors Want You in Certified Glasses

Portugal sees its first total solar eclipse since 1912 on Wednesday, 12 August — total only from the uplands near Bragança and partial elsewhere, with about 94% of the Sun covered in Lisbon. Health officials are urging ISO 12312-2 certified glasses, warning that around one in five eye injuries can b

The Portugal Brief 10 Aug 2026

A Portuguese PSP police station with a blue POLICIA sign and a marked PSP patrol car parked outside on a cobbled street

Applications to Join Portugal's PSP Fall 13% Just as the Force Braces for a Wave of Retirements

The latest recruitment competition for PSP officers drew 2,945 applicants, 447 fewer than the previous edition — a 13% drop that lands just as an ageing force braces for some 900 retirements this year, with unions blaming low pay and poor conditions.

The Portugal Brief 10 Aug 2026

Portugal Married More Couples in 2025 Than in Any Year Since 2010, Four in Five of Them at a Register Office

Portugal Married More Couples in 2025 Than in Any Year Since 2010, Four in Five of Them at a Register Office

Portugal saw more weddings in 2025 than in any year since 2010, the Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE, Statistics Portugal) has reported — a modest but clear rebound that public broadcaster RTP flagged at the weekend as a “record.”...

The Portugal Brief 09 Aug 2026

An elderly couple seen from behind walking hand in hand along a city street on a sunny day

Portuguese Pensioners in Seven Countries Must Complete a Proof-of-Life Check by 15 September or Lose Their Payments

Portuguese pensioners resident in Belgium, Canada, Cape Verde, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, the UK and Switzerland must file a mandatory Prova de Vida (proof-of-life) declaration by 15 September 2026 or see payments suspended from November. Social Security says a digital biometric check now needs on

The Portugal Brief 09 Aug 2026

More Than Half of Portuguese Adults Are Overweight, and the Nutritionists' Chief Blames Politics

More Than Half of Portuguese Adults Are Overweight, and the Nutritionists' Chief Blames Politics

More than half of Portugal's adults are now overweight or obese, and the head of the country's nutritionists says the blame lies squarely with political inaction. Speaking on Friday, 8 August, Liliana Sousa, bastonária (president) of the Ordem dos...

The Portugal Brief 09 Aug 2026

150 Million Containers In, Portugal's Volta Deposit-Return Scheme Becomes Mandatory

150 Million Containers In, Portugal's Volta Deposit-Return Scheme Becomes Mandatory

Portugal's deposit-return system for single-use drinks packaging, branded Volta , crossed a symbolic threshold this weekend: more than 150 million bottles and cans have been handed back since the scheme launched, and from Sunday, 9 August,...

The Portugal Brief 09 Aug 2026

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