Lobbying Law

On January 28, 2026, Law 5-A/2026 (the “Lobbying Law”) was published, establishing transparency rules for interactions between national and foreign private entities seeking legitimate representation of interests and public entities.

The Lobbying Law also creates the Transparency of Interest Representation Register (“RTRI”), which will function within the Portuguese Parliament. Consequently, for the first time in Portuguese law, a general regime governing the transparency of legitimate interest representation activities has been established. This regime aims to regulate interactions between private and public entities during state decision-making processes.

The Lobbying Law applies to a wide range of public entities, including the Presidency of the Republic, the Parliament of the Republic, the government, the governing bodies of the autonomous regions of Madeira and the Azores, the direct and indirect administration of the state, the Bank of Portugal, regulatory bodies, and local and regional administrative bodies. 

Legitimate interest representation

Under the Lobbying Law, legitimate interest representation activities are those carried out lawfully to influence—directly or indirectly—the development or implementation of public policies, legislative or regulatory acts, administrative acts, public contracts, or the decision-making processes of public entities, regardless of whether they are carried out in their own name or on behalf of others.

These activities include:

• establishing any form of contact with public entities;
• sending or distributing correspondence, informational materials, discussion documents, or position papers;
• organizing events, meetings, conferences, or other activities to promote the represented interests; and
• participating in consultations concerning legislative proposals or other normative acts.

However, certain activities are excluded from its scope, including (i) acts performed exclusively by lawyers and legal executives within the scope of their legal mandate; (ii) activities carried out by social partners in the context of social dialog; (iii) the exercise of procedural rights in administrative procedures and public contracts; (iv) the exercise of the right of petition; and (v) the submission of complaints, reports or grievances regarding public entities, provided they are made without financial compensation and in the context of the right to participate in public life.

RTRI

One of the key innovations introduced by the Lobbying Law is the creation of the RTRI. Entities representing legitimate interests, either on their own behalf or on behalf of others, must register with the RTRI before being granted a hearing.

The register is public, free of charge and accessible to everyone. Managed by the Parliament of the Republic, it requires entities to disclose extensive information for the sake of transparency. This includes their contact details; client lists; represented interests; names of directors, officers and shareholders; the name of the person responsible for the interest representation activity; identification of annual income; and a list of the subsidies or financial aid received from European Union (“EU”) institutions or public entities.

Registered entities must keep the data in the RTRI up to date. They are specifically required to submit updates within 30 days of the events triggering the need for those updates.

Rights and duties of registered entities

As regards the rights of registered entities, the Lobbying Law establishes that they are entitled to:

• contact public entities;
• access public buildings on equal terms with other citizens and entities;
• receive information about ongoing legislative or regulatory public consultations;
• request updates to the data in the RTRI; and
• submit complaints concerning the operation of the RTRI or the conduct of other entities subject to registration.

The Lobbying Law does not grant any favorable or differential treatment in access to contacts with public decision-makers; rather, it aims only to ensure that the contacts made are recorded and transparent.

The duties of registered entities include:

• submitting to the RTRI any codes of conduct, whether professional or sectoral, to which they are subject;
•  refraining from infringing or inciting public entities, their directors, officers, or staff to infringe the rules of the Lobbying Law or any other codes of conduct to which they are subject;
• keeping the information provided to the RTRI up to date and complete; and
• refraining from obtaining preparatory information or documents for decisions without following the proper channels for accessing public information.

Within this context, and to ensure transparency, registered entities are subject to a code of conduct annexed to the Lobbying Law.

The Lobbying Law also requires the entities concerned to disclose, at least quarterly, the meetings they have had with RTRI-registered entities. This disclosure must be made on their website and include the date and purpose of each meeting.

We also highlight the creation of the Legislative Footprint Mechanism. This mechanism mandates the identification, at the end of each legislative procedure, of all consultations or interactions that occurred during the preparatory phase as part of the legitimate representation of interests with a body possessing legislative competence or the right of legislative initiative.

Incompatibilities and impediments

To prevent conflicts of interest, the Lobbying Law establishes a regime of incompatibilities and impediments. Specifically, it prohibits political officeholders, senior public officials, their staff, and their office members from carrying out legitimate interest representation activities with the legal entity, ministry or bodies where they held office or worked for three years after their departure from office.

Carrying out legitimate interest representation activities on behalf of others is, in fact, incompatible with (i) holding office in a sovereign body, political office or high public office; (ii) holding a position in an independent administrative or regulatory body; and (iii) holding a position in the support offices of political officeholders or senior public officials.

Breach of duty

Failure to comply with the duties established under the Lobbying Law may result in the imposition of cumulative penalties, including:

• the total or partial suspension, for up to two years, of an entity from the register or from establishing institutional contacts with one or more entities;
•  the limitation of access, for up to two years, for individuals who acted on behalf of the entity and breached these duties; and
• exclusion from participation in public consultation procedures for up to two years.

Carrying out legitimate interest representation activities without prior registration with the RTRI, or providing false information, is reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

Transitional regime and entry into force

Until the RTRI starts operating, public entities subject to the Lobbying Law must ensure that the hearings they grant are registered and publicized.

Also, public entities that engage professionally in representing the legitimate interests of others must register within 60 days of the RTRI becoming operational.

The Lobbying Law will enter into force on July 27.

Recommendations

• Assessment: Private entities that engage with public bodies to influence public policies, legislative, regulatory or administrative acts, or public contracts must verify whether their activities qualify as “legitimate interest representation.”
• RTRI registration: The required information must be compiled in advance and includes a list of clients and represented interests, as well as the identification of the annual income and subsidies or support received from EU institutions or public entities.
• Public entities that already carry out lobbying activities must register within 60 days of the RTRI becoming operational.
• Implementation of data updating procedures: The data in the RTRI must be updated within 30 days of the facts that gave rise to the changes. Entities are also bound by the code of conduct annexed to the law and must submit any applicable professional or sectoral codes to the RTRI.
•  Incompatibilities and impediments: Political officeholders and senior public officials are prevented from carrying out interest representation activities with the entities where they served for three years after leaving office. This restriction must be considered during recruitment processes.
•  Adaptation considering the date of entry into force: Until the law comes into force on July 27, 2026, entities intending to carry out legitimate interest representation activities must adjust their internal processes accordingly.