waultThe 3-year legal guarantee in Portugal
Anything you buy as a consumer from a business in Portugal comes with a guarantee from the seller, set by law. Here is what it covers and when it runs out.
- 3 years
- New goods bought from 1 January 2022 are guaranteed by the seller for 3 years from delivery (Decreto-Lei n.º 84/2021). Refurbished goods get the same 3 years.
- 18 months
- For used goods, the seller and buyer may agree to shorten the guarantee to 18 months. Without that agreement, used goods also get 3 years.
- 2 years, before 2022
- Goods bought before 1 January 2022 fall under the previous law (Decreto-Lei n.º 67/2003): 2 years, or 1 year for used goods if agreed.
- The first 2 years
- A fault that appears in the first two years after delivery is presumed to have existed when the goods were delivered — the seller has to prove otherwise. In the third year, it is up to the buyer to show the fault was there from the start.
- The first 30 days
- For goods bought from 2022, if a fault appears within 30 days of delivery, you can choose straight away between a replacement and ending the contract with a refund.
- What you can ask for
- First, repair or replacement, free of charge. A price reduction or ending the contract can follow if that fails or the shop refuses — or straight away if the fault is serious enough. The wault letter asks for repair or replacement; adapt it for anything else.
- How to claim
- Tell the seller in a way you can prove later: a registered letter, or an email. Keep a copy, and keep the receipt.
- Commercial warranties
- A manufacturer's warranty or an extended warranty bought at the till is extra. It never replaces or shortens the legal guarantee.
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Counting the days
The guarantee runs from the day the goods were delivered to you. For something you carried home, that is the purchase date. For a fridge delivered a week later, it is the delivery date — which is why wault asks for both.
Example: a washing machine bought on 10 March 2025 and delivered on 12 March 2025 is covered until 12 March 2028. Until 12 March 2027, a fault is presumed to have been there from the start. (The day of delivery itself is not counted, as with any legal period.)
A repair under the guarantee changes the dates: the guarantee is paused while the item is with the seller, and a repaired or replaced item gets more time. wault does not track repairs yet, so after one, treat the dates it shows as the earliest they could be.
The guarantee is between a consumer and a business. Buying for a company, or from a private person, is not covered by it.
Keep the receipt
To claim, you need to show what you bought, where and when. Thermal till receipts fade; a photo or the PDF invoice does not. That is the whole idea behind wault.
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This page explains the law in general terms and is not legal advice. For a dispute, the consumer arbitration centres and DECO can help.