AL Licensing Freeze in Lisbon and Porto: The Practical Reality

The Mais Habitação package (Law 56/2023) introduced 'zonas de contenção' — containment zones where municipalities can suspend new AL registrations. Lisbon city centre and most parishes, Porto's Baixa and Cedofeita, and a growing list of Algarve centres have activated containment.

The mechanism is twofold: first, suspension of new CAL (Certificado de Alojamento Local) issuance for apartments in contained parishes; second, a reassessment of existing AL every five years, triggered at renewal, with municipal veto if building-level caps are exceeded (generally 30% of residential units in a building).

Practical consequences. If you are buying in a contained parish and plan to short-let, assume zero new licence and model the deal as long-term only. If you are buying an apartment already registered, verify the AL certificate is transferable and the building cap has not already been hit. If you hold an AL and are approaching renewal, start the municipal paperwork six months early.

Enforcement has teeth: AT cross-references bookings against declared income, and municipal inspectors respond to neighbour complaints. A cancelled CAL mid-season means the booking platform (Airbnb, Booking) deactivates the listing — and guests are refunded.

Outside the contention zones — rural Alentejo, interior Algarve, Madeira outside Funchal centre — registration remains normal. But the institutional direction is one-way: more restriction, not less.