ROBAN ReAct Ldª

12/07/2022

Subject: Decreto-Lei 8/2022

Caros Proprietários,

Ao abrigo da nova Lei de Condomínios confirmada pelo Decreto-Lei 8/2022 relativo aos encargos condominiais, informamos que a Administração deve remeter para processo judicial os atrasos de pagamento superiores a três meses sem passar por autorização da Assembleia.
Trata-se de uma obrigação que visa pressionar os proprietários devedores, há muito que este decreto é aguardado pelas Administrações que muitas vezes se deparam com problemas de tesouraria.
Por isso, solicitamos que regularize seus pagamentos após o recebimento do pedido para os mesmos, de forma a evitar a entrada neste processo e respectivas consequências.
Nesta nova Lei encontrará também as novas orientações em caso de venda das suas frações, obrigatoriamente terá de apresentar no ato da escritura no Notário uma declaração de "não dívida" relativa aos seus encargos com o condomínio (correntes ou extraordinários), que será emitida e certificada pela Administração.
Está previsto um prazo de 10 dias entre o pedido de declaração e a sua entrega.

Permanecemos à disposição para qualquer informação adicional.
Com os melhores cumprimentos,
A Administração

Dear Owners, Under the new Condominium Law confirmed by Decree-Law 8/2022 on condominium charges, we inform you that the Administration must refer payment delays of more than three months to legal proceedings without authorization from the Assembly. This is an obligation that seeks to put pressure on debtor owners; this decree has been awaited by Administrations who often face cash flow problems for a long time. Therefore, we ask you to regularize your payments after receiving the request for them, in order to avoid entering this process and its consequences. In this new Law you will also find the new guidelines in case of sale of your fractions, you will necessarily have to present at the act of deed at the Notary a statement of "non-debt" regarding your charges with the condominium (current or extraordinary), which will be issued and certified by the Administration. There is a period of 10 days between the request for a declaration and its delivery. We remain at your disposal for any additional information. Best Regards, The Administration

Chers Propriétaires, En vertus de la nouvelle Loi du Condominium confirmée par le décret-Loi 8/2022 du 10 Avril concernant les charges de la Copropriété, nous vous informons que l'Administration se doit de faire suivre les retards de paiements de plus de trois mois vers la voie judiciaire sans passer par une autorisation d'Assemblée.
Il s'agit là d'une obligation ayant pour finalité l'utilisation de la pression envers les propriétaires débiteurs, ce décret attendu depuis très longtemps par les Administrations, qui trop souvent sont confrontées à des problèmes de trésoreries. Nous vous demandons donc de bien vouloir régulariser vos paiements dès réception de l'appel de ceux-ci afin d’éviter le procès et toutes ces conséquences.
Dans cette nouvelle Loi vous trouverez aussi les nouvelles directrices en cas de vente de vos fractions, obligatoirement vous devrez remettre chez votre Notaire une déclaration de "non dette" concernant vos charges inclus extraordinaires vis à vis du condominium, qui sera élaborée et certifiée par l’Administration. Un délai de 10 jours est prévu entre la demande de déclaration et la remise de celle-ci. Nous restons à votre disposition pour toutes informations complémentaires. Meilleurs Compliments,
L' Administration.
Garden House, Lda Rua Dom José I, Lote 15 Urbanização Monte da Bemposta 8500-333 Portimão Telm:967841503 Associado APEGAC Website: http://www.garden-house68.webnode.pt

22/04/2022

Supreme Court ruling affects apartments already within AL regime
A decision by the Supreme Court has blown a surreal hole in the AL (short-term tourist-lodgings) sector.

As of today, no property owner can rent out a property ‘destined for habitation’ within the AL regime, even if they have a licence to do so and are full of bookings for the future.

Público is running this story as an exclusive, but it is being picked up by other media sources – the simple reason being this could create a tidal wave of issues.

The Supreme Court decision was unanimous, with almost 30 judges supporting it.

Leading judge Paulo Rijo Ferreira has admitted that the number of cases likely to come denouncing ‘illegal’ AL activity will snowball – while there are real ‘economic risks’ on the horizon.

