Can my employer fire me like this in Portugal? How to know if your dismissal is legal (2026)

The one question: does it fit one of the six legal routes?

In Portugal, the employer cannot fire you at will. The Constitution states, in Art. 53, that no one can lose their job without just cause.

That translates into six routes, and only six, through which the company can end your contract:

1. Just cause based on your conduct (Art. 351 CT).
2. Collective dismissal: cuts several people due to company reasons (Art. 359 CT).
3. Elimination of the job position: cuts only your position (Art. 367 CT).
4. Unsuitability: technology or method changed and you cannot follow (Art. 373 CT).
5. Expiration: fixed term contract ended, retirement, death (Art. 343 CT).
6. Probation period: free termination during the first 90, 180 or 240 days (Art. 114 CT).

If your dismissal does not fit any of these six, it is unlawful. You have 60 days to file a court action (Art. 387). And the court will order payment.

The six legal routes, and what each requires

Each route has its own rules. Below, what the company must do in each case. If any step fails, the dismissal becomes unlawful.

1. Just cause based on your conduct (Art. 351)

The company claims that your behaviour justifies the dismissal. Typical examples: repeated unjustified absences, assault, theft, repeated refusal to perform tasks, breach of duty of loyalty.

Mandatory procedure:

If any one of these steps fails, the dismissal is unlawful by procedural invalidity (Art. 381 c).

Save every piece of communication. Messages, emails, screenshots. If you already received a nota de culpa, read I received a disciplinary notice. What now? before replying.

2. Collective dismissal (Art. 359)

When the company cuts several positions at the same time. The minimum to count as collective:

• Microenterprise (10 employees or fewer): 2 employees within 3 months.
• Other companies: 5 employees within 3 months.

Mandatory procedure:

• Written notice to the workers' committee or to the affected workers (Art. 360).
• Notice to ACT (Art. 360 n.º 2).
• Information and negotiation phase of 15 days with workers' representatives (Art. 361).
• Final written decision with economic or structural grounds (Art. 363).
• Minimum notice period of 15 to 75 days (Art. 363 n.º 1), depending on seniority.

Severance: 14 days of base pay plus seniority bonuses per year of service (Art. 366), for contracts signed after 01/05/2023.

3. Elimination of the job position (Art. 367)

When your specific job ceases to exist, even though the company keeps operating. Accepted reasons: closure of a department, technological change, structural fall in activity.

The company must prove three things (Art. 368):

• Objective reason (market, structure, technology, economy) not attributable to the company or the worker.
• Practical impossibility to keep the worker in another compatible position.
• Application of objective criteria to choose who is fired, when several workers hold the same position (n.º 2, amended by Law 13/2023: the company sets the criteria, but they must be objective and non-discriminatory).

Mandatory procedure:

• Written notice to the worker plus the workers' committee (Art. 369).
• Notice to ACT.
• Notice period of 15 to 75 days (Art. 371), depending on seniority.

Severance: same as collective dismissal, 14 days per year (Art. 366).

Common trick: the company claims "elimination of the position" but hires someone new the next week to do the same work. That is unlawful, the position was not eliminated. Save evidence (job ads, LinkedIn posts, new org chart).

4. Unsuitability (Art. 373)

The company changes the work method or introduces new technology, gives you training, and you still cannot keep up. This route applies mainly when there has been substantial technical change in the past 6 months (Art. 375).

Cumulative conditions:

• Substantial modification of the position within the past 6 months (n.º 1 a).
• You received training adequate to the change (n.º 1 b).
• A minimum adaptation period of 30 days has passed (n.º 1 c).
• The unsuitability has been objectively verified (drop in productivity, repeated defects).
• The company has no other compatible position for you (n.º 1 e).

Severance: 14 days per year (Art. 366). Notice 15 to 75 days.

This route is rare in practice, the company has to prove a lot. If the reason given is "poor performance" without documented technical change, it is most likely unlawful.

5. Expiration (Art. 343)

The contract ends on its own due to:

• Fixed term contract reached its end and the company did not renew.
• Death of the worker or of the employer as an individual.
• Retirement by old age or disability of the worker.
• Supervening, absolute and definitive impossibility for the company to receive the work.

There is no disciplinary procedure. Expiration is not a dismissal.

But beware: in a fixed term contract, the company must give 15 days notice (Art. 344) and pay you 24 days per year (Law 13/2023, for contracts after 01/05/2023). Without notice, the contract renews automatically.

For details, read: Non renewal of fixed term contract.

6. Probation period (Art. 114)

In the first days of the contract, either party can terminate without reason. Statutory duration of the probation period:

• 90 days: open ended contracts, general.
• 180 days: positions of technical complexity or high trust.
• 240 days: management or senior positions.
• 30 days: fixed term contracts of 6 months or more.
• 15 days: fixed term contracts shorter than 6 months.

Notice from the employer:

• If more than 60 days of probation have passed: 7 days.
• If more than 120 days: 15 days.

If the company does not give notice, it pays you those days (Art. 114 n.º 4).

Important: even during probation, dismissal by discrimination is forbidden (Arts. 23 to 25). If there is a suspicious pattern (fired the day you announced pregnancy, for example), you have legal grounds.

For details: Probation period in Portugal, full guide.

