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Electricity and gas in Portugal – suppliers, broadband, home insurance and the new bottle deposit

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

Your first weeks in a Portuguese home mean an electricity contract, probably gas, a broadband line and a mobile number, plus learning which bin takes what. Since 10 April 2026 there is also a €0.10 deposit on cans and plastic bottles. Here is what is national, what your câmara municipal decides, and what to sort first.

Smiling woman unpacking cardboard boxes in a new flat
Photo: Antonioguillem/Adobe Stock

Electricity, gas and telecoms in Portugal follow national rules set by ERSE (Entidade Reguladora dos Serviços Energéticos – the energy regulator) and ANACOM (the telecoms regulator). Waste is the exception: each câmara municipal (town hall) decides bins, hours and the tariff. You need a NIF (número de identificação fiscal – tax number) before you sign anything (part 3); your first utility bill then serves as proof of address.

How do I choose an electricity supplier in Portugal?

The market has been fully open since 4 September 2006: you pick a supplier (comercializador). Households that never chose one stay with the supplier of last resort (comercializador de último recurso, CUR) at a transitional tariff set by ERSE – about 817,000 customers at the end of September 2025, against about 5.8 million in the free market.

Any household with contracted power up to 41.4 kVA may ask its free-market supplier to bill it at the ERSE regulated price instead, the tarifa equiparada, and the supplier must answer within ten working days. ERSE says the regulated tariff is currently planned to last until the end of 2027, and its price simulator compares every offer for low-voltage electricity and low-pressure gas on the mainland.

ERSE approved the 2026 tariffs on 15 December 2025: regulated low-voltage prices rise 1.0 per cent on average, and the network-access tariffs every supplier passes on rise 3.5 per cent.

Example household (ERSE, 2026)Monthly electricity bill, taxes includedChange on December 2025
Couple without children, 3.45 kVA, 1,900 kWh a year€36.82+€0.18
Couple with two children, 6.9 kVA, 5,000 kWh a year€95.03+€0.28

Source: ERSE, read 24 September 2026.

Before you sign, the supplier must hand you a ficha contratual summarising the loyalty period, add-on services, indicative prices and tariff option; supply may never depend on buying insurance or technical assistance. You choose a single-rate, two-period (bi-horária) or three-period (tri-horária) tariff and can change it free of charge.

Switching, loyalty periods and the social tariff

Switching is free and unlimited, the new supplier handles it, supply cannot be cut meanwhile, and it must be completed within three weeks of signing. A loyalty period (fidelização) may not exceed 12 months. A contract signed at a distance can be cancelled within 14 days (30 if signed in your home), and a supplier changing its terms must give 30 days' notice, after which you may leave without penalty – so when Anna Andersson, renting in Porto, gets a January letter announcing new prices, she can compare offers and walk away.

The social electricity tariff is a 33.8 per cent discount in 2026, applied automatically – DGEG, the energy directorate, checks eligibility – for recipients of listed benefits such as unemployment benefit or abono de família and for households with annual income up to €6,272.64, with contracted power up to 6.9 kVA. For ERSE's example households it is worth €13.50 and €32.95 a month.

Two lines on the bill puzzle newcomers. Since 1 January 2025 the reduced 6 per cent VAT rate applies to the first 200 kWh per 30 days (300 kWh for families of five or more) for contracted power up to 6.9 kVA, according to ERSE's explainer of February 2025. And Portugal has no separate TV licence: the contribuição para o audiovisual is currently €2.85 a month on the electricity bill, €1 for beneficiaries of listed benefits, and fixed each year in the State Budget.

Gas: the regulated tariff and the gas year

Natural gas has been liberalised since January 2010, and any customer using up to 10,000 cubic metres a year may return to the regulated tariff through the supplier of last resort of the area, within three weeks. Prices move by gas year: for 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027 ERSE decided on 1 June 2026 a rise of 6.4 per cent in regulated low-pressure prices.

