Neighbour rules when building in Portugal

Portuguese law deals with neighbours in four main places: the Código Civil, the building regulation (RGEU), the urban development and building regime (RJUE) and the noise regulation (RGR). This guide shows where to look for each common problem, and it is a summary: a court or a lawyer decides any dispute.

Windows, balconies and views

The Código Civil keeps new openings away from the neighbour's plot.

A new building must leave 1.5 metres between the neighbouring plot and each window or door that looks straight onto it (art. 1360.º, n.º 1). The same applies to balconies and terraces with a parapet lower than 1.5 metres (n.º 2).
The rule does not apply across a public road or path (art. 1361.º).
Small openings for light and air, at least 1.80 metres above the floor and no more than 15 cm in one dimension, are allowed (art. 1363.º).
An opening that breaks the rule can become a permanent right of view over time (art. 1362.º).

Boundaries, walls and trees

Any owner can require the neighbours to join in marking the boundary, and the right never expires (arts. 1353.º and 1355.º).
A wall between two buildings is presumed shared (parede meeira) (art. 1371.º), and the cost of repairing a shared wall is split in proportion to each owner's share (art. 1375.º).
Trees may be planted up to the boundary line, and a neighbour may cut roots and branches that cross over if the owner has not acted within three days of being asked (art. 1366.º).
A wall up to 1.8 metres high that does not face a public road is exempt from a licence (RJUE, art. 6.º-A).

Water, access and digging

A roof must not drip onto the neighbour's plot, leaving 50 cm where there is no other way (art. 1365.º).
A neighbour must allow scaffolding and materials over their land to repair a building, and is paid for any loss (art. 1349.º).
You may dig on your own plot only if the neighbouring plots keep the support they need, and you pay for any damage (art. 1348.º).
An owner with no adequate access to a public road can demand a right of way over neighbouring rural plots (art. 1550.º).

Noise and working hours

Under the Regulamento Geral do Ruído, noisy building works near homes are banned on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and on weekdays between 20:00 and 08:00 (art. 14.º). Renovation inside a building is allowed on working days between 08:00 and 20:00 (art. 16.º). The municipality can grant a special noise licence for other hours (art. 15.º).

Distances between buildings and permits

Building height is limited by a 45 degree line from the building opposite (RGEU, art. 59.º).
Facades with windows of habitable rooms must be at least 10 metres apart (RGEU, art. 60.º).
New buildings, extensions and alterations need a licence or a prior communication to the council, while conservation work and minor works are exempt (RJUE, arts. 4.º, 6.º and 6.º-A).

What can differ from town to town

Municipal plans and municipal regulations add their own rules, so the council (câmara municipal) of the place where you build has the last word on local limits. The RGEU applies inside urban areas and wherever the council has extended it.

How current these texts are

The articles were read on 5 November 2026 in the consolidated texts listed below. The RJUE was amended by Decreto-Lei n.º 108/2026, in force since 1 October 2026, and that decree also provides for the RGEU to be repealed once a new national technical rule for buildings takes effect.