A New Cycle of Criminal Policy and Criminal Procedure Reform
Meet The Law - Dispute Resolution
Laws Nos. 34/2026 and 35/2026, of 27 July | In force from 1 September 2026
On 1 September 2026, two laws will come into force which, together, redefine the Portuguese criminal framework. Law No. 35/2026 sets out the priorities for criminal policy for 2026–2028, whilst Law No. 34/2026 is the implementing instrument, reforming criminal procedure to achieve these objectives.
In summary, what is changing:
a. New criminal priorities (Law No. 35/2026)
This Act establishes an extensive list of offences to be prioritised for prevention and investigation, focusing on areas such as violent and organised crime, domestic violence, economic and financial crime, cybercrime, terrorism, environmental crime and road traffic offences.
The protection of the most vulnerable victims and the prevention of reoffending are treated as cross-cutting priorities.
b. Reform of criminal procedure (Law No. 34/2026)
To put the strategy into practice, the Act introduces fundamental amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Criminal Code and the Regulations on Court Costs, notably:
- Expeditious proceedings – a new duty on judges to manage proceedings, fines for dilatory conduct (up to 100 UC) and mechanisms to prevent excessive delays in the higher courts;
- Charges and evidence – indictment by specific counts, a limit of 20 witnesses and preliminary assessment of requests for evidence by the court;
- Extended summary proceedings – no longer limited to certain types of offence, and may now cover serious crimes;
- Protection of victims – the possibility of reading out statements from victims of domestic violence or particularly vulnerable victims during hearings;
- Limitation period – a new ground for suspension linked to the replacement of the defendant’s defence counsel;
- Court costs – an update to court fees.
The changes introduced by these two laws are structural and will come into force on 1 September 2026. It is essential for anyone who may be affected by the new criminal and criminal procedure framework to be aware of them.
