Employment Contracts, Pay, and Worker Rights in Portugal
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Your rights as an employee in Portugal: contract types, the 14 salary payments, your payslip, hours, holidays, probation, notice, and severance.
Last verified: October 2026.
Who this is for
- You work for an employer in Portugal on a Portuguese contract, as an EU or non-EU citizen.
- You have a job offer and want to check the salary, contract type, and probation.
- Your job is ending and you want to know your notice and severance.
Not for you if: you invoice clients as a freelancer. Read Registering as Self-Employed (Recibos Verdes) in Portugal instead.
If you work for an employer in Portugal, the Labour Code (Código do Trabalho) sets the floor for your contract. Your employer can give you more, but not less. You are paid 14 times a year, not 12. Your employer deducts 11% for social security and withholds income tax each month. You get at least 22 working days of paid holiday. Probation lasts 90 days for most permanent jobs. Your rights apply from your first day, and checking them costs nothing.
Which contract you have and why it matters
Your probation, notice, and severance all depend on the contract type. Check the heading of your contract first.
- Permanent contract (contrato sem termo). No end date. This is the default and gives you the most protection.
- Fixed-term contract (contrato a termo certo). Has an end date. It is only lawful for a temporary need, such as a seasonal peak or covering an absent colleague. It must be in writing and state the reason.
- Uncertain-term contract (contrato a termo incerto). Ends when a task finishes or an absent worker returns, not on a set date.
- Very short contract (contrato de muito curta duração). For exceptional peaks, such as seasonal farm work or tourism. Each contract lasts at most 35 days, with a total of 70 working days a year with the same employer.
- Temporary agency work (trabalho temporário). An agency employs you and places you with a client. You are entitled to the pay, holidays, and holiday and Christmas pay that the client's own staff get for the same work.
- Part-time work (tempo parcial). Fewer hours than a comparable full-time colleague. You must not be treated less well, and your pay is in proportion to your hours.
Remote work (teletrabalho) is an arrangement, not a contract type. It must be agreed in writing. Your employer must pay the extra costs it causes you, including higher energy and internet bills.
Limits on fixed-term contracts
The law limits how long an employer can keep you on temporary contracts:
- A fixed-term contract can last at most two years.
- It can be renewed at most three times, and the renewals together cannot last longer than the first contract.
- An uncertain-term contract can last at most four years.
If your employer breaks these limits, gives no valid reason in writing, or misses the written form, the law treats your contract as permanent. Keep a copy of every contract and renewal.
How the 14 salary payments work
On top of 12 monthly salaries, you get two extra payments, each worth one month's pay:
- Holiday pay (subsídio de férias). Paid before your holiday starts, unless you agree otherwise in writing.
- Christmas pay (subsídio de Natal). Paid by 15 December. In the year you start or leave, you get a share in proportion to the time worked.
A salary of €1,500 a month is €21,000 a year (€1,500 x 14). When you compare offers, check whether the monthly figure is based on 12 or 14 payments.
Some employers split the two extra payments into twelfths (duodécimos) and add one to each payslip. Your payslip shows which method your employer uses.
The national minimum wage for 2026 is €920 a month for full-time work. A collective agreement for your sector may set a higher minimum.
Reading your payslip
Your payslip (recibo de vencimento) shows your gross pay (salário bruto), the deductions, and your net pay (salário líquido). Keep every payslip. You need them for loans, permit renewals, and your tax return.
Social security
If you are an employee, 11% of your gross pay goes to social security (Segurança Social). Your employer pays a further 23.75% on top, which you do not see on the payslip. These contributions build your pension and your right to sick pay, parental pay, and unemployment benefit. You need a social security number (NISS) before you start. See Understanding Portugal's Social Security System.
Income tax withholding
Your employer withholds income tax (IRS) each month, using official tables. The rate depends on your pay, your family situation, and your dependants. This is only a payment on account. The next spring you file your yearly return and get a refund or pay the difference. See Filing Your Annual Income Tax Return (IRS) in Portugal.
For 2026 income, IRS rates run from 12.5% on the first €8,342 of taxable income to 48% on income above €86,634.
Meal allowance
Most employees also get a daily meal allowance (subsídio de refeição) for each day worked. In the private sector it usually comes from your contract or your sector's collective agreement.
In 2026, the meal allowance is free of income tax up to these daily limits:
- €6.15 a day if paid in cash with your salary.
- €10.46 a day if paid on a meal card or vouchers.
Anything above those limits is taxed like salary.