Example household (ERSE, from October 2026)Monthly gas billChange
Couple, 1,610 kWh a year€17.38+€0.91
Couple with two children, 3,407 kWh a year€32.53+€1.62

Source: ERSE, read 24 September 2026.

You choose a consumption tier (escalão) when you contract, and the network operator checks after the first 12 months, then yearly, whether it fits. For questions or a complaint, ERSE's Linha de Apoio ao Consumidor de Energia is 21 303 32 00, weekdays 9:00–19:00.

Broadband and mobile in Portugal – the 24-month rule

Telecom contracts follow Lei 16/2022, enforced by ANACOM. The maximum loyalty period is 24 months; operators must also offer contracts without loyalty and show the cost and benefit of 6-, 12- and 24-month options; a new loyalty period needs your express agreement and quantified benefits; and every bill must show when the loyalty ends and what cancelling costs. A contract only enters into force once you have received the contract summary and agreed.

RuleWhat applies
Early cancellation, contracts from 14 November 2022The lower of the benefit received or 50 per cent of the remaining fees in the first year (30 per cent in the second); nothing if the operator cannot prove you agreed to the loyalty period
Mobile number portabilityWithin one working day of the agreed date; €3 per number per full day of delay
Unpaid billsDebts above 20 per cent of the minimum wage (€184, according to ANACOM) can put you on a debtors’ list

Source: ANACOM, read 24 September 2026.

Home insurance: what is compulsory

According to ASF, the insurance supervisor, the only compulsory home insurance is fire insurance, and only for apartment buildings in horizontal property, where each owner covers their flat and share of the common parts. Tenants and owners of detached houses have no compulsory home or liability insurance. An optional seguro multirriscos habitação adds floods, storms, contents, theft and civil liability; insure for the rebuilding cost, not the market value, and notify a claim in writing within eight days. ASF's information line: +351 217 983 983, weekdays 9:00–16:00.

Recycling, bins and the €0.10 deposit – where the câmara decides

The colour code is national guidance from APA, the environment agency: green for glass packaging (no ceramics or drinking glasses), blue for paper and cardboard (flattened, no greasy pizza boxes), yellow for plastic and metal packaging and drink cartons. From 2026 the law requires the municipal waste tariff to stop being indexed to water consumption and follow the quantity of waste collected.

The deposit-return scheme (SDR, marked Volta) has run nationwide since 10 April 2026 for single-use plastic, steel and aluminium drinks containers under 3 litres. The deposit is €0.10, shown separately on the receipt, and refunds must be available in cash or vouchers. Shops of 400 m2 or more must take back all containers. Containers without the symbol go in the yellow bin.

CityWho collectsLocal rules worth knowing
LisbonCâmara Municipal de Lisboa2019 regulation: in areas with night collection, containers out 18:00–22:00 and back in by 10:00; breaches €150–€1,500
PortoPorto AmbienteBulky items and e-waste collected free at home by appointment on Linha Porto 220 100 220 (Mon–Fri 07:00–18:30, Sat 07:00–12:30); 2026 tariff €0.0868 a day plus €0.5240 and €0.0452 per cubic metre
BragaAgere, under concessionRegulamento 357/2026: separated waste at any hour except glass, 08:00–22:00; waste on the street outside the hours €150–€1,500
CoimbraCâmara Municipal de CoimbraHistoric centre: bags out 17:30–20:00; bulky items by appointment on 239 80 20 70, free for small quantities

Source: APA, Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, Porto Ambiente, Câmara Municipal de Braga and Câmara Municipal de Coimbra, read 24 September 2026.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Get your NIF and a proof of addressBefore you sign anything
2Compare offers on ERSE’s simulator, or ask for the regulated tariffBefore choosing energy
3Read the ficha contratual; note the loyalty period and exit penaltyBefore signing
4Pick a telecom contract with or without loyaltyWhen ordering broadband
5Ask whether the building holds fire insurance; consider multirriscosWhen you move in
6Learn your câmara’s bin hours and where to return Volta containersFirst week

Source: ERSE, ANACOM, ASF and APA, read 24 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 24 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.