Holidays

• 1st January – New Year’s Day

• 2nd April – Good Friday

• 4th April – Easter

• 25th April – Freedom Day

• 1st May – Labour Day

• 3rd June – Corpus Christi (Second Thursday after Whitsun)

• 10th June – Portugal Day (National Day)

• 15th August – Assumption Day

• 5th October – Republic Day

• 1st November – All Saints’ Day

• 1st December – Restoration of Independence

• 8th December – Immaculate Conception Day

• 25th December – Christmas Day

There are also 5 regional holidays observed in certain cities and regions in Portugal:

• 24th May – Day of the Azores (celebrated in Azores)
• 13th June – Feast of St. Anthony (Lisbon)
• 24th June – Feast of St. John the Baptist (Porto)
• 1st July – Madeira Day (Madeira)
• 26th December – Christmas Holiday

Paid Time Off

PTO (Paid Time Off)

• Vacation/Annual Paid Leave

Employees are entitled to up 22 days of paid annual leave per year. In the case of temporary contracts lasting up to 6 months, the employee is granted 2 working days of holiday for each completed month of service, and in the case of those lasting up to 12 months or ending in the year subsequent to the year of hiring, the employee is entitled to a holiday leave period proportionate to the duration of the contract.

An employee shall never be entitled to more than 30 business days of vacation period in the same calendar year.

• Rollovers and payout of unused hours

• Use-it-or-lose-it policy 

Vacation should be taken within the calendar year in which it becomes due. However, vacation may be taken until April 30 of the following year, whether or not in accumulation with the vacation that becomes due that year.

• PTO payout at the termination

The right to vacation cannot be waived. Effective vacation time cannot be substituted, even with the employee’s consent, by any form of economic or other compensation, if a minimum of 20 business vacation days are not assured.

Maternity Leave, Child Raising Leave, Parental Leave

Maternity Leave

Pregnant employees are entitled to 30 days of leave before the delivery and up to 6 weeks of mandatory leave following the birth.

Paternity Leave

The father has a specific mandatory paternity leave of 20 days, to be used within six weeks following the birth (5 such days must be used immediately following the date of birth).

Parental Leave

Parents are entitled to shared parental leave, which in total may be 180 days. 

The father and mother can enjoy any of the following types of regimes consecutively or up to 3 interpolated periods. One parent may not overlap his/her right with the other parent’s right. During the enjoyment of any of the following, the employee cannot carry out employed work for other entities or activities that implies absence from his/her usual residence:

• Extended parental leave for 3 months;

• Part-time work for 12 months;

• Interim periods of extended parental leave and part-time work (the total duration of absence must be equal to the normal working period of 3 months);

• Interpolated absences from work with a duration equal to normal working periods of up to 3 months.

Adoption Leave

Employees who are adopting a child under the age of 15, have the right to a license equal to the Initial Parental Leave.

Sick Leave

Sick Leave

Employees are entitled to paid sick leave. Employer is required to pay the salary to the employee during the first 3 days of leave, after which, payment of the sickness allowance falls to Social Security. Most employees are entitled to 1095 days of paid sick leave, independent workers and research fellows to 365 days of paid sick leave. The amount of the sick leave allowance depends on several factors and will range between 55% and 100% of the worker’s reference remuneration.

Child Care Leave

Employees are entitled to a maximum of 2 years or 3 years in the case of up to 2 children or more. Leave can be taken consecutively or in smaller portions of time. 

After the right to a supplementary parental leave has been exhausted in any of the aforementioned modalities, the parents are entitled to leave for childcare.

Parents are entitled to leave for up to 6 months (extendable up to 4 years) for assistance to a child suffering from disability or chronic illness. If the child is 12 years of age or older, the need for assistance must be confirmed by medical certificate.

Jury Duty Leave, and Voting Leave

Not specified.

Bereavement Leave

Employees are entitled to five consecutive days of paid leave following the death of a spouse, parent, stepparent, child, or domestic partner. They are entitled to two days of paid leave following the death of a sibling, grandparent, or grandchild.

Military Leave

Not specified by law.

Please consult your local legal counsel to learn more about Portugal Leave Laws.

To learn more about laws in various countries, check out our Leave Laws page.