Business Customs

The Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa) is a democratic republic located on the west and southwest parts of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe and is the westernmost country in continental Europe. Portugal is bordered by Spain to the north and east and by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south. In addition, Portugal includes two archipelagos in the Atlantic - the Azores (Açores) and Madeira Islands.

The Portuguese business community is very formal and titles such as Doctor, Engineer, and Architect are commonly used. Make sure you ask the title of the person you are meeting with and always use it with the person’s last name. Writing in red ink is considered an insult and therefore never used in the business community. When greeting a businessperson, a handshake is appropriate.

Courtesy, in business and other spheres, is expected and easily extended. Legal contracts do not have the strength in business associations that personal confidence, built over years of experience, offers. Aggressiveness is not acceptable in marketing as it may be interpreted as socially offensive. Pragmatism, of the American variety, is respected but only when presented as a possible option, not as a hard sell.

In terms of everyday business the Portuguese are professional and civil. They generally respect the time of their appointments and expect the same from others. They are thorough to a fault, often poring over all the documents relative to a negotiation, and not rushed "to just hit the highlights". This is done partly to be careful (conservative) but also to demonstrate their grasp of the matter at hand.

Housing in Portugal meets Western European standards but so does the cost. Executive location costs in Portugal are now in the same category as any major commercial center in the European Union.

Food supplies are plentiful, though there are seasonal variations in prices for perishable items. Supermarkets are fully stocked. Prices are very close to those found in the United States.

Travel Advisory

There are no travel advisories for Portugal nor have there been for many years.

Visa Requirements

No visas are required to visit Portugal for stays of 90 days or less.

U.S. Companies that require travel of foreign businesspersons to the United States should be advised that security options are handled via an interagency process. Visa applicants should go to the following links.

State Department Visa Website: http://travel.state.gov/visa/index.html

United States Visas.gov: http://www.unitedstatesvisas.gov/

U.S. Embassy Lisbon – Consular Section
http://www.american-embassy.pt/ConsDocs/ConsServices.html

Telecommunications

Portugal is a fully "wired" country with regard to communications, making available all the services found anywhere else in Europe: long-distance calls on stateside credit cards; cellular telephones (can be rented at the airport); video-conferencing in state-of-the-art facilities; Internet services; e-mail, etc.  The ATM system in Portugal is one of the best in the world, as it enables you to do most payments and money transfers at an ATM terminal anywhere in Portugal. 

Transportation

Portugal has direct airline connections from Lisbon to all the major cities in the European Union, to the USA with New York, Boston, Newark, and as of June 2006 Philadelphia, a number of Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa, and with the major cities in Brazil. During summer there are also seasonal flights, one charter flight per week connecting to Orlando, and another one to Miami.

Porto serves fewer cities directly in the European Union and none in North America, but does serve major cities in Brazil.

Language

Many Portuguese speak two or three languages, English being the preferred second language. English is a widely spoken second language in Portugal and American business travelers generally can conduct their meetings with business and government contacts in English.

Health

Health care in Portugal is a constitutional right, which means that the public health facilities are overburdened, and, therefore, not able to offer the level of service considered normal in the United States. There are a number of private clinics and small private hospitals that are adequate, plus there are several new hospitals planned through the following years to offer better services to the patients.

Local Time, Business Hours, and Holidays

Local time is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) – the same as London. Normal business hours are from 09:00 AM through 06:00 PM. Stores are open from 09:00 AM to 07:00 PM but shopping malls operate from 10:00 AM to 11:00 PM every day of the week and on public holidays (except for Christmas and New Year).

The American Embassy in Lisbon is open from 08:00 AM to 05:00 PM and it is closed for business on both American (A) and Portuguese (P) holidays.

The list of American and Portuguese holidays, which will be observed by the American Embassy in Lisbon in 2009 follows:

January 1	(P/A)	Tuesday	New Year's Day
January 19	(A)	Monday	Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr
February 05	(P)	Tuesday	Carnival
February 16	(A)	Monday	Washington's Birthday
March 21	(P)	Friday	Good Friday
March 23	(P)	Sunday	Easter
April 25	(P)	Friday	Liberty Day
May 1	(P)	Thursday	May Day
May 12	(P)	Monday	Espírito Santo Day (In Azores Only)
May 22	(P)	Thursday	Corpus Christi
May 25	(A)	Monday	Memorial Day
June 10	(P)	Tuesday	Portugal Day
June 13	(P)	Friday	St. Anthony's Day (In Lisbon Only)
July 3	(A)	Friday	Independence Day
August 15	(P)	Friday	Assumption Day
August 21	(P)	Thursday	Funchal Day (In Funchal Only)
September 1	(A)	Monday	Labor Day
October 5	(P)	Sunday	Proclam. Portuguese Republic
October 12	(A)	Monday	Columbus Day
November 1	(P)	Saturday	All Saints' Day
November 11	(A)	Tuesday	Veteran's Day
November 26	(A)	Thursday	Thanksgiving Day
December 1	(P)	Monday	Restor. Port. Independence
December 8	(P)	Monday	Feast of Immaculate Conception
December 25	(P/A)	Thursday	Christmas Day

 http://www.american-embassy.pt/www-local/AmerPortHolidays.html

Temporary Entry of Materials and Personal Belongings

Personal belongings may enter the country without barriers imposed by Portuguese Customs. If Portuguese Customs sees that personal belongings are of very high value (such as jewelry, and high end electronic material) they may require a money guaranty that will be reimbursed upon departure.

Entry of materials to distribute at trade shows such as promotional literature, samples, tourism and technical information and brochures may enter the country but the company carrying these will have to fill out a customs request to bring them into the country and hand them out.

Companies that plan to temporarily bring in materials and equipment, which is not for sale, will be requested to fill out a formal request of Temporary Importation of Products.

The Portuguese Customs Authority supplies this form upon entering the country. This will enable the U.S. company to take the equipment back without having to pay duties. If the equipment is sold while in Portugal, the U.S. company will have to pay the duties applicable to the specific equipment.