Law 8/2022: what changed for condominiums in Portugal

Law 8/2022 of 10 January revised the horizontal property (propriedade horizontal) regime, amending the Civil Code, Decree-Law 268/94 and the Notarial Code. It came into force on 10 April 2022, 90 days after publication, with one exception: the new wording of Article 1437 of the Civil Code, on representing the condominium in court, has applied since 11 January 2022. The most visible changes day to day are owners' meetings by videoconference, notices of meeting by email, the compulsory debt statement when a unit is sold, stricter collection of fees and a longer list of duties for the condominium administrator.

Summary of the main changes

Topic	What changed	Where
Remote meetings	Can be held by videoconference	Article 1-A of Decree-Law 268/94
Ordinary meeting	Can be held in the 1st quarter, if the rules provide for it or the meeting so resolves	Article 1431 Civil Code
Notices of meeting	By email, for those who agreed to it at a meeting	Article 1432 Civil Code
Minutes	Electronic signature; effect depends on approval of the minutes	Article 1 of Decree-Law 268/94
Sale of a unit	Compulsory statement of charges and debts	Article 1424-A Civil Code
Collecting fees	Enforceable title with interest and penalties; court action within 90 days	Article 6 of Decree-Law 268/94
Administrator	New duties and deadlines	Article 1436 Civil Code
Urgent works	Legal definition	Article 1427 Civil Code
Common reserve fund	Replenishment within 12 months if used for another purpose	Article 4 of Decree-Law 268/94
Representation in court	The condominium is always represented by the administrator	Article 1437 Civil Code

Meetings: videoconference, calendar and second call

Videoconference. Whenever the management decides so or a majority of owners requests it, the owners' meeting is held by remote means, preferably by videoconference. If an owner is unable to take part that way, the management must provide them with the means to do so; otherwise the meeting cannot be held remotely.

Ordinary meeting. It still meets in the first half of January to approve the previous year's accounts and the budget. What is new is that it can be held in the first quarter of the year, if the condominium's rules provide for it or a majority at the owners' meeting approves it.

Second call. The rule remains that, if there is no quorum, the meeting is deemed called for one week later, at the same time and place, unless the notice of meeting sets another date. The law now allows the second meeting to be set for thirty minutes later, at the same place, provided there are conditions to ensure that owners representing a quarter of the building's total value are present that day.

We explain everything in our owners' meeting guide.

Communications by email

The notice of meeting can be sent by email to owners who have expressed that wish at a previous meeting. That wish and the email address are recorded in the minutes, and the owner must send back, by the same means, an acknowledgement of receipt of the notice. For everyone else, a registered letter with 10 days' notice or a notice of meeting with a signed receipt still applies.

Minutes that are easier to sign

Minutes can be signed with a qualified electronic signature or by handwritten signature on the original or on a scanned document with other signatures. The law also makes clear that resolutions take effect once the minutes are approved, whether or not they have been signed by all owners.

Selling a unit: statement of charges

An owner selling a unit must ask the condominium administrator for a written statement of all condominium charges in force and any existing debts, with their nature, amounts and due dates. The administrator has 10 days to issue it, and the statement is a compulsory supporting document for the deed or the authenticated private document (Article 1424-A).

Debts belong to whoever was the owner on the date they should have been paid, unless the buyer waives the statement in the deed, in which case they take on the seller's debts to the condominium. Charges falling due after the sale belong to the new owner.

Collecting unpaid fees

The minutes of the meeting that sets the amount each owner must pay and the due dates are an enforceable title. Under the current wording of Article 6 of Decree-Law 268/94, the title also covers late-payment interest and financial penalties approved at the owners' meeting or set out in the rules.

The administrator must now bring legal proceedings within 90 days of the first missed payment, where the debt is equal to or greater than that year's social support index (indexante dos apoios sociais), unless the owners' meeting resolves otherwise. See the full process in unpaid condominium fees.

New duties of the administrator

Article 1436 now includes, among others, these duties:

• Carry out the resolutions of the owners' meeting that have not been challenged, within a maximum of 15 working days or the period set by the meeting, unless there is a justified impossibility.
• Present at least three quotes from different sources for extraordinary maintenance works or improvements (inovações).
• Inform the owners, in writing or by email, whenever the condominium is served or notified in court proceedings, and keep that information up to date at least every six months.
• Issue the statement of charges requested by an owner who wants to sell their unit.
• Demand payment of fees, including interest and financial penalties set.

For an overall view of the role, see what a condominium administrator really does.

Urgent works and improvements

The law now defines essential and urgent repairs: those needed to remove, at short notice, defects in the common parts that could at any moment cause or worsen damage to the building or to property, or put people's safety at risk. If the administrator is absent or unable to act, any owner can go ahead with them (Article 1427).

Do not confuse urgent works with improvements, which follow a different rule. Under the regime in force, improvements require approval by a majority of owners representing two thirds of the building's total value (Article 1425). In buildings with at least eight units, installing lifts or piped gas only needs a majority of owners representing a majority of the building's total value.

Common reserve fund

If the owners' meeting resolves to use the common reserve fund (fundo comum de reserva) for a purpose other than the upkeep of the building, the owners must replace the amount through an extraordinary contribution within a maximum of 12 months of the resolution.

Representation in court

The condominium is now always represented in court by the administrator, suing and being sued on behalf of the condominium (Article 1437). The administrator does not need authorisation from the owners' meeting to file criminal complaints relating to the common parts.

This article is for information only and is not a substitute for legal advice on a specific case.

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