Alojamento Local Registration in 2026: What Changed and What Owners Should Check Now

published 28 September 2026

Few rules in Portugal have changed as often as those for Alojamento Local (AL), the country's short-term rental regime. In 2023, the Mais Habitação housing package froze new registrations, gave existing ones an expiry date and made them non-transferable. In 2024, most of that was reversed, and much of the decision-making moved to municipalities. This guide sets out what is in force at the date of publication, based on the Official Gazette (Diário da República) and the AL technical guide published by Turismo de Portugal, and what to check in your own municipality.

The Framework: RNAL and Decree-Law 128/2014

The legal regime for AL is still Decree-Law No. 128/2014 of 29 August, amended several times since. RNAL (Registo Nacional de Alojamento Local) is the public register kept by Turismo de Portugal, listing each registered property's name, capacity, land-registry article, operator and, since 2024, the expiry date of its mandatory insurance.

You do not apply to Turismo de Portugal. Registration is made by a prior notification with a deadline (comunicação prévia com prazo), addressed to the mayor of the municipality where the property is, and filed on the Balcão Único Eletrónico, the government's online one-stop shop on the ePortugal portal. The document issued with your registration number is the only valid permit to open to the public, and that number must appear in all advertising, including Airbnb and Booking listings.

What Decree-Law 76/2024 Changed

Decree-Law No. 76/2024 of 23 October came into force on 1 November 2024 and rewrote much of what Law No. 56/2023 (Mais Habitação) had introduced. The changes that matter most:

The nationwide freeze on new registrations ended for apartments and guesthouses in units within multi-owner buildings.
Registrations no longer expire. The five-year validity, the planned 2030 review and the lapse of inactive registrations were all revoked.
Transfers are allowed again by default. A registration can change hands, for example on a sale. Municipalities may limit transfers of new registrations for houses and apartments in containment areas, but not in cases of inheritance, gifts to a spouse or partner, children or parents, or divorce.
Condominium authorisation is no longer required to register an AL in a flat, except for hostels in buildings that also contain homes.
The condominium can object, but cannot cancel. Owners representing more than half of the building's value can vote to object on grounds of repeated, proven disturbance and ask the mayor to cancel the registration. The municipality decides, and may first try to broker an agreement.
An AL ombudsman (provedor do alojamento local) can be created by municipal regulation to handle complaints and disputes between residents, owners and operators.
Capacity: the maximum is now 9 bedrooms and 27 guests, except for hostels and the "rooms" category.

Separately, Decree-Law No. 57/2024 of 10 September abolished the Extraordinary Contribution on Alojamento Local (CEAL), with effect backdated to 31 December 2023.

Power Has Moved to the Municipalities

The underlying shift is that the detailed rules now depend increasingly on the municipality (câmara municipal). Each one may adopt its own AL regulation. Where a municipality has more than 1,000 registrations, its municipal assembly must decide explicitly, within 12 months of reaching that number, whether to use that power.

Through that regulation, a municipality can create:

Containment areas, where AL is overloaded. There it may, for example, refuse new registrations for properties let as homes in the previous two years, cap AL relative to the housing stock, and restrict transfers of new registrations. The deadline for the municipality to object to a registration rises to 90 days.
Sustainable growth areas, which call for monitoring. There it may require, among other things, an average or better state of repair and an energy certificate of D or better.

These areas must be reviewed at least every three years. While drafting a regulation, a municipality may suspend new registrations in defined areas for up to one year.

What Came Next: Decree-Law 151/2026

After the 2025 local elections, several municipalities could not meet the deadlines to decide on their regulations. According to reports published up to September 2026, Decree-Law No. 151/2026 of 30 July gives municipalities that passed 1,000 registrations by 31 December 2025, and had not yet decided, until 31 December 2026 to do so. It also allows them, exceptionally, to extend or impose a suspension of new registrations for as long as strictly needed to prepare the regulation, and never beyond that date. Check the full text in the Diário da República (Official Gazette) before relying on these dates.

In practice, some municipalities may have new registrations suspended in certain areas during 2026, and new or amended regulations may appear before the year ends. Always check your municipality's website.

How to Register a New Property

The operator, or someone with a power of attorney, files the prior notification on the Balcão Único Eletrónico. According to Turismo de Portugal's technical guide, it must include, among other things:

A copy of the operator's ID, or the access code to the company's permanent certificate.
A signed statement of responsibility (termo de responsabilidade) that the property is fit for the activity.
A copy of the urban property record (caderneta predial urbana).
The lease or other title, with authorisation for AL, if the operator is not the owner.
The declaration of start of activity filed with the Tax Authority, with the relevant activity code.
Condominium minutes, only for hostels in buildings under horizontal property.

The municipality has 60 days, or 90 in a containment area, to object and inspect. If it does not object, the registration number becomes your permit to open. Some municipalities charge their own fee for the procedure.

What to Check Now if You Already Operate

Is your RNAL entry correct? Capacity, category, operator, email and insurance expiry date. An outdated registration cannot be advertised.
Is your insurance valid? Missing or invalid insurance is grounds for cancellation. See our guide to mandatory AL insurance.
Does your municipality have an AL regulation, containment areas or a suspension in progress? Check before selling, transferring or opening a second property.
Does the condominium have your contact details? In multi-owner buildings, the law requires the operator to give the condominium a phone number and email.
Are your other obligations covered? Reporting foreign guests to SIBA, the complaints book and the tourist tax where it applies.

How ciceroni Helps

ciceroni does not handle RNAL registration or anything with the municipality. It helps with what comes after: each stay gets its own digital guide, in Portuguese, English, French and Spanish, with arrival instructions, house and building rules and emergency contacts. Guests can fill in their details in the guide before arrival, which helps you prepare the SIBA list; you still submit it yourself. It is free during launch.

FAQ

Does my AL registration expire after five years?

No. Decree-Law 76/2024 revoked the five-year validity introduced in 2023. Registrations have no end date again, although the municipality can cancel them in the cases set out in law, such as the lack of valid insurance.

Can I sell the property with its AL registration?

As a rule, yes: transfers became the default again in November 2024. In containment areas, the municipal regulation may limit transfers of new registrations for houses and apartments. Check your municipality's rules before you negotiate.

Can the condominium cancel my AL?

Not directly. Owners representing more than half of the building's value can vote to object, on grounds of repeated, proven disturbance, and ask the mayor to decide. Cancellation is a municipal decision.

Sources

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