Hours, overtime, and the right to disconnect
If you work full time, your normal limits are eight hours a day and 40 hours a week. You must have at least 11 hours of rest in a row between working days, and at least one rest day a week. Collective agreements often set better terms.
Overtime (trabalho suplementar) is capped:
- At most two extra hours on a normal working day.
- At most 175 hours a year in micro and small companies (fewer than 50 staff).
- At most 150 hours a year in medium and large companies.
Overtime is paid at a premium:
| Overtime | First 100 hours in the year | After 100 hours |
|---|---|---|
| First hour on a working day | +25% | +50% |
| Each further hour on a working day | +37.5% | +75% |
| Each hour on a rest day or public holiday | +50% | +100% |
Your employer must not contact you during your rest time, except in cases of force majeure. This applies to all employees, not only remote workers.
Holidays, sick days, and parental leave
Annual leave
If you work full time, you are entitled to at least 22 working days of paid holiday (férias) a year. In the year you start, you earn two working days per full month worked, up to 20 days. You can take them after six full months. You and your employer agree the dates. You can split your holiday, but at least 10 working days must be taken in a row.
Portugal also has national and municipal public holidays. Public Holidays in Portugal lists the dates.
Sick days
For a short illness, you can self-certify through the SNS 24 digital service. This covers up to three days in a row, at most twice a year. The days are excused, but social security does not pay sick pay for them.
For longer illness, you need a sick note from a doctor. Social security pays sick pay from the fourth day, not your employer:
- Up to 30 days: 55% of your reference pay.
- Days 31 to 90: 60%.
- Days 91 to 365: 70%.
- After 365 days: 75%.
Some collective agreements pay more.
Parental leave
Parents can take 120 days of initial parental leave paid at 100% of reference pay, or 150 days paid at 80%. If each parent takes at least 30 days alone (or two blocks of 15), the 150 days are paid at 100%, or you can extend to 180 days at 83%.
The father must take 28 days within 42 days of the birth, including seven days in a row straight after it. Child Benefits and Parental Leave in Portugal explains how to apply.
Probation: when your job is not yet secure
Every new contract starts with a trial period (período experimental). During it, either side can end the contract without a reason and without compensation, unless agreed otherwise in writing. If the trial has run for more than 60 days, your employer must give you seven days' notice. After 120 days, the notice is 30 days.
For permanent contracts, the trial lasts:
- 90 days for most jobs.
- 180 days for jobs with technical complexity, high responsibility, or trust.
- 180 days if you are looking for your first job or have been unemployed for a long time.
- 240 days for senior managers and directors.
For fixed-term contracts, the trial lasts 30 days if the contract runs six months or more, and 15 days if it is shorter.
Earlier work for the same employer, in the same role, shortens or removes the trial. This covers a fixed-term contract, an agency placement, a service contract, or an internship.
When the job ends: notice and severance
In every case, you are paid for holiday you earned but did not take, plus your share of holiday pay and Christmas pay.
If you resign
You must give written notice. You get no severance.
| Your contract | How long you have worked | Notice you must give |
|---|---|---|
| Permanent | Up to two years | 30 days |
| Permanent | More than two years | 60 days |
| Fixed-term | Less than six months | 15 days |
| Fixed-term | Six months or more | 30 days |
If you leave without notice, you owe your employer your base pay for the days of notice you missed.
If your fixed-term contract ends
If your employer does not want to renew, it must tell you in writing at least 15 days before the end date. On an uncertain-term contract, the notice is 7, 30, or 60 days, depending on whether the contract has run up to six months, up to two years, or longer. Either way, you are owed 24 days of base pay and seniority pay for each full year worked, pro rata for part years.
If you are made redundant
Collective dismissal (despedimento coletivo) and elimination of your post (extinção do posto de trabalho) need real economic, market, or structural reasons and a formal procedure. You are owed 14 days of base pay and seniority pay for each full year of service, pro rata for part years. The law caps this for high earners.
After a collective dismissal or the elimination of a post, the employer cannot outsource the same work for 12 months.
If you are dismissed for misconduct
Dismissal for just cause (justa causa) needs serious misconduct and a written disciplinary procedure. You get no severance. You can challenge the dismissal in the labour court. If the court finds it unlawful, your employer must pay for the harm and take you back, or pay compensation instead in the cases the law allows.
If you agree to leave
A mutual agreement (revogação por mútuo acordo) ends the contract with a payment you negotiate. Be careful before you sign. It only gives you the right to unemployment benefit in limited cases. Claiming Unemployment Benefit in Portugal explains the rules.
Employee or self-employed
Everything in this guide applies to employees. If you invoice a company on green receipts (recibos verdes), you are self-employed. You get no 14 payments, no paid holiday, and no severance, and you pay your own social security.
If a company treats you like staff but asks you to invoice, it may be false self-employment (falsos recibos verdes). The law presumes you are an employee if some of these apply:
- You work at a place the company owns or chooses.
- You use its equipment.
- It sets your start and finish times.
- It pays you a fixed amount at regular intervals.
- You have a management role in its structure.
False self-employment is a very serious offence for the company, and you can report it to ACT.
Getting help if your employer breaks the rules
- Raise the issue in writing with your employer and keep a copy.
- Check whether a collective agreement covers your sector. It may give you more than the legal minimum.
- If the problem continues, make a complaint to the labour inspectorate (ACT). Anyone can complain, including a witness, and your anonymity is guaranteed.
- For a dismissal or a large claim, speak to an employment lawyer or a trade union. If you cannot afford a lawyer, you may qualify for legal aid.
The government has proposed a reform of the Labour Code ("Trabalho XXI"). This guide reflects the law in force on 1 October 2026. Check for changes before you sign a new contract.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules change often; check the official source before you act.
Sources
This guide is written from official sources and, where relevant, organisations' own websites.
- Diário da República, Labour Code (Lei n.º 7/2009), consolidated: https://diariodarepublica.pt/dr/legislacao-consolidada/lei/2009-34546475 (articles 12 presumption of employment; 40 and 43 parental leave; 112 and 114 probation; 140, 142, 147, 148, and 149 fixed-term and very short contracts; 154 part-time; 166 and 168 telework; 185 agency workers; 199-A no contact in rest time; 203, 214, and 232 hours and rest; 228 and 268 overtime; 238, 239, and 241 holidays; 254 sickness self-declaration; 263 and 264 Christmas and holiday pay; 338-A outsourcing ban; 344, 345, and 366 notice and compensation; 389 unlawful dismissal; 400 and 401 resignation), checked 1 October 2026
- DGERT, minimum wage 2026: https://www.dgert.gov.pt/retribuicao-minima-mensal-garantida-para-2026 (€920 a month), checked 1 October 2026
- gov.pt, employee contributions: https://www.gov.pt/servicos/obter-informacoes-sobre-as-contribuicoes-para-a-seguranca-social-pagamento-de-entidade-empregadora-por-trabalhador-por-conta-de-outrem (11% and 23.75%), checked 1 October 2026
- Tax and Customs Authority, IRS Code article 68: https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_fiscal/codigos_tributarios/cirs_rep/Pages/irs68.aspx (2026 income tax brackets), checked 1 October 2026
- Tax and Customs Authority, IRS Code article 2: https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_fiscal/codigos_tributarios/cirs_rep/Pages/irs2.aspx (meal allowance taxed above the legal limit, 70% higher limit for vouchers and cards), checked 1 October 2026
- DGAEP, public sector allowances: https://www.dgaep.gov.pt/index.cfm?OBJID=7EC1A7C9-E992-49F9-8801-08D5956C69FE (€6.15 daily meal allowance from 1 January 2026, the legal limit), checked 1 October 2026
- Social Security Institute, practical guide to sickness benefit (14 July 2026): https://www.seg-social.pt/ptss/pssd/documento/cmdde8gsx000qi12yzi40plc6?dswid=5276 (paid from the fourth day for employees, 55%, 60%, 70%, and 75% bands, self-declaration gives no sick pay), checked 1 October 2026
- Social Security Institute, practical guide to initial parental benefit (20 May 2026): https://www.seg-social.pt/ptss/pssd/documento/cmc1ynbn400fskl2y5g278wvp?dswid=-955 (120 days at 100%, 150 days at 80% or 100% when shared, 180 days at 83%), checked 1 October 2026
- gov.pt, complaint to ACT: https://www2.gov.pt/servicos/fazer-uma-queixa-a-autoridade-para-as-condicoes-do-trabalho-act- (who can complain, anonymity), checked 1 October 2026
- Government of Portugal, Trabalho XXI proposal: https://portugal.gov.pt/gc25/comunicacao/documentos/proposta-de-lei-trabalho-xxi (labour reform proposal approved by the Council of Ministers, May 2026), checked 1 October 2026
Last verified October 2026. Rules and fees change; check the official source before acting.
