Can an Existing Alojamento Local Registration Be Transferred in a Containment Area?

Some buyers still believe that purchasing a property with an Alojamento Local (AL) establishment in a containment area means they cannot take over its registration license without the registration expiring.

That is not necessarily the case under the current legal framework. Since Decree-Law 76/2024 came into force, it has again been possible to change the operator named on an Alojamento Local (AL) registration license. This may also be possible for establishments in containment areas, depending on the circumstances and the municipal rules that apply.

For buyers and sellers, the distinction can have significant economic consequences.

What changed in November 2024?

For several years, the law placed significant restrictions on the transfer of Alojamento Local registrations.

Decree-Law 76/2024, of 23 October, came into force on 1 November 2024 and changed that framework. Among other measures, Article 5 repealed paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Article 7 of Decree-Law 128/2014, which had established that an Alojamento Local (AL) registration number was personal and non-transferable.

Article 7 now essentially provides that the document issued through the Electronic Single Counter, containing the establishment’s registration number, is the valid authorisation to open the establishment to the public. In other words, changing the operator named on an AL registration is again possible under the general regime. According to Decree-Law 76/2024.

The more difficult question is what happens when the establishment is in a containment area.

What about containment areas?

To answer that question, it is necessary to read Articles 15-A and 15-B of Decree-Law 128/2014, as amended by Decree-Law 76/2024.

Article 15-A allows municipalities to create containment areas and sustainable growth areas for the installation of new Alojamento Local establishments. Article