Decree-Law No. 160/2026 of 4 August, which entered into force on 9 August 2026, introduced a significant amendment to Article 14 of the Expropriation Code: the power to declare the public utility of expropriations initiated by local authorities, including those designated as urgent, now rests with the relevant municipal assembly, acting on a reasoned proposal from the municipal council.
Although confined to the allocation of this power and the rules necessary for its exercise, the amendment changes the decision-making process for expropriation proceedings initiated at local level and places greater responsibility on municipal bodies when adopting decisions capable of resulting in the compulsory deprivation of the right to property.
From central government to municipal assemblies
Before this legislation entered into force, municipal assemblies had the power, under the general provisions of the Expropriation Code, to declare the public utility of expropriations initiated by local authorities only where those expropriations were intended to implement urban development plans or detailed plans in force. Outside those circumstances, and without prejudice to any special statutory regimes, the decision rested with the member of the Government responsible for the department competent to carry out the final assessment of the proceedings.
That restriction ceased to apply on 9 August 2026. The declaration of public utility for expropriations initiated by local authorities is now issued by the municipal assembly of the municipality in whose territory the property to be expropriated is located, on a reasoned proposal from the municipal council. This power also encompasses the designation of an expropriation as urgent.
The reform has therefore not created an entirely new power of expropriation. Rather, it has given general application to a power that municipal assemblies already exercised in certain planning contexts, extending it to other expropriations initiated by local authorities. The Government retains its competence in cases falling outside the new regime.
The involvement of the member of the Government responsible for local government is now expressly for information purposes. The municipal assembly’s resolution must still be communicated to that member of the Government, but such communication does not constitute governmental authorisation or validation, without prejudice to the statutory powers of supervisory inspection.
How does the procedure work?
For expropriations covered by the latest amendments to the regime, the municipal council is responsible for submitting a reasoned proposal to the municipal assembly in accordance with Article 10 of the Expropriation Code.
The proposal must expressly and clearly identify the public purpose to be pursued and the relevant enabling provision, the property to be expropriated, the owners and other known interested parties, the estimated costs to be incurred, and the provisions of the spatial planning instruments applicable to the immovable property and the area in which it is located. It must also be supported by the documentation and information required by law, including those relating to the attempt to acquire the property through private-law means, where such an attempt is mandatory.
The municipal assembly must then assess the proposal and adopt a resolution on the declaration of public utility. The resolution must be adopted by a majority of the members in office and must be duly reasoned. Where the expropriation is designated as urgent, separate reasons must also be given to justify that urgency.
The amended regime also governs situations in which an expropriation extends across the territory of two or more municipalities. In such cases, reasoned proposals from the respective municipal councils and resolutions of all municipal assemblies with territorial competence are required. Public utility is deemed to have been declared on the date on which the last resolution required by law is adopted.
Following the declaration, the remaining provisions of the Expropriation Code continue to apply, particularly those concerning publication of the act in Series II of the Diário da República (the Portuguese Official Gazette), notification of the persons subject to expropriation and other known interested parties, and annotation in the land register.
The amendment may help shorten decision-making times by removing the need for central government to take the decision. That outcome is not, however, automatic: it will depend on the municipalities’ technical capacity, the proper preparation and documentation of the proceedings, coordination between local authority bodies, and strict compliance with the applicable legal requirements.
Greater proximity, greater responsibility
The transfer of competence seeks to bring decision-making closer to the specific needs of the territory and its communities, strengthening local autonomy, political scrutiny and procedural efficiency. At the same time, it increases the legal and administrative responsibility of municipal councils and municipal assemblies.
The declaration of public utility must continue to demonstrate the existence of a specific public-interest purpose and the necessity, suitability and proportionality of the expropriation. The decision-making body’s geographical proximity does not diminish these requirements or exclude judicial review of the legality of the act.
In this context, particular importance attaches to the reasons given in the municipal council’s proposal and the municipal assembly’s resolution. The file must make it possible to understand not only the public purpose pursued, but also why the identified property is necessary to achieve that purpose and why a less burdensome solution for the affected private parties is not feasible.
Stronger local autonomy must therefore be accompanied by technical capacity, transparency and consistent decision-making criteria. Concentrating the decision-making process at municipal level may expedite it, but requires a sufficiently substantiated and legally rigorous assessment of each proposed expropriation.
A change in competence, not in safeguards
For persons subject to expropriation, it is important to define the scope of the reform clearly. Decree-Law No. 160/2026 changed the authority competent to issue the declaration of public utility and established the coordination rules applicable where several municipalities are involved. It did not alter the substantive conditions for expropriation, the requirement to attempt prior acquisition through private-law means where applicable, the publication and notification formalities, the rules governing the determination of fair compensation, or the availability of judicial review of the legality of the decision.
The safeguards arising from Article 62(2) of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic and the Expropriation Code therefore remain unchanged. Deprivation of the right to property continues to require a legal basis and a public purpose, must be limited to what is necessary to achieve the purpose pursued, and gives rise to an entitlement to fair compensation.
Simplification of the decision-making process does not, therefore, entail any relaxation of the safeguards afforded to private parties. Transferring the locus of decision-making to municipal level changes who decides, but does not diminish the intensity of legal scrutiny. In matters of expropriation, greater geographical proximity must be accompanied by a rigorous statement of reasons, a transparent procedure and effective protection of the rights of persons subject to expropriation, with the payment of genuinely fair compensation remaining an essential safeguard.
Margarida Silva Nunes (Trainee Lawyer)
