Portugal Public Holiday 2019

Public Holidays in Portugal for 2019

Portugal is an extremely catholic country, and most of its public holidays are religious. Tourists and ex-pats must take note of these public holidays. That is because the majority of the shops are closed the entire day. Also, public services like transportation have different operating times.

A lot of the bank holidays are national, but only some regions celebrate it. Unlike a lot of other countries, the holidays in Portugal are only observed on days they fall. Therefore, if it falls on a Sunday, then it does not get moved to the next weekday. Besides, some festivals are widely celebrated, which are not considered official holidays.

If you are planning to start a business in Portugal, you must be aware of the holidays and what you must do as an employer.

 

What Employers Must Know About Portugal Public Holidays

Aside from statutory and public holidays, employees may be given leave so they can observe regional or municipal holidays. Other holidays may be followed based on the employer’s discretion, based on the employment contract. Usually, Shrove Tuesday is celebrated either in February or March based on the calendar year.

A lot of employees may observe religious holidays, but these are not necessarily considered public holidays.

Employees must be given at least 22 days of annual leave, and this is not including public holidays. It is the employer’s choice if they want to give more leave than the minimum, but in different cases, the 22 days are going to be accrued if they do not use it.

In case the employee must work on any national holiday or rest day, the compensation is a lot higher than what the regular pay rate is.

 

Dates of the Portugal Public Holiday 2019

Date	Day/s	Holiday	Type
1 January	Tuesday	New Year’s Day	National
14 February	Thursday	Valentine’s Day	Observance
5 March	Tuesday	Carnival / Shrove Tuesday	Optional
19 March	Tuesday	St. Joseph’s Day	Municipal
19 March	Tuesday	Father’s Day	Observance
20 March	Wednesday	March Equinox	Season
31 March	Sunday	Daylight Saving Time starts	Clock change/Daylight Saving Time
19 April	Friday	Good Friday	National
21 April	Sunday	Easter Sunday	National
25 April	Thursday	Liberty Day	National
28 April	Sunday	Our Lady of Mércoles	Municipal
1 May	Wednesday	Labor Day / May Day	National
5 May	Sunday	Mother’s Day	Observance
12 May	Sunday	St. Joana’s Day	Municipal
22 May	Wednesday	Leiria Day	Municipal
23 May	Thursday	Portalegre Day	Municipal
30 May	Thursday	Ascension Day	Municipal
10 June	Monday	Portugal Day	Regional
10 June	Monday	Azores Day	National
13 June	Thursday	St. Anthony’s Day	Municipal
20 June	Thursday	Corpus Christi	National
21 June	Friday	June Solstice	Season
24 June	Monday	St. John’s Day	Municipal
29 June	Saturday	St. Peter’s Day	Municipal
4 July	Thursday	St. Elizabeth’s Day	Municipal
15 August	Thursday	Assumption of Mary	National
20 August	Tuesday	Our Lady of Sorrows	Municipal
22 August	Thursday	Our Lady of Graces	Municipal
7 September	Saturday	Faro Day	Municipal
5 October	Saturday	Republic Implantation	National
27 October	Sunday	Daylight Saving Time ends	Clock change/Daylight Saving Time
1 November	Friday	All Saints’ Day	National
27 November	Wednesday	Foral of Sancho I	Municipal
1 December	Sunday	Restoration of Independence	National
8 December	Sunday	Feast of the Immaculate Conception	National
22 December	Sunday	December Solstice	Season
24 December	Tuesday	Christmas Eve	Observance
25 December	Wednesday	Christmas Day	National
31 December	Tuesday	New Year’s Eve	Observance

 

Benefits of Employees During Portugal Public Holidays

An employee can partially renounce their rights to taking holidays if she has already received additional remuneration, and the holiday remuneration of the bonus that was received. The employer must take at least 20 days of holiday a year.

Holiday compensation depends on the employment terms and length of their employment. The supplements of statutory pay that the labor code established allows an employee who is working on a holiday to receive a 100% increase in their salary per hour of work.

 

Doing Business in Portugal

Portugal has a sustained export growth that reflects a favorable economy with good financial environment and maintenance of the gains in its global market share. They also shifted domestic demands.

The export behavior of goods and services have been one of the most important aspects of the Portuguese economy’s adjustment process. It provides a marked reorientation of productive resources to the sectors that have more exposure to international competition.

Portugal respects the age and position of a person, and in this society, status is very important. You can plan your marketing based on this.

Now you know why setting up a business in Portugal is an excellent idea.