Portugal

Business Environment

Business practices

Closed hours and days: Banks open from Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 15:00.

Public holidays

Compensation day

Periods when companies usually close

Standards

National standards organizations
Integration in the international standards network: The controls of audit are compulsory for Limited Companies (Participações Sociais's Sociedades Gestoras).
Classification of standards
Online consultation of standards
Certification organizations

Legal framework

Independence of justice: Yes
Equal treatment of nationals and foreigners: Yes
The language of justice: Portuguese and Mirandese in a region of the north-east of the country.
Having recourse to an interpreter: Possible.
Sources of the law and legal similarities: Portuguese law has various sources: the Constitution, laws voted by Parliament, ministerial decrees and orders, international conventions and treaties ratified by Portugal.
Because Portugal belongs to the European Union, national law conforms to the requirements of Community legislation.
There are legal similarities with all the countries whose law has come from Roman law, in particular with French law which inspired Portuguese law.
Consulting national laws online

Intellectual Property

National organizations: The National Institute for Industrial Property, the organization for the protection of intellectual property.
The Portuguese Authors' Society for copyright
List of the institutions which manage copyright.
Regional organizations: For the protection of patents: the European Patent Office.
International membership: Signatory to the Paris Convention
Membership to TRIPS

National regulation and international agreements

Type of property	Law	Validity	International agreements signed
Patent			Patent Cooperation Treaty Strasbourg agreement concerning the International Patent Classification
Trademark			Trademark law treaty Nice agreement concerning the International classification of goods and Services for the Purposes of the registration of Marks Protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement concerning the International Registration of Marks
Design
Copyright			Berne convention for the protection of Literary and Artistic Works Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against unauthorized duplication of their phonograms Rome convention for the protection of performers, producers of phonograms and Broadcasting organizations WIPO copyright treaty WIPO performances and Phonograms treaty
Industrial Models

Tax rates

Consumption taxes

Tax rate: 21%
Reduced tax rate: The reduced rates From VAT vary between 5% and 12%: 12% for catering, petrol and some foodstuffs. The rate From 5% applies to most From food products, water, publications, electricity, transport, hotel business and leisure activities.
Other consumption taxes: Excise duties are also levied on certain products, especially on spirit.

>> To get further information on VAT rates in Portugal, please check the list of vat rates applied within European Union .

>> More detailed information on excise duties is available concerning alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, energy products on the European Commission website.

Corporate taxes

Tax rate

Capital gains taxation

In Portugal, capital gains are taxed at the rate of 25% + Derrama rate (0-10%).
These following elements are deductible to find out the fiscal result:
- Depreciations
- Interests
- The payment of the executives is entirely deductible,
- Royalties
The fiscal loss of a year can be put postponed on one or some of the 6 following accounting years. Moreover, the carry-back method is not authorized.

Accounting rules

Tax year: The fiscal year begins on January 1st and ends on December 31st of the same year.
Accounting regulation bodies
Publication: The financial statements of companies must contain a balance sheet, an income statement as profit and loss account, information notes and the director's report.
Professional accountancy bodies
Certification and auditing: Mazars
Ernst&Young
KPMG
PwC
D.F.K e Associados
Moore Stephens
Accounting news