PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: Luís Portela de Carvalho, Pedro Cortés and Cláudia de Azevedo Neves, Lektou
worldwide turnover, and periodic penalty payments may apply for continued non-compliance. The law also creates a national communication platform for interactions between providers and authorities and sets out co-operation duties intended to support DSA supervision in Portugal. Sector-Specific Regulators Other regulators remain relevant in their own fields. • The Gambling Regulator ( Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos ) may act against unauthorised online gambling services, including through block - ing mechanisms directed at network intermediar - ies. • ERC supervises video-sharing platforms under the audiovisual regime. • CNPD and the National Cybersecurity Centre ( Cen- tro Nacional de Cibersegurança , or CNCS) may also intervene where the relevant conduct raises data protection or cybersecurity issues. 1.2 E-Commerce 1.2.1 Principal E-Commerce Legislation Portuguese rules on e-commerce and online con - tracting are not contained in a single code. The main domestic instruments are: • Decree-Law No 7/2004, which regulates informa - tion society services and electronic commerce and implements the E-Commerce Directive; • Decree-Law No 24/2014, which applies to distance and off-premises consumer contracts, including online contracts for goods, services and digital content; • Decree-Law No 84/2021, which governs conform - ity and remedies for consumer sales of goods, digital content and digital services, and includes rules relevant to online marketplaces; • Decree-Law No 95/2006, which deals with distance marketing of financial services; and • Decree-Law No 57/2008, which prohibits unfair commercial practices and is relevant to online advertising, misleading interface design and dark patterns. These statutes operate alongside the Civil Code ( Código Civil ) and the general consumer protection
framework. They should also be read in light of the EU directives they transpose, in particular the Consumer Rights Directive and the Digital Content and Digital Services Directive. 1.2.2 Key Obligations for Online Contracting Pre-Contractual Information Duties For online consumer contracts, traders must give clear and comprehensive information before the con - sumer is bound. Under Decree-Law No 24/2014, this includes details such as the main characteristics of the goods or services, the trader’s identity and contacts, the full price, payment and delivery arrangements, withdrawal rights and complaint channels. Consum - ers normally have a 14-day withdrawal period, subject to statutory exceptions. Digital Content and Digital Services Where digital content or digital services are supplied, including where the consumer provides personal data instead of paying a price, Decree-Law No 24/2014 and Decree-Law No 84/2021 impose additional duties. Businesses should explain relevant functional - ity, interoperability and technical protection measures, and must provide updates where necessary to keep Online marketplaces must make clear whether the third-party seller is acting as a trader or as a consum - er, and how responsibilities are allocated. Separately, the unfair commercial practices regime prohibits mis - leading actions or omissions and aggressive prac - tices. This captures, for example, hidden fees, false scarcity messages or deceptive interface designs on e commerce sites. Under Decree-Law No 7/2004, traders must also make basic corporate and contact information easily available on their websites, and commercial commu - the content or service in conformity. Marketplaces and Unfair Practices
nications must be identifiable as such. 1.2.3 Formation of Contracts Online General Validity of Electronic Contracts
Portuguese law recognises that contracts may be concluded electronically, and a contract is not invalid merely because it was formed online. Decree-Law No 7/2004 sets out the general framework for electronic
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