If people cannot legally rent out apartments they purchased in good faith for this kind of ‘investment’, they may well chose to rent them out illegally – meaning the State could stand to lose hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of euros in tax revenue.


Be that as it may, this is a judicial ruling. It follows two others: the first , by the appeal court of Porto, which ruled in favour of people who live in a building and find themselves obliged to share it on a daily basis “with strangers” who frequently cause noise beyond the ‘normal hours’; and the second (Lisbon Court of Appeal) which ruled that owners can opt to rent out their properties to whomever they chose.

The Supreme Court ruling overrules both previous court rulings.

Judge Rijo Ferreira has been cited as expecting “significant disruption” within the “not inconsiderable (AL) sector” – while Eduardo Miranda, president of Portugal’s AL association, has done his best to say ‘none of this will matter’.

According to ECO online, Mr Miranda fears “the consequences of media coverage of the decision” much more than the prospect of an “avalanche of cases” in the courts.

“What this ruling says is that in conflicts that end up in court, preference will be given to condominiums”, he told the online. “But in the law of 2018 this issue ended up being largely bypassed. In order to avoid conflicts in court, the law created a mechanism, called ‘opposition’, which allows the condominium to make a request for cancellation (of an AL), which is simple, free and relatively easy”, he said.

And yet even with this mechanism, there have been very few requests for cancellation.

“In four years we have had around 50 requests – the majority of which have been solved through mediation”, said Miranda. “The number of cases that go to court are derisory…”

According to the association’s books, AL goes on in around 60,000 apartments throughout Portugal.

Coming the day after perceived failings of the country’s Justice system were given new airing, Eduardo Miranda concludes: “Very few cases get to court because they carry elevated costs, they take a long time and the condominium itself has a quicker way to make opposition. I believe there is a normalisation of AL in the majority of condominiums”.

14/01/2022

Included in this briefing:

• State of Calamity - measures
• EU Digital COVID Certificate – updating the booster vaccination
• COVID Vaccination self-scheduling
• Travel
• afpop Office visits

As always if English or German are not your first language and you need clarification on any of the information included in this mailing, please contact the afpop office to ask for assistance.

Good afternoon to you all and welcome to the 2nd Briefing of this new year. It’s starting to get a little complicated again, as rules are introduced or relaxed for various sectors. Bars can re-open from today, but bizarrely not until 22h00, and need a negative COVID test for entry, but restaurants only need vaccination certificates. At least the vaccine certificates are now working as they should.

So, without further ado, let’s get into this.

State of Calamity –measures
You can see the measures in place at present in our previous mailing HERE

Bars and clubs can open again from today (only after 22h00). Customers must present a negative PCR test performed within the last 72 hours OR a negative rapid antigen test performed in the last 48 hours, which can either be shown in the EU Digital COVID Certificate (Certificado de Testagem) on the SNS24 app, or in printed document. Customers may also do a self-test, with a negative result, performed at the door of the establishment, which must be completed under supervision and verification of workers responsible for accessing these spaces.

The following visitors are exempt:
• Anyone who presents a valid proof of recovery OR;
• Anyone who demonstrates having been vaccinated for at least 14 days with a booster dose of a vaccine against COVID.

EU Digital COVID Certificate – updating the booster vaccination
The SNS24 system IS now updating the certificates correctly to indicate that the booster vaccine has been administered as follows:
"The certificate will show 3/3 for people who have already received booster doses after the two dose vaccine and 2/1 for those who have received booster afterward of a single-dose vaccine or who have recovered from the virus."
Please bear in mind that the update can take 2-3 weeks after the booster has been administered.

From February the Certificate for people fully vaccinated (2/2 or 1/1) who have not yet had the booster vaccination will change from having a validity of 6 months to 9 months (270 days). We will inform Members when this comes into force and until then the validity will remain 6 months.

For more information, see our factsheet FS 28.

COVID Vaccination self-scheduling
You can book online in following situations:
COVID Booster (+ FLU vaccine)
Age group:
• 60 years or more for a booster dose against COVID and flu vaccine;
• 45 or more years for a booster dose against COVID;
• 18 or more years vaccinated with Janssen vaccine for 90 or more days.

