Doing business in Portugal

A selection of articles, books and online resources to help you explore the key issues for doing business in Portugal.

Key data

Ease of doing business in Portugal
Summary of comprehensive annual data collated by the World Bank giving key indicators for business and economic conditions. Includes information on typical business procedures, showing time to complete and associated costs for each step.

Guides

Portugal: providing services and travelling for business from 1 January 2021
Department for International Trade
Guidance aimed at UK businesses on rules for trading in services with this jurisdiction after the Brexit transition period. It covers trade regulations, ownership of companies, business travel and entry requirements, recognition of professional qualifications, and GDPR.

Portugal company registration
Comprehensive guide produced by Healy Consultants explaining company structures and business entity types, fees and timelines for incorporation, accounting and tax in this jurisdiction and comparisons with other countries in the region.

Overseas Business Risk - Portugal
Report from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office looking at potential risks for UK businesses operating in this country. It includes economic and political risks, human rights issues, bribery and corruption, terrorism, intellectual property and organised crime.

Doing Business in Portugal
Guide prepared by Moore Stephens member firms on doing business with or in this country. It also provides useful information for those living and working in Portugal either temporarily or permanently. Published in 2018.

Exporting

On our Exporting to Portugal page you can find export guides, trade forecasts and economic and political updates.

Corporate governance

European Corporate Governance Institute
The European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI) aims to provide 'a forum for debate and dialogue between academics, legislators and practitioners, focusing on major corporate governance issues and thereby promoting best practice'. The ECGI website also provides a directory of national Corporate Governance Codes, Principles & Recommendations.

European Commission: Corporate governance
Overview of current regulations and updates covering directors and board members, shareholders, employee share ownership, remuneration policies, transparency, and financial institutions. The page links to EU Directives, recommendations and proposals.

Law and regulation

Doing Business law library
World Bank
Collection of business laws and regulations from economies around the world, linking to official government sources. Topics include company law, labour, tax and trade.

The float guide: How to float a company on the NYSE Euronext Lisbon
Overview prepared by the International Bar Association describing the process for initial public offering (IPO) by companies. The guide explains the steps involved and offers a typical timetable.

Doing business in… Country Q&A tool
Useful tool from Practical Law that allows users to compare summaries of key legal issues across several jurisdictions, including this country. Summaries cover:

• the legal system
• foreign investment
• business vehicles
• employment
• tax
• competition
• intellectual property
• marketing agreements
• e-commerce
• data protection
• product liability.

International debt collection handbook
Detailed guide compiled by Atradius looking at debt collection procedures, legislation and culture across 35 countries, including a profile of this jurisdiction. Profiles include information on the amicable phase, legal procedures, enforcement, insolvency proceedings and arbitration and mediation.

Forums and support networks

British-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce
A support network for promoting business and trade between Britain and Portugal.

Portuguese Chamber
Bilateral business network promoting initiatives in both Portugal and the UK.

Enterprise Europe Network
Network created by the European Commission of business support organisations helping SMEs to gain access to the EU market.

Articles and books in the Library collection

Selected books

The Business Operations in... series from Bloomberg BNA provides expert guidance on the tax aspects of expanding and operating businesses abroad.

Business Operations in Portugal
Analysis of the business environment in Portugal, focusing on: the economy and government, operating a business, forms of doing business, principal taxes and taxation of domestic corporations.

Find more resources

• Find articles and books in our collection on doing business in Portugal

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You can obtain copies of articles or extracts of books and reports by post or email through our document supply service.