Renting a Car in Portugal: Licence, Age, Tolls and Fines

Is your licence valid in Portugal?

Article 125 of the Portuguese Highway Code lists which foreign licences allow you to drive. Find your row.

Every licence must be valid and not suspended, and you must be old enough for that category under Portuguese law. Driving outside these conditions with an otherwise valid licence carries a €300 to €1,500 fine. The transport authority IMT describes the 185 days as driving "as a tourist", before you take up residence; once resident, you have 90 days to apply to exchange the licence.

Age, documents and extra charges at the desk

Rental rules sit on top of the law. Europcar Portugal's terms (21 January 2025) set these requirements:

• a licence held for at least one year, plus a national ID card or passport
• a minimum age of 19 for mini, economy and compact cars, and 19 or 25 for the "Selection" category
• only drivers named on the contract may drive

Included in every Europcar rental in Portugal are third-party liability insurance and the toll service. How much you pay for damage depends on the protection you choose. The excess is set out in the company's insurance guide, not the general terms.

The terms also list fixed charges for common mishaps, which are worth knowing before you sign.

Driving into another country needs the company's approval. Europcar lists mainland Spain among its authorised countries and adds a cross-border fee if you did not take its international assistance cover. Other companies set different ages, excesses and fees, so read the terms for the company you book.

How do you pay tolls in a Portugal rental car?

Decree-Law 84-C/2022 requires rental companies to fit every car with a toll device and enrol the customer automatically. Tolls on electronic-only roads and at booth plazas are billed to your card after the rental, plus a service fee. The state road company's toll portal lists the Grande Porto motorways (A4, A41, A42) and the A28 among the electronic-only systems, where there is no booth to pay at. Around Porto, parts of the A28 coastal motorway north of the city, between Esposende and Antas and between Neiva and Darque, have been toll-free since 1 January 2025 under Law 37/2024. For costs, sample fares and what to do in a car hired outside Portugal, see electronic tolls in a rental car.

What are the speed limits in Portugal?

These are the general limits for cars without a trailer, from the table in Article 27 as republished in Decree-Law 102-B/2020. Signs can set lower limits.

Motorways also have a minimum: 50 km/h.

How much are speeding fines in Portugal?

Portuguese fines are ranges, not fixed amounts. The tighter bands apply inside built-up areas. For a car, Article 27 of the Highway Code sets:

Speed measured over a section counts too: average-speed cameras treat the offence as committed where the measured stretch ends.

Other offences carry fines of the same scale:

• Driving with 0.5 g/l of alcohol in the blood or more costs €250 to €1,250. From 0.8 g/l it costs €500 to €2,500. For drivers in the probationary period and professional drivers, the thresholds drop to 0.2 g/l and 0.5 g/l.
• Using a handheld phone while driving costs €250 to €1,250. Devices with a single earpiece or a loudspeaker are allowed if you do not handle them continuously.
• Fitting or using a radar detector costs €500 to €2,500, and the device is confiscated.

What happens if police fine you in Portugal?

The Highway Code has a rule that catches visitors who expect a posted fine. When police notify you of an offence at the roadside, Article 173 requires a deposit equal to the minimum fine, straight away or within 48 hours. If you do not pay it, police seize your driving licence and issue a temporary replacement document until the case is settled. If you make the deposit and do not contest the offence, it becomes the payment.

For notices that come later, such as camera fines, the rental company is contacted first and passes on your details, and Europcar's terms allow it up to €40 per case. A notice sent by post also lets you deposit the minimum within 48 hours, and Article 172 lets you pay the minimum fine voluntarily within 15 working days of notification.

Worked example: two cameras on a Porto trip

A visitor drives from Porto airport into the city, then north on a motorway.

Paying both at the minimum costs €180. Adding up to €40 per case in rental handling costs brings the total to as much as €260. If the cases went to a decision instead, the fines alone could reach €900. The same 25 km/h excess is treated more harshly in town than on the motorway, so the city stretch deserves the most care.