Tenancies

In Portugal more than 1 million residences are rented. Long-term tenancies, that means, tenancies which are supposed to last longer than 6 months, have to be in written form in order to be valid. They can be recorded in the land register. The landlord has to hand over the building energy certificate and the habitation license. If he does not do so and the contract lasts over 6 months, the tenancy is void and the tenant can claim for compensation.

In agreement with the tenant, the rental agreement can be terminated at any time. A landlord can terminate the tenancy unilaterally with an ordinary notice (denúncia) or an extraordinary notice (resolução).

In August 2012 the law of tenancies has been modified. The following information is based on the new legislation.

If the parties did not agree upon a time limit, the tenancy shall be regarded as valid for 2 years.

In tenancies of living space, the parties are now free to agree upon any time limit.

The tenancy is renewed automatically as long as one party does not object. The new time limit is once again as long as the old time limit. There is a deadline for making the objection.

The landlord has the right to terminate the tenancy if the tenant is 2 months or more late with his rent payments. In the case of 4 payment defaults within a period of 12 months, the landlord can terminate the tenancy as well. A payment is considered late if it is past due by 8 days.