Portugal

Civil Same Sex Marriage (2010)

In 2010 the Portuguese Parliament passed a law permitting same sex marriage, altering the corresponding articles of the Civil Code.

Case No. 554/06.8TMSTB.E1.S1 (2010)

The husband (plaintiff) initially filed a contested divorce lawsuit against his wife, based on the couple's de facto separation over more than three years ago. The wife (defendant) then filed a counterclaim, alleging that the marital separation occurred after discovering that the plaintiff had an extramarital relationship with another woman.

Case No. 93/09.5TAABT.E1.S1 (2013)

Portuguese Civil Code (2024)

The Civil Code codifies private law relating to personal and personality rights, contracts, property, inheritance, and obligations. The rights and obligations governed by the Civil Code make no distinction between genders. 

Section 29 of the Portuguese Labor Law ensures equal opportunity in labor and and prevents gender discrimination. The Code also guarantees maternity and paternity leave, bans harassment, establishes universal preschool for children until the age of five, and requires children to attend school.

Portuguese Labor Code Law No. 13/2023 Subsections III and IV

The Labor Code governs the rights and obligations in employment relations between employers and employees in Portugal. It establishes equal rights for all people to work, to choose work and a profession without discrimination and prohibits forced labor.

Under Article 140, abortion is considered a “crime against the intra-uterine life,” and someone who causes an abortion without the consent of the pregnant woman may be sentenced from 2-8 years of imprisonment, while the person who performed the abortion and the pregnant woman can be sentence to up to three years of imprisonment.

Articles 154-A and B, 159, and 160 ban harassment (sentencing to up to three years in prison), forced marriage (sentencing to up to five years in prison), slavery (imprisonment from 5-15 years), and human trafficking (imprisonment from 3-10 years), respectively. Article 169 punishes the economic exploitation of prostitution by third parties, even though prostitution itself is not a crime in Portugal.

Article 144-A bans female genital mutilation and imposes a prison sentence of 2-10 years. Article 145 imposes greater penalties for offenses against physical integrity and female genital mutilation if the crime is committed, among other special circumstances, against the current or former spouse or a person with whom the perpetrator has a romantic relationship, regardless of sex and gender; if the victim is pregnant; or if the crime is committed due to the victim’s gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

Article 132 of the Portuguese Penal Code imposes a more severe penalty (imprisonment from 12 to 25 years) for the crime of qualified homicide (“homicídio qualificado”), if, among other special circumstances, the victim is the current or former spouse or person with whom the perpetrator has a romantic relationship, regardless of sex and gender, if the victim is pregnant or if the crime is committed due to the victim’s gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity.