Motorway tolls set to rise about 3.8% in January

November 13, 2026, Portugal

Morning. It's Friday, 13 November. Lisbon 20° · Porto 17° · Faro 21°, with more rain across the country after a wet night in the north. Let's get into it.

📰 THE MAIN STORY

Driving on Portugal's motorways will cost a little more from 1 January. Tolls are expected to rise by 3.83% in 2027, after Statistics Portugal (INE) confirmed this week that inflation excluding housing was 3.73% in October, reported by The Portugal News and Lusa. By law, that October figure sets the yearly toll update, and the concessionaires, the companies that run the motorways, add an extra 0.1%.

What it means for you: a €10 toll would cost about €10.38. If you pay €5 each way on a commute, 22 days a month, that's roughly €8 more a month, or about €100 a year, according to calculations by Contas Poupança.

Watch out for: the figure isn't final. The concessionaires must send their proposed prices by 15 November, and the government then has 30 days to respond, so the new tables should be known by mid-December.

This would be the fourth year in a row of rises above 2%. The extra 0.1% dates from 2022, when inflation passed 10%: to cap the 2023 rise at 4.9%, the state covered part of it and the concessionaires were allowed small top-ups for four years, ending in 2027.

In short: budget for slightly dearer tolls from January, unless you mainly drive on the former SCUT roads.

⚡ IN BRIEF

Worten, the electronics retailer, says someone gained unauthorised access to some customer data, and it has contacted the customers affected, reported by The Portugal News and Lusa. According to Jornal de Negócios, the data includes tax numbers (NIF), phone numbers, email addresses and some order references.

Worten says no payment details, credit data or passwords were taken, and it is working with the national cybersecurity centre, the data protection authority (CNPD) and the Polícia Judiciária, the criminal police. If you shop at Worten, be wary of unexpected calls or messages about an order, and never share codes or card details.

The ratio between house prices and household incomes in Portugal has risen 60.8% over the past decade, the biggest increase in the EU, against an average of 6.8%, according to Eurostat, the EU statistics office, reported by The Portugal News. The Netherlands, at 34.3%, and Spain, at 24.5%, follow at a distance.

Housing takes to the streets tomorrow, Saturday: the Casa para Viver and Porta a Porta movements have called rallies at 3pm at Alameda Dom Afonso Henriques in Lisbon and Praça do Marquês in Porto, with events in other towns. Expect traffic changes around both squares.

Of the 2,449 candidates for specialist medical training starting in January, 554 did not choose a place, leaving 426 places in 14 specialties empty, reported by DN. There is particular concern about family medicine, which trains the family doctors (médicos de família) in health centres, and internal medicine, which handles much of hospital emergency care.

For the first time, candidates chose places through a new computer system, which DN reports had failures. FNAM, a doctors' union, says the proportion is similar to past years, and the Ordem dos Médicos, the doctors' professional body, says the final number will only be known in January.

📍 WORTH THE TRIP

The stone is the colour of honey, and the outside bristles with pinnacles and carved lacework. The Mosteiro de Santa Maria da Vitória, known simply as Batalha, the battle, was King João I's vow to the Virgin Mary for the victory over Castile at Aljubarrota in 1385, which secured Portugal's independence. Building began in 1386 and lasted until 1517, and it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983.

In the Founder's Chapel, João I lies beside his English queen, Philippa of Lancaster, near the tomb of their son, Henry the Navigator. The Capelas Imperfeitas, the Unfinished Chapels, were never roofed and stand open to the sky. In the chapter house, soldiers stand guard over the tomb of Portugal's unknown soldiers from the First World War. The catch: a main road runs close by, so the setting outside is less peaceful than the inside.

Before you go: it's open every day from 9am to 6pm until March, with last entry at 5:30pm, and a ticket costs €15. It's about an hour and a half from Lisbon by car.

Local tip: residents of Portugal can get in free on a set number of days a year at national monuments, Batalha included, so bring proof of residence and ask at the ticket desk.

Find it here: Google Maps

WORD OF THE DAY

Say it: poor-TAH-zhaym

Meaning: a toll, or the toll point on a motorway

“Vamos pela nacional, assim não pagamos portagem.”
Let's take the main road, that way we don't pay a toll.

You'll see it on motorway signs. Most drivers here pay with Via Verde, the electronic device that lets you drive through without stopping. In Brazil, a toll is a pedágio.

North

Porto

Centre

Lisbon

South

Islands

Até amanhã,

Gabriel - DailyPortugal