Every business in Portugal that is covered by the complaints book rules and has a website must give access to the electronic complaints book, the Livro de Reclamações Eletrónico at www.livroreclamacoes.pt, in a visible and prominent place on the site. That duty comes from Decreto-Lei 74/2017, which updated Decreto-Lei 156/2005, and it sits alongside the paper complaints book you keep at each premises. A compliant Portuguese site also asks consent before non-essential cookies, explains its data use in a privacy page under the RGPD, and has dropped the EU dispute link that stopped working in July 2025. This guide shows how to do each, how to write for Portuguese customers, and a worked example.
What is the Livro de Reclamações Eletrónico?
It is the online version of the red complaints book that Portuguese consumers know from shops, cafés and offices. Through the official platform a customer can file a complaint about a business without visiting it; the complaint goes to the business and to the regulator responsible for that sector. Businesses register on the platform, and the website link is how customers find their way to it.
The electronic book does not replace the paper one. If you have a physical establishment that must keep the paper book, you still do. The electronic duty adds to it.
How should the complaints book link appear on my website?
The legal wording is “em local visível e de forma destacada”: in a visible place and in a prominent way. A link buried at the bottom of the terms page does not meet that. What most businesses do:
- 1Place a clear “Livro de Reclamações” link or the recognisable button image in the footer of every page, so it is on the home page and wherever a visitor lands.
- 2Point it to the official platform, www.livroreclamacoes.pt, not to an email address or your own form.
- 3Repeat it on the contact page, near your phone and email.
- 4Keep it in the language versions too, if your site has English pages.
Secondary sources mention fines for not complying, but the amounts quoted vary, so we do not repeat them here. The fix is a single footer link; check the consolidated Decreto-Lei 156/2005 on the Diário da República site or ask your accountant if you need the detail.
💡 Two footer jobs for every Portuguese site in 2026: add a prominent Livro de Reclamações link, and remove the old EU ODR platform link.
Footer audit: what to keep, add and remove
| Footer item | Action | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Livro de Reclamações link | Add, prominently, on every page | Decreto-Lei 156/2005 as amended by Decreto-Lei 74/2017 |
| Business name, address, email | Keep | EU e-Commerce Directive, Art. 5: easy, direct, permanent access |
| NIF / NIPC and registration details | Keep, where you have them | Identity details; the trade register entry where registered |
| Privacy and cookie pages | Keep, and check they are current | RGPD information duties; consent rules for cookies |
| “Change cookie settings” link | Add if missing | Visitors must be able to withdraw consent |
| EU ODR platform link | Remove | The platform closed on 20 July 2025 |
The ODR link is the one most sites forget. For years online sellers across the EU had to link to the European Online Dispute Resolution platform. Under Regulation (EU) 2024/3228 it closed on 20 July 2025, so the link now leads nowhere and makes a site look neglected. Replace it with nothing; your Livro de Reclamações link and your own contact details already show customers how to complain.
European Portuguese or Brazilian Portuguese?
Write for Portugal in European Portuguese. The two varieties differ in spelling, vocabulary and grammar, and Portuguese readers notice immediately: “ônibus” instead of “autocarro”, “você” used in the Brazilian way, or gerunds where a Portuguese writer would use “a + infinitive”. Much of the Portuguese-language text online is Brazilian, so templates and automatic translations often drift that way. Ask whoever writes your site which variety they use, and have a Portuguese reader check the pages before launch.
If you serve tourists or foreign residents, an English version is worth having, especially for hospitality and activities. Make the language switch obvious and keep both versions equally current.
What are the cookie and privacy rules in Portugal?
Cookies are governed by Article 5 of Lei 41/2004, rewritten by Lei 46/2012 to follow the EU ePrivacy rules. Storing or reading information on a visitor’s device needs prior consent, except for what is strictly necessary to provide the service the visitor asked for. Consent follows the RGPD standard: freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous, through a clear action.
So the banner has two equal choices, accept and refuse, plus a settings option; analytics and advertising tags wait for a yes; and a footer link lets visitors change their mind. The privacy page names your business as the data controller, says what forms and booking tools collect and why, how long you keep it, which providers receive it, and that people may complain to the CNPD, the Portuguese data protection authority.
Why Bing matters more in Portugal than elsewhere
StatCounter’s September 2026 figures put Google at about 87.3% of Portuguese searches and Bing at about 10.2%, the highest Bing share of the ten European countries in our research. One search in ten is enough to justify ten minutes registering the site with Bing Webmaster Tools and submitting its sitemap, alongside Google Search Console and a complete Google Business Profile.
Worked example: a surf school in Ericeira
Picture a surf school with four instructors, most of its customers visitors from abroad and Lisbon weekenders. The owners want lessons and week-long courses bookable online with payment, and a site in Portuguese and English.
The site has a home page, lessons and prices, courses, the beach and how to get there, the team, and contact, in both languages. The footer on every page shows the business name, address, email, NIPC and a prominent Livro de Reclamações link to the official platform. There is no ODR link. Lesson times, meeting points and what to bring are written as text, so search engines and AI assistants can quote them.