The six question checklist: run it before doing anything

If you just got the news, run these six questions before deciding what to do:

1. Was the communication in writing? If not, unlawful (verbal).
2. Does it invoke one of the six legal routes? If not, or if it invokes vague reasons ("things are not working out", "no chemistry"), unlawful.
3. Was there a procedure (nota de culpa, notice to ACT, advance notice)? If steps are missing, unlawful due to invalidity.
4. Is there discrimination by pregnancy, sick leave, age, complaint, union? If yes, the burden of proof reverses (Art. 25 n.º 5), presumption of unlawfulness.
5. Did the company pay the correct severance? If they invoked elimination of the position but only paid holidays, unlawful or unpaid labour credit.
6. Am I still within the 60 days to challenge? If yes, you are in time. If no, the dismissal becomes final.

If even one answer says "unlawful" or "doubtful", it is worth taking action.

Table: what the employer says vs. what to check

Six mistakes that cost the case in court

1. Signing the dismissal letter without reading. Worse: signing a "resignation" or "voluntary termination" the company presents. That changes everything, it becomes your own exit, no severance and no unemployment benefit. Never sign on the same day.

2. Waiting to see if things blow over. The 60 days are ticking. On day 61, it is too late. To suspend the dismissal and keep your salary during the case, you have only 5 working days (Art. 386 n.º 1).

3. Not saving evidence. Deleted messages, emails only on the company server, verbal conversations without witnesses. Today, forward emails to your personal address, take screenshots, list witnesses with their contacts.

4. Showing up at work the next day as if nothing happened. If the company says you are dismissed and refuses you entry, it is a dismissal. Do not try to "ignore it". Document the refusal of entry (witnesses, an email confirming you were prevented from working).

5. Accepting a "mutual agreement" the company proposes to avoid court. It can be reasonable, but only sign if: the amount is equal to or higher than the statutory indemnity, it is framed under Art. 10 of DL 220/2006 (unemployment benefit guaranteed) and you have 7 days to revoke.

6. Going to court without preparing the defence. Labour court does not require a lawyer for claims under 5,000 euros, but unlawful dismissal claims easily reach 15,000 to 30,000 euros. Get at least one consultation with a labour lawyer. Legal aid is available if your income is low.

Action plan: what to do in the next 72 hours

Today:

• Do not sign anything the company hands you.
• Ask for a written copy of the decision. If they refuse, send an email or letter requesting it.
• Take screenshots and copies of everything (emails, messages, contracts).
• Note the names of any witnesses present in the conversation.

Within the next 5 working days (important if you want to suspend the dismissal):

• Calculate what you gain by going to court: use the unfair dismissal compensation calculator.
• Confirm whether your case fits one of the six legal routes. If not, likely unlawful.
• Decide whether to request preventive suspension (Art. 386). Filing it requires a court action within 5 working days to freeze the dismissal. Without it, you can still challenge within 60 days but lose the salary in the meantime.

Within the next 60 days:

• Register with IEFP and Social Security for unemployment benefit.
• Decide whether to challenge (action under Art. 387) or accept the severance. To challenge, you have 60 days from the dismissal notice.
• If there is discrimination (pregnancy, sick leave, complaint, age), file a parallel complaint with ACT: How to file an ACT complaint in 10 minutes.
• If a disciplinary procedure is still open, prepare your reply to the nota de culpa.

What will I receive if I win in court?

If the court declares the dismissal unlawful (Art. 381), the company must (Arts. 389 to 391):

• Back wages from the dismissal date until the judgment, minus unemployment benefits received and any income earned during the period (Art. 390).
• At your choice: reinstatement in the position with the same seniority and category, OR indemnity in lieu of reinstatement (Art. 391). In microenterprises and management positions, the employer can oppose the reinstatement (Art. 392).
• Indemnity under Art. 391: 15 to 45 days of base pay plus seniority bonuses times each full year, minimum 3 months. The judge sets the exact value within the range, based on the seriousness of the unlawfulness and the time elapsed.
• Possibly non-pecuniary damages if there was humiliation, harassment or reputational harm.

In dismissals based on pregnancy, sick leave or union discrimination, the amount can be even higher, moral damages tend to be larger.

If the company proposes a "mutual agreement" after telling you you are out

Careful. Companies offer this to avoid court and close the door on future claims. Before signing:

• Compare with what you would get in court. Unlawful dismissal = back wages plus 15 to 45 days per year. Mutual agreement = whatever the company offers. If it is lower, it is a bad deal.
• Confirm the framing under Art. 10 of DL 220/2006. Without it, you lose unemployment benefit.
• You have 7 days to revoke (Art. 350). Do not sign on the same day. Ask for the document to take home.
• Read the guide Mutual agreement, what they will not tell you.

[Common reading:] Companies usually propose a mutual agreement when they know they will lose in court. That means your position is strong, use it to negotiate.

Tools you will need

• Unfair dismissal compensation calculator, calculates what you are entitled to receive.
• Unemployment benefit calculator, confirms whether you qualify and how much.
• Template: Reply to the nota de culpa, if a disciplinary procedure is still running.
• Template: Resignation letter, if you decide to accept a negotiated exit with the proper documents.
• Guide: I received a disciplinary notice, what now?, to follow the disciplinary procedure.
• Pillar guide: Termination of employment, the five routes, full picture of every way a contract can end.

Disclaimer

This guide explains general rules of the Portuguese Labour Code in force on 2026-05-26. Each case has its own details. For court actions, consider consulting a labour lawyer or applying for legal aid.