Coronavirus: Measures for the tourism sector

A state of emergency was declared in Portugal by Decree of the President of the Republic 14-A/2020 of 18 March and this was renewed by Decree of the President of the Republic 20-A/2020 of 17 April. Following this declaration, exceptional and temporary measures have been adopted in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this context, Decree-Law 17/2020 of 23 April was approved and came into force on 24 April 2020, and it sets out a series of measures to mitigate the negative impact on the tourism sector. The Decree-Law establishes measures concerning (i) package holidays organised by travel and tourism agencies, (ii) the cancellation of reservations in tourism developments and local lodging establishments, and (iii) the relationships between travel and tourism agencies, tourism entertainment operators, tourism developments and local lodging establishments.

The aim of these measures is to strike a balance between the financial sustainability of economic operators and the rights of consumers, which, despite the current context, cannot be suppressed or eliminated. The measures also include special protection for travellers / guests who are unemployed. and who will be able to request the reimbursement of all amounts spent, until 30 September 2020.