Law No. 5-A/2026 of 28 January — in force since 27 July 2026.
More (in Portuguese)
Support | Help-Desk Secretariat Resources Regulation Authorities Links FAQCompliance and accountability under Law No. 5-A/2026 of 28 January (Lei n.º 5-A/2026, de 28 de janeiro), Portugal's framework on legitimate interest representation (representação legítima de interesses). We understand this framework and know how to implement it in your organisation — from scoping and registration to internal policies and ongoing compliance.
In force since 27 July 2026 — Diário da República, 1st series, Supplement, No. 19, of 28 January 2026.
RTRI status: [operational start date to be announced by notice of the Assembleia da República — Article 18(3)].
The framework is no longer on its way: it has applied since 27 July 2026. Law No. 5-A/2026 lays down transparency rules for the interaction between private entities, Portuguese or foreign, and public entities, and creates the Transparency Register of Interest Representation (Registo de Transparência da Representação de Interesses — RTRI), operating within the Assembleia da República, the Portuguese Parliament (Article 1(1)). Anyone seeking to influence public policies, legislative and regulatory acts, administrative acts or public contracts now operates within a regulated setting, with verifiable duties and sanctions.
In practice, the framework rests on four pillars that every organisation within its scope must operationalise.
The RTRI is a single, public, free and open register, available through the Parliament's portal (Article 4(4)). Registration requires, among other elements, the identification of the entity and its corporate purpose, the list of clients and interests represented where representation is on behalf of third parties, and the person responsible for the activity (Article 5(1)), with data updates within 30 days (Article 5(4)).
Entities subject to registration must appear in the RTRI before being granted a hearing (audiência) (Article 8(1)). Public entities disclose, at least quarterly, the meetings held with registered entities (Article 8(3)), and the Parliament discloses its meetings monthly (Article 8(4)).
At the end of the legislative procedure, all consultations and interactions that occurred during the preparatory stage must be identified, and public entities must create specific legislative footprint (pegada legislativa) mechanisms (Article 10). Every relevant contact becomes traceable, which demands organised internal records on both sides.
The law approves, as an annex forming an integral part of it, a Code of Conduct (Código de Conduta) whose adherence is mandatory for the public entities of Article 3 and for registered representatives (Article 15(1)). Breaches of duties may lead to suspension of registration or of institutional contacts for up to 2 years (Article 11(1)).
Every organisation reaches the framework with a different need: some do not yet know whether they are covered, others need to register, and others must build the full internal compliance apparatus. Our offer is organised around those concrete needs.
We assess your activities against the definitions of Article 2 and the exclusions of Article 2(3), and determine the applicable RTRI registration category.
See the solution →We prepare with you every element required by Article 5(1) and support the filing, mindful of the 60-day window of the transitional regime (Article 19(2)).
See the solution →We install policies, procedures and internal records aligned with the Code of Conduct and keep your organisation compliant over time.
See the solution →Five professional services cover the full compliance cycle — regulatory diagnostic, RTRI registration support, compliance and Code of Conduct implementation, a documentation toolkit, and ongoing advisory. Each service is described in the English catalogue, with the detailed technical sheets available in Portuguese.
lobbying.pt is the central hub of an ecosystem of specialised domains. International visitors will find a dedicated English-language gateway at representacaodeinteresses.com.
Assisted registration in the RTRI: data preparation, filing and declarative updates.
Start registration →Segment for regional and local government, including inter-municipal entities (Article 3).
Visit →Specialised training portal: technical sessions, workshops and learning resources.
See training →International gateway for foreign entities interacting with Portuguese public entities.
International gateway →Compliance is learnt and practised. We deliver professional training programmes for lawyers, compliance officers, secretaries-general and institutional relations teams, online, on site or in-company. The flagship session covers the full framework, the RTRI and the Code of Conduct. [Dates of the next editions to be confirmed on the Training page.]
The framework has applied since 27 July 2026. Tell us where your organisation stands — scoping, registration, internal policies or training — and we will reply with a concrete action plan.