Here is the link for making the appointment if you fall into one of the groups above:
https://covid19.min-saude.pt/pedido-de-agendamento

Travel
You can find information about travel restrictions in our previous mailing HERE.

We remind you of the following:

Entering Portugal by plane
Under the measures currently in force, all travellers with destination to, or transit through, the national territory must present a negative laboratory COVID test result prior to boarding, performed within 72 hours, if PCR type; or within 48 hours, if rapid antigen type.

This requirement does not apply to:
• Travellers under the age of 12.
• Travellers with a valid certificate of recovery demonstrated via the EU Digital COVID Certificate;
• Travellers with a valid certificate of recovery issued by a third country, under reciprocal conditions. You can find those specific countries and conditions HERE.

All passengers need to complete a Passenger Locator Form (individually) online at https://portugalcleanandsafe.pt/en/passenger-locator-card, after check-in and before departure time. The QR Code generated when filling in the form can be presented in paper or digital form.

Domestic flights
The above measures do not apply to domestic flights.

Entering Portugal by LAND Borders
Land borders remain open with following measures:

1 - All people arriving from countries outside the European Union (EU) or from EU countries considered to have a red or dark red risk level, when they do not have the EU Digital COVID Certificate proving test or recovery, must present either:

a) Laboratory proof of negative PCR test performed in the last 72 hours;
b) Laboratory proof of negative rapid antigen test performed in the last 48 hours;

2 - People arriving from EU countries considered to be at low or moderate risk, must have an EU Digital COVID Certificate showing vaccination, test or recovery (there are at present no countries in the EU considered low or moderate risk).

The GNR and SEF will carry out random inspection operations at border crossing points. Anyone who does not present one of the aforementioned certificates or evidence is notified to carry out a COVID test - at the their own expense - in places indicated by the health authorities, which must be within a radius of 30 km from the inspection site and where citizens must wait for the result.

Anyone who does not present proof of COVID testing or refuses to take one of the aforementioned tests will receive a fine of 300 to 800 euros.

An EU Map with risk levels has been updated on the 13th of January and you can find it HERE.

All travel measures remain in force until 9th of February 2022 - but as usual may be revised at any time depending on the evolution of the epidemiological situation in different countries or regions of the world.

Açores rules
https://destinoseguro.azores.gov.pt/?page_id=8908
You will find a translate button on the left bottom of your screen.

Madeira rules
https://www.visitmadeira.pt/en-gb/useful-info/corona-virus-(covid-19)/information-covid-19

Travel requirements Worldwide:
Please check HERE.

afpop Office visits
I’m pleased to confirm that the afpop office will again be open to visitors from Monday 17th of January. To avoid congestion however, I ask Members to book an appointment prior to their visit by email [email protected] or telephone 282 458 509. We look forward to welcoming you.

Bem-vindo à Madeira.Informações oficiais, onde dormir, como explorar, o que fazer, as levadas e os eventos que acontecem na Madeira e no Porto Santo.

31/12/2021

29/12/2021

What are the restaurant rules over New Year?
If you are confused about what you need to do to go to a restaurant over New Year in Portugal then here are some guidelines from the DGS.

By TPN/Lusa, in Portugal, COVID-19 · 1 day ago · 0 Comments

Access to restaurants during New Year's Eve depends on the presentation of a negative Covid-19 test result, or the performance of a self test upon entry.

According to the guidance updated by the DGS, entry for meals in restaurant and similar establishments which are not closed by legislative or administrative means on December 30th and 31st and January 1st is dependent on the presentation of proof of a Covid-19 negative test result or a self-test, done at the time.

The DGS indicates that the requirement to present proof of testing is waived for customers on open terraces, as well as for "the entry of these citizens inside the establishment for the purposes of access to common services, namely access to sanitary facilities and payment systems (including the payment and collection of meals in a take-away service)”.

Those who have a digital recovery certificate are also exempt from submitting a test.


The guidelines also indicates that these establishments must display in the entrances, visibly, the prevention and infection control measures to be followed by customers, in particular, the mandatory use of a mask whenever they are not eating food or moving around the space, the respect for physical distance between people, compliance with respiratory etiquette measures and hand washing or disinfection.

