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Why are there 14 salary payments a year in Portugal?

Portuguese employees receive a holiday subsidy and a Christmas subsidy on top of 12 monthly salaries, each worth one month's pay. The Christmas subsidy is due by 15 December and the holiday subsidy before the holiday starts. Both can be paid in monthly twelfths if agreed.

Both subsidies carry employer social security, so budget for 14 payments when you compare an annual salary. We include them in payroll and in the cost estimate we give you before you hire.

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Employees get at least 22 working days of paid holiday plus public holidays. Probation is 90 days for most open-ended contracts, 180 days for technical or senior roles and 240 days for management, and it must be agreed in writing.

An employee who resigns gives 30 days' notice, or 60 days after 2 years. An employer can only end a contract for a lawful reason and must follow a formal procedure, so talk to your Fronted contact before any termination.

Many companies stay on Employer of Record in Portugal for the long term. If you outgrow it, we tell you, and a private limited company (Lda) is the usual form for a local entity.

Moving employees to your own company is not automatic: they sign new contracts with the new company and end their contracts with ours. We handle that move, including the new contracts and paperwork, and make it as simple as possible.

Our Employer of Record fee in Portugal is €390 per employee/month. On top of that you pay the employee's salary and the statutory employer costs, which we pass on at cost with no markup. The main cost is employer social security of 23.75%, charged on all 14 salary payments, including the holiday and Christmas subsidies. Work accident insurance is mandatory and priced by the insurer, and the labour compensation funds cost nothing in 2026.

As an example, a gross salary of €5,000 a month costs about €7,219 a month before insurance and our fee. If you want benefits beyond what the law requires, such as private health insurance, we tell you the admin fee before you decide.

No. With Fronted as your Employer of Record, your employee is employed by our own Portuguese company on a local contract, and you direct their day-to-day work. We handle payroll, social security, tax withholding and reporting, and you have one dedicated contact the whole way.

Hiring someone as a contractor instead carries a risk: Portuguese law presumes employment when the relationship works like a job, and then employee rights and employer obligations apply.

Once you are ready and the terms are agreed, we can usually employ someone in a few days. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no work permit.

Other nationals need a residence visa based on the employment contract. The immigration agency AIMA has a legal deadline of 90 days, extendable by 30, and in practice it often takes longer, so plan the start date with that in mind.