Find a sick leave lawyer in Portugal who handles your case

Portugal in practice

How employment and sick leave matters work in Portugal

Portugal is a civil-law country where employment relations are regulated mainly by written codes rather than by binding case-law alone. Disputes over sick leave, pay during absence or dismissal usually reach the labour benches of the judicial courts, where only lawyers registered with the Ordem dos Advogados may represent you. The framework below shows what your lawyer will be working within.

The courts that hear your case

First-instance judicial courts (tribunais judiciais) are organised into 23 comarcas, each divided into specialised sections (juízos) that include labour benches. A sick leave or dismissal dispute is normally filed there. Appeals go to one of the five Courts of Appeal — Lisbon, Porto, Coimbra, Évora and Guimarães — and, on points of law, to the Supreme Court of Justice in Lisbon.

Who is allowed to represent you

Practising law in Portugal is a reserved activity: only lawyers registered with the Ordem dos Advogados may perform the acts reserved to the profession, and doing so without registration is ‘procuradoria ilícita’ under Law 49/2004. Representation is mandatory in general actions and appeals above the first-instance alçada of €5,000, and always before the Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

Deadlines you should not miss

Portuguese procedural and limitation periods are strict. A challenge to a dismissal must be brought within 60 days, an appeal against a judgment within 30 days (15 in urgent proceedings), and the general limitation period is 20 years, with a shorter five-year period for periodic payments such as rent, interest and fees. Missing the right period can bar a claim altogether.

What it costs and how fees work

Court costs are governed by the Regulamento das Custas Processuais and expressed in a Unidade de Conta (UC), a unit of account updated annually in line with the social support index — so the amounts change each year. Lawyers’ fees, by contrast, are freely agreed between lawyer and client, with no binding official tariffs, and may be fixed by written agreement.

Legal aid if money is tight

Legal aid (apoio judiciário) under Law 34/2004 is guaranteed to people who demonstrate economic insufficiency, assessed by the Social Security Institute. It can include exemption from court fees and charges, the appointment and payment of a lawyer, and phased payment of fees. A lawyer can tell you whether your circumstances are likely to qualify.

Language and distance

Proceedings before the Portuguese courts are conducted in Portuguese, and filings and judgments are issued in that language. A lawyer registered with the Ordem dos Advogados prepares your submissions, attends hearings and handles correspondence, and can keep you informed if you live outside Portugal. That makes it workable to pursue a sick leave dispute from abroad.

Key time limit — Employment Law

Challenge to a dismissal from employment — 60 days. A dismissal must be contested within this period after the relevant event.

The country-specific information on this page is drawn from official Portuguese and European sources — the Ordem dos Advogados, the Diário da República, the Portal das Finanças and the e-Justice portal — consulted in 2025.

• e-Justice — National justice systems: Portugal
• Ordem dos Advogados — Estatuto da Ordem dos Advogados (consolidated version)
• Diário da República — Prescrição (limitation periods)
• Diário da República — Employment dismissal challenge
• Diário da República — Civil Procedure Code
• Diário da República — Time limit to challenge an administrative act
• Portal das Finanças — Reporting a death to the tax authority
• Diário da República — Law 34/2004 on access to law and the courts
• Diário da República — Regulamento das Custas Processuais (Decree-Law 34/2008)
• Diário da República — Divorce by mutual consent