The DGS guidance also states that these establishments must prepare and/or update their specific Contingency Plan for Covid-19, also recommending the “minimalist use of sanitized decorative elements in spaces, aiming at greater ease in the work place for washing, hygiene and surface disinfection”.

It also advises to ensure “good ventilation of spaces, preferably with natural ventilation, through the opening of doors or windows”.

Restaurants should also “consider providing/using take-away services”, providing hand sanitizer dispensers near the entrance and in other convenient and accessible locations.

22/12/2021

New festive lockdown measures announced
Prime minister, António Costa, has appealed to the Portuguese to contain “as much as possible, Christmas celebrations to their family nucleus”, warning that this Christmas will not be “normal”.

At the press conference at the end of today's Council of Ministers that decided on new measures to contain the pandemic, the prime minister stated a set of recommendations for the holiday season, in addition to the rules that have already been determined.

“I appeal to the families to try to prevent the Christmas celebration from involving lots of people and in a large extended family groups. This is not yet the normal new Christmas in our lives and that is why I appeal to everyone to contain as much as possible the Christmas celebrations in their family nucleus”, he asked.

What are the new rules?

Ban on more than 10 people on public roads on New Year's Eve

Gatherings of more than 10 people on public roads is prohibited on New Year's Eve.

Free tests increasing

The number of free Covid-19 screening tests will increase from four to six per person each month, as part of measures to fight the pandemic.

“I continue to encourage mass testing. Therefore, we are going to increase the number of free tests per person each month from four to six”, said António Costa.

A total of 1,040 pharmacies are registered to carry out free tests for professional use to screen for the coronavirus, as well as 454 laboratories that have also adhered to this exceptional and temporary reimbursement scheme.

Discos and bars closed from Saturday

The closing of discos and bars with dance spaces that the Government had defined for the mainland for the first week of January will be brought forward to Saturday, 25 December.

The closing of these night entertainment spaces on the mainland was already planned for the period between January 2 and 9, 2022, after Christmas and the New Year.

António Costa stated that the establishments will have support in this period under the simplified lay-off and the Apoiar programme, to help support their fixed costs.

Mandatory remote working from 25 December

The Government has decided to bring forward the period during which remote working is mandatory, determining that this regime takes effect from 25 December 25.

Mandatory test at all sporting and cultural events

Access to sporting and cultural events will depend on the presentation of a negative test for coronavirus, from 25 December, regardless of the number of spectators, the prime minister announced.

“We also introduced the mandatory negative test for access to all cultural shows and extended the mandatory test to enter all sports venues, regardless of their occupancy rate, unless otherwise indicated by the General Directorate of Health (DGS )”, said António Costa.

Closing of day care centres and ATL

The closure of day care centres and leisure time workshops (ATL), which was scheduled for between January 3 and 9, has been brought forward to 25 December.

"From zero hours on the 25th, (…) we are going to proceed, with support to families, to close the crèches and ATL", announced António Costa.

Commercial spaces with limited capacity

The capacity of commercial spaces will be limited to one person for every five square metres to "avoid crowding".

"We are going to introduce a measure to reduce the capacity of commercial spaces to one person for every five square metres to avoid the gatherings that take place in the week after Christmas", he stated.

Negative test required at New Year's Eve parties, casinos and restaurants

Access to restaurants, casinos and New Year's Eve parties will require a negative test for Covid-19, which will cover the 24th, 25th, 30th and 31st of December and January 1st.

"For the 24th and 25th of this month, December 30th and 31st and January 1st, it is mandatory to carry out and exhibit a negative test for access to restaurants, casinos and new year parties," said the prime minister.

The Government decided today to bring forward to December 25th the containment period that was initially planned to start only on January 2nd.

A negative test is now required to enter hotels and local accommodation establishments, as well as access to family ceremonies, such as weddings and baptisms, and business events.

Gatherings of more than 10 people are also prohibited, as is the consumption of alcohol on public roads.

17/12/2021

Included in this briefing:

• State of Calamity
• Travel
• Test and Trace UK
• COVID Vaccinations
• afpop Office visits

As always if English or German are not your first language and you need clarification on any of the information included in this mailing, please contact the afpop office to ask for assistance.