Booking online raises the consumer-law question. Normally consumers buying online can withdraw within 14 days without giving a reason, but leisure services booked for a specific date or period are one of the listed exceptions, which covers a lesson on a set day. The terms page should state the school’s own cancellation policy, for example for bad surf, in both languages.
On Adyft Sites, the owners could start with Starter at $1,499 setup plus $69 a month and add online booking for $399 plus $25 a month. Because two languages roughly double the pages, they should agree the page plan with us on WhatsApp; if it grows past five pages, Growth at $3,499 plus $129 a month covers 25.
Is a Portuguese booking site covered by the Accessibility Act?
Since 28 June 2025 the EU accessibility law has covered online selling and a few other consumer services. The surf school takes bookings online, so the first question is size: a business employing under 10 people, whose turnover or balance sheet does not exceed €2 million, counts as a microenterprise and the service rules do not bind it. Four instructors and seasonal help can push the headcount up in summer, so count carefully and check with an adviser if you are near ten. A larger school would need its booking pages to meet the accessibility requirements. Either way, accessible basics help every visitor, including people reading on a phone in bright sunlight on the beach.
What does a business website cost in Portugal?
Portugal has little published price data. The only Portugal-specific source we found is a services marketplace, which shows website creation at about €30–125 an hour, with an average quote around €31.8 an hour, and notes that institutional sites usually have 5–10 pages and cost less than online shops. We did not find a reliable project price range, so ask each supplier for a fixed written price against the same page list, and for an estimate of hours if they quote hourly.
Check what each quote leaves out: writing the text in European Portuguese, the English version, the cookie banner and privacy page, the Livro de Reclamações footer, hosting after year one, and changes after launch.
Adyft Sites quotes in US dollars, not euros. What you pay each month includes hosting, SSL, security updates, the changes you message us about on WhatsApp, Google and AI-search set-up and a short visitor report. The domain stays registered to you at roughly $12–20 a year, three pages (FAQ, Contact, Privacy) come at no charge, and 42 industry designs are there to browse first.
Who should not use a done-for-you website service?
Owners who like tinkering will pay less with a DIY website builder and enjoy the process. Schools, clinics or hotels that need bookings synced with an existing management system should brief a local agency properly. And if face-to-face meetings in Portuguese matter to you, pick a designer in your own town. We fit the owner who wants the site written, the footer details and bookings in place, and then wants to get back to work. We add the complaints book link, footer details and privacy page you give us; the legal wording should be checked by your accountant or adviser. If you need every page in European Portuguese, ask us before you order.
Portugal website FAQs
Is the Livro de Reclamações link mandatory on my website?
Yes, for businesses with a website covered by the complaints book rules. Decreto-Lei 156/2005, as amended by Decreto-Lei 74/2017, requires access to the electronic complaints book in a visible, prominent place on the site.
Where on the website should I put the complaints book link?
In the footer of every page, as a clear link or button to www.livroreclamacoes.pt, and again on the contact page. A link hidden inside the terms page is not prominent.
Do I still need the paper Livro de Reclamações if I have the link?
Yes, if your establishment is required to keep one. The electronic book adds to the paper book; it does not replace it.
Should I keep the EU ODR link on my Portuguese website?
No. The EU Online Dispute Resolution platform closed on 20 July 2025, so traders no longer need the link. Remove it and keep the Livro de Reclamações link.
Who regulates privacy and cookies on Portuguese websites?
The CNPD is the data protection authority. Cookie consent comes from Article 5 of Lei 41/2004, as amended by Lei 46/2012, with consent judged by the RGPD standard.
Can I use Brazilian Portuguese text on a site for Portugal?
You can, but customers in Portugal notice it straight away. Spelling, vocabulary and grammar differ, so write in European Portuguese for a local audience.
Sources: Livro de Reclamações Eletrónico (DL 74/2017, DL 156/2005) — https://www.ecija.com/adcecija/livro-de-reclamacoes-eletronico/ · PLMJ legal update on the electronic complaints book — https://www.plmj.com/xms/files/03_Novidades_legislativas/2019/007_julho/NL_Livro_de_Reclamacoes_Eletronico_-_prorrogacao_do_prazo_de_registo.pdf · Official platform — https://www.livroreclamacoes.pt · Lei 46/2012 (amending Lei 41/2004) — https://diariodarepublica.pt/dr/detalhe/lei/46-2012-174793 · Portugal cookie law summary — https://mondaq.com/privacy-protection/1030082/european-law-on-cookies-portugal · ODR platform closure — https://www.iubenda.com/en/help/173458-discontinuation-of-the-european-online-dispute-resolution-odr-platform · e-Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC, Art. 5 — https://lawplayer.com/eu/act/32000L0031 · Your Europe, returns and withdrawal — https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/shopping/returns/index_en.htm · European Accessibility Act, Art. 4 — https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudr/2019/882/article/4 · A Portuguese services marketplace’s website creation price page ·StatCounter, Portugal search engine share — https://gs.statcounter.com/search-engine-market-share/all/portugal
A Portuguese business site, written and run for you
Answer a few questions on WhatsApp. We write the pages, add the complaints book link and privacy page, then host and update the site. Starter: $1,499 once, then $69 monthly.