It is reported that functional separation is not mandated for operators with significant market power (SMP). In the Electronic Communication Law, it is foreseen the possibility of imposition of the functional separation obligation, however, Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (ANACOM) did not impose it in practice (instead imposed equivalence of inputs/outputs). Art. 66 provides for the possibility, as an exceptional measure, of imposing the remedy of functional separation on SMP operators. On the other hand, accounting separation is required, and it applies to SMP operators in the relevant markets where this obligation was imposed.

It is reported that the Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (ANACOM), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides a comprehensive framework for data protection that applies to all EU Member States. Law No. 58/2019 implemented the GDPR in Portugal.

Under the EU Directive on Data Retention, operators were required to retain certain categories of traffic and location data (excluding the content of those communications) for a period between six months and two years and to make them available, on request, to law enforcement authorities for the purposes of investigating, detecting and prosecuting serious crime and terrorism. On 8 April 2014, the Court of Justice of the European Union declared the Directive invalid. However, not all national laws that implemented the Directive have been overturned.
In Portugal, the Directive has yet to be repealed, and it has been implemented through Law No. 32/2008 on data processing. Article 6 of the Law establishes a retention period of one year for the following categories of data:
- Data necessary to find and identify the source of a communication.
- Data necessary to trace and identify the destination of a communication.
- Data necessary to identify the date, time and duration of a communication.
- Data necessary to identify the type of communication.
- Data necessary to identify the users' telecommunications equipment or what is considered to be their equipment.
- Data necessary to identify the location of mobile communication equipment.

Portugal is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

There is no general principle for the use of copyright-protected material comparable to the fair use/fair dealing principles. Directive 2001/29/EC defines an optional but exhaustive set of limitations from the author´s exclusive rights under the control of the “three-step test” in line with the Berne Convention that establishes three cumulative conditions to the limitations and exceptions of a copyright holder’s rights. Member States have transposed the Directive with significant freedom.
The amendment of Law No 62/98 (Decree-Law 63/1986) applies to Directive 2001/29/EC. The exceptions mentioned in the law include:
- Temporary reproduction - Reproduction of work exclusively for private purposes;
- Reproduction and making available to the public by the media for the purpose of information, speeches, addresses and conferences given in public;
- Reproduction by a public library, a public archive, a public museum, a non-commercial documentation centre or a scientific institution or educational institution under conditions listed in the law;
- Reproduction, distribution and public availability for teaching and education purposes;
- Quotation.

Art. 85 of the Utilities Directive (2014/25/EU) contains provisions allowing contracting public entities to reject foreign goods not covered by any EU international commitments from its tender procedures. In these cases, a tender submitted for the award of a supply contract may be rejected where the proportion of the products originating in third countries exceeds 50% of the total value of the products constituting the tender (Art. 85.2). Additionally, in cases of equivalent offers, the provisions provide for a preference for European tenders and tenders covered by EU's international obligations. In practice, this possibility has rarely been used.
In Portugal, the Directive has been transposed with Decree-Law No. 111-B/2017 amending the Public Procurement Code for the ninth time, approved by Decree-Law No. 18/2008 of 29 January, transposing Directives 2014/23/EU, 2014/24/EU and 2014/25/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 and Directive 2014/55/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014.

Foreign companies are not required to set up branches or subsidiaries or otherwise enter into any commercial agreements with local partners in order to participate in public procurement processes. However, Art. 106 of Decree Law 18/2008 stipulates that, after the awarding takes place, the execution of certain contracts requires that the contractor establishes some type of representation in Portugal.

It is reported that Portugal’s legal environment encourages foreign investment. Portuguese law prohibits any discrimination between investments on the basis of nationality, and most foreign investments are not regulated.

Portugal’s foreign direct investment screening mechanism is mainly found in Decree-Law No. 138/2014. The legislation provides for screening in connection to strategic assets in sensitive industry sectors such as energy, transport, and telecommunications. The mechanism establishes both an ex-post opposition screening regime and the possibility for any interested party to request previous confirmation from the Portuguese government. The authorities responsible for foreign direct investment screening in Portugal are the respective Ministries responsible for the energy, transport and communication sectors and the Portuguese Council of Ministers. The Portuguese FDI screening mechanism is triggered if (i) the transaction results, directly or indirectly, in the acquisition of direct or indirect control over strategic assets; and (ii) the person(s) acquiring such control are third-country nationals, i.e. they are domiciled in or their statutory headquarters or effective place of business is in a non-EU or EEA country. It is reported that although Portugal has not yet activated its investment screening mechanism, the government has indicated that an inter-institutional working group of the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs will be reactivated to align the Portuguese investment screening law with the EU directive and deliver concrete results.

The official language of proceedings before the Portuguese Industrial Property Office (INPI) is Portuguese. However, the application may initially be filed in English. A Portuguese translation thereof must be submitted within one month of the corresponding notification from the Office, provided that an additional fee is paid. Moreover, it is reported that different activities within the application procedure have to be assisted by an intellectual property agent, such as the submission of specific translations (see Art. 83 Decree-Law No. 110/2018).

According to the Polish Committee for Standardisation (Polski Komitet Normalizacyjny – PKN), to become a member of a Technical Committee (KT), Project Committee (KZ), or Technical Subcommittee (PK), an entity must (i) meet the requirements set forth in Article 23.2 of the Standardisation Act of September 2002; (ii) operate and be registered in the Republic of Poland; and (iii) possess expertise in the thematic scope of the KT, KZ, or PK they wish to join. Membership in these committees is voluntary and free of charge. As specified in Art. 23.2 of the Standardisation Act, a technical committee is composed of specialists appointed by government administration bodies, economic entities, employers' associations, consumer organisations, professional and scientific-technical organisations, higher education institutions, scientific organisations, and PKN employees. The composition must ensure the representativeness of all stakeholders in a given subject, considering the needs of the national economy.

The Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU provides an updated framework aimed at encouraging online sales. The Directive has been implemented by the Act of 30th May 2014 on Consumer's Rights.