Good afternoon to you all and welcome to what I hope will be the penultimate Briefing of 2021. There have been very few changes announced this week, in fact only the age for Booster vaccinations and children’s vaccinations have been amended in Portugal, however the Portuguese Government Minister Mariana Vieira da Silva announced yesterday that the government is considering some further restrictions. If that happens we will of course send a Briefing early next week with the details.

After my scepticism of last week about the ‘on again-off again’ situation regarding EU Vaccination Certificates being accepted in the UK by Test & Trace, as you will see below it appears to be on again, as the government has announced that qualifying vaccinations will now be recognised in the UK by the NHS Test & Trace. I’m delighted to have been proven wrong in this instance and hopefully that will help ease the concerns of those of you who are travelling to the UK to see family this Christmas.

I would also like to reassure Members in Portugal that the December edition of our UPDATE magazine will be with you shortly. There was delay in the main CTT office in Lisbon, which has now been rectified and we are assured that the magazine was posted yesterday, so it should be with you in the next few days.

State of Calamity
The State of Calamity which came into force on 1st of December across the entire continental national territory will remain in force until 23h59 on 20th of March 2022. You can find the measures announced in our previous mailing HERE.

Travel
In addition to the ‘News from afpop’ on the 29th of November HERE, we have further information about travel.

As you will see on the above link, the rules for entry to Portugal require that all travellers submit either a PCR test or a Rapid Antigen test. These tests cannot be a ‘Self-Test’ kit that you have delivered to your home, but must be one taken at an authorised testing centre. Self-tests are not acceptable for entry to Portugal.

Entering Portugal by LAND Borders
You can find the rules for land borders on our website:
https://afpop.com/en/afpop-latest-news-1?aid=157&bx=1

Açores rules
https://destinoseguro.azores.gov.pt/?page_id=8908
You will find a translate button on the left bottom of your screen.

Madeira rules
Please check HERE

Travel requirements Worldwide:
Please check HERE

Test and Trace UK
As I said, it is apparently now possible to record your EU Vaccination Certificate details on your Passenger Locator form. We have not had the opportunity to test this as you need to complete the locator form to do so, however there is a help line available, calling from abroad tel: 0044 207 113 0371 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm). More information about the isolation exemptions can be found in the following links:

Test and trace - how it works

Approved vaccinations

COVID Vaccinations
You can find further information in our fact sheet FS/26. Below are some updated sections:

Self-scheduling of your vaccination appointment
Please find below the link for making the appointment if you are eligible (see our fact sheet) and fall in the group 60+ for the booster, 50+ if you had Janssen vaccine:

https://covid19.min-saude.pt/pedido-de-agendamento

In the event that there are no time slots available, you will see a message asking if you want to be added to the waiting list.

Casa Aberta for 65+
The “Casa Aberta” is available for vaccination against COVID and/or against the flu for users aged 65 years or over.
Users who have not had COVID-19 in the last 5 months and who have completed the vaccination schedule for at least 5 months are eligible for the booster dose in the “Casa Aberta”. To be vaccinated, just go directly to the vaccination centre/health centre, make sure you know the place and opening hours in your specific area. At the bottom of the following page you will find the addresses: https://covid19.min-saude.pt/casa-aberta (do not use the Senha Digital on this page for the booster, see our fact sheet FS/26).

Vaccination for children between 5-11 years
Vaccination of children between the ages of 5 and 11 runs from 18th of December to 13th of March. The Secretary of State pointed out that the first weekend (18th and 19th of December) will be reserved for children aged 11 and 10, "and some children from nine". Children with special conditions will be a priority, regardless of age, as long as they go to vaccination centres and present a medical prescription.

On the 6, 7, 8 and 9th of January: children between 9 and 7 years old will be vaccinated.
On the 15th and 16th of January: children between 7 and 6 years old.
On 22nd and 23rd of January: the 5-year-olds.

Between the 5th of February and 13th of March: the second doses will be administered, when they will have the complete vaccination schedule for these age groups. Self-scheduling is possible (system is however reportedly overloaded at present), the centres will not be vaccinating adults on those days reserved for children. The vaccination will be done with an mRNA vaccine (PFIZER– Pediatric Formula).

afpop Office appointments
The afpop office will remain open to visitors until we close for Christmas on 23rd of December. Remember that the office will then be closed until Monday 3rd of January 2022. Whilst the staff will return to work on that date and can be contacted by e-mail and telephone as usual, in line with the government’s guidelines for the post-Christmas period the office will remain closed to visitors for the first week of January and will re-open on Monday 10th of January. At the moment we will not require any proof of vaccination to visit the office in January, but if that changes with government rules we will of course advise you in the New Year. Please remember that masks will still be required for visits to the office.

Website oficial da Direção-Geral da Saúde sobre o Novo Coronavírus COVID-19.

27/11/2021

Covid-19: Portugal já administrou 1 milhão de doses de reforço em Portugal

Vacinação evitou em menos de um ano a morte de quase meio milhão de pessoas com 60 ou mais anos em 32 países europeus, incluindo Portugal

Portugal já administrou um milhão de doses de reforço da vacina contra a covid-19, assim como cerca de 1,8 milhões de vacinas contra a gripe, adiantou esta sexta-feira, 26 de Novembro, a Direção-Geral da Saúde (DGS), que antecipa uma aceleração na vacinação.

«No dia 25 de Novembro foi possível administrar mais de 110.000 vacinas no país, das quais cerca de 60.000 doses de reforço da vacina contra a covid-19 e mais de 50.800 vacinas contra a contra a gripe (4.177 em farmácias)», lê-se no comunicado da DGS.

A nota acrescenta que, «em virtude do aumento do número de elegíveis para a dose de reforço da vacina contra a covid-19, que ronda agora 1,8 milhões de pessoas com 65 ou mais anos, haverá uma intensificação do ritmo de vacinação nos próximos dias».

A DGS, que reforça o apelo à vacinação quer contra a gripe, quer contra a Covid-19, recorda que este fim de semana, de 27 e 28 de Novembro, os centros de vacinação do país vão estar abertos «para vacinar pessoas convocadas através de agendamento central e local, na sua capacidade máxima».

«Os centros de vacinação estão a trabalhar para que o processo seja fluído e célere, mesmo com grande afluência, apelando à melhor compreensão dos utentes face a eventuais constrangimentos pontuais que possam ocorrer», lê-se no comunicado.

A vacinação contra a covid-19 evitou em menos de um ano a morte de quase meio milhão de pessoas com 60 ou mais anos em 32 países europeus, incluindo Portugal, estima um estudo da Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS), divulgado na quinta-feira.

A Comissão Europeia anunciou ontem que o terceiro contrato celebrado com o consórcio Pfizer/BioNTech inclui doses suficientes de vacinas anti-covid para reforçar a vacinação e também para a imunização de crianças entre os 5 e os 11 anos.

A imunização de crianças em Portugal a partir dos 5 anos está dependente do parecer favorável da comissão técnica de vacinação.

26/11/2021

https://covid19.min-saude.pt/pedido-de-agendamento/?fbclid=IwAR3hHt1T7A50YHcH8mpKBm7D1O6YhOj1DRW18SfCUSNnBnxBOplE_m4xVTI

Website oficial da Direção-Geral da Saúde sobre o Novo Coronavírus COVID-19.

26/11/2021

Included in this briefing:

• State of Calamity
• Free Rapid Antigen Tests – list of pharmacies
• Booster vaccinations
• COVID Test and Trace UK – self-isolation
• Tolls for electric and hybrid cars
• The Islands
• afpop Office appointments

As always if English or German are not your first language and you need clarification on any of the information included in this mailing, please contact the afpop office to ask for assistance.

Good afternoon my friends. I think most of us were expecting the change of state back to ‘Calamity’ which has now been announced, giving the government some increased powers to make changes to restrictions on civil liberties to address increases in infection rates. After a few weeks of not having much to tell you all about COVID, there is now quite a lot to say and sadly there probably will be for a few weeks to come.

The Prime Minister is still asking citizens to exercise “good judgment” rather than imposing strict limitations on movement, but some measures have returned, including masks and certificates for entering restaurants and other places, and also a level of mandatory testing in some circumstances.

What is interesting in the announcements this week though, is that they are already looking at the possible effects of a return to work in January, after a Christmas period of increased socialising – which we’ve also included in this Briefing.

State of Calamity
From December 1st, the State of Calamity will be in force across for the entire continental national territory and the following measures will be adopted:

General recommendations:
• That citizens self-test regularly;
• Teletrabalho, when the activity allows;

Mandatory wearing of masks in all closed spaces;
• The presentation of the EU Digital COVID Certificate will be mandatory when accessing:
• Restaurants and similar establishments (not applicable in open terraces – esplanadas abertas);
• Tourist establishments and Alojamento Local;
• Events with individual seating;
• Gyms.

Mandatory negative test requirement (even for vaccinated people) for:
• Visits to residential structures/homes (Old people’s homes, long-term care units, homes for children, homes for people with disabilities, etc.);
• Visits to patients admitted to healthcare facilities;
• Large events without marked seats (or in improvised venues) and sports venues;
• Nightclubs and bars.

At borders:
• Mandatory negative test for all flights arriving in Portugal (NAAT test or TRag-Rapid Antigen Test) 48 hours prior to boarding time;
• The land, sea and river borders will have similar regulations, but we will need to wait for the law to be published before we can give full details.

For the week of 2nd - 9th of January, after the festive season, specific rules will be adopted:
• Mandatory Teletrabalho, when the activity allows;
• Schools will restart on January 10th;
• Closing of nightclubs and bars.

Free Rapid Antigen Tests
The government has announced that Rapid Antigen tests which are carried out in certain pharmacies and laboratories will be free again from Friday 19th of November until 31st of December, 2021.

Rapid Antigen testing for COVID will be reimbursed at 100% for residents in Portugal.
The contribution is limited to a maximum of four tests per month per user and does not apply to users who have a vaccination certificate (which attests to complete vaccination for at least 14 days) or a recovery certificate, nor to those under 12 years of age.

The list of pharmacies where you can book for the free Rapid Antigen tests scheme in Portugal has now been published by Infarmed and you can find it HERE. More information can be found in our fact sheet FS27.

Booster vaccinations
At the moment everyone aged 65 years or older can request an appointment for the flu vaccine along with the booster dose of COVID.
If you are qualified to take the two vaccines, but do not intend to, you must indicate your intention on the day and place of vaccination.

Self-scheduling of your appointment
This is the link for making the appointment if you in the group 65+:
https://covid19.min-saude.pt/pedido-de-agendamento

The Casa Aberta is open for people eligible for booster and/or flu vaccines aged 75 years or over. For more information about Casa Aberta and the opening hours, please check our fact sheet FS26.

Please also note that people are only eligible for a booster dose if 5 months or more has elapsed since their last vaccination was received.
The DGS also announced that, together with people 65 years of age and above, health professionals, social sector and firefighters that can now receive the booster dose, people that have recovered from COVID and who have had one vaccine dose are also included.

People vaccinated with Janssen’s
The General Directorate of Health (DGS) announced that people aged 18 and over who received Janssen's COVID-19 vaccine will be able to receive a booster dose after 90 days of their vaccination. It will begin with eldest people first and in descending order from then on. They clarified that even those who had the disease and then received a dose of Janssen will also have a booster.
The vaccination centres will be open on the 5th, 8th, 12th and 19th of December to vaccinate those over 50 who received the Janssen vaccine. DGS announced that people should receive a message from SNS, but we will inform our Members when we have up to date information about this.

A reminder that we have a fact sheet FS/26 (in English) with full, detailed information about the COVID Vaccinations in Portugal and how to self-schedule online, which is available on our website or from the afpop office [email protected]

COVID Test and Trace UK – self-isolation
We have received information from the British Embassy that the UK government and NHS have agreed to accept the EU COVID Vaccination Certificate and lift the self-isolation requirements for fully vaccinated arrivals in the UK who are contacted by Test and Trace (NHS Test and Trace only operates in England) from 1st of December. The UK government website will be updated shortly.

Tolls for electric and hybrid cars
The government has approved new measures for ALL hybrid and electric vehicles, confirming that they are all considered to be Class 1 vehicles for purpose of toll roads. They have announced the measures to acknowledge the reduced impact of these vehicles on the environment.

Website oficial da Direção-Geral da Saúde sobre o Novo Coronavírus COVID-19.