Portugal Has No Fine for Shops Refusing Cash; EU Drafts Penalties
Shops in Portugal can refuse euro notes and coins without penalty, Banco de Portugal says. An EU law in the works would add sanctions. What changes next.
A shop or ticket office in Portugal that turns away euro notes and coins faces no specific penalty under current law, Banco de Portugal (the country’s central bank) has told parliament. The European Union is preparing legislation that would make accepting cash mandatory and punish businesses that refuse it, the daily Público reported on Saturday, Nov. 7.
The central bank made its admission in a written reply to the Assembleia da República (Portugal’s parliament). Lawmakers had asked about changes to how passengers pay at the ticket offices of Transtejo Soflusa, the company that runs the ferries between Lisbon and the south bank of the Tejo.
What the law says today
Euro notes and coins are legal tender, and as a rule merchants are expected to take them. Portuguese law sets out that duty to accept cash. It stops there. According to Jornal de Negócios, nothing in the national rules punishes a business that refuses cash without any plausible reason.
Banco de Portugal said the regime in force contains no specific sanction for an unjustified refusal of cash. It added that it has noted for some time that national lawmakers chose not to create one. The bank also said it does not have the powers to make every shop or commercial space in Portugal accept physical notes and coins.
Why the central bank says cash still counts
The bank, led by Álvaro Santos Pereira, argued that being able to pay in euro notes and coins matters for several reasons. It listed people’s freedom to choose how they pay, financial inclusion, the resilience of payment systems and trust in the currency. For those reasons, it said, it has been following the issue very closely both in Portugal and at the European level.
Its reply to parliament still said it has no power to act against businesses that stop taking cash.
The EU rules in preparation
The European legislation would reinforce the obligation to accept cash in commercial transactions and attach sanctions for those who break it, according to ECO and Jornal de Negócios, both citing Público. ECO reported that the law has been in preparation for three years.
The push comes as digital payments take a larger share of everyday spending and some businesses decide to stop handling physical money altogether. The new rules are meant to fill the gap that exists in Portugal today.
Key details are still open. The size and type of the penalties, and the timetable for applying them in each member state, have yet to be defined, ECO reported.
What it means for people in Lisbon
For residents, commuters and visitors in Lisbon, the immediate situation does not change. Until the EU law is finished and applied in Portugal, a business that refuses cash breaks the general rule on legal tender but faces no specific sanction for doing so.
The question reached parliament through the ferry network. Transtejo Soflusa carries passengers across the Tejo between Lisbon and the towns of the south bank, and the changes at its ticket offices prompted lawmakers to ask the central bank where the rules stand. The bank’s answer was that the duty to accept cash exists on paper, without a penalty behind it.
People who rely on cash, including those without a bank card or who prefer not to pay digitally, are the group the central bank pointed to when it cited financial inclusion and freedom of choice.
What to watch next
The next step is in Brussels. The EU still has to settle the sanctions regime and set a calendar for member states. Until then, Portuguese law keeps the duty to accept notes and coins without a specific sanction for shops or ticket offices that refuse them.
Sources: ECO, Jornal de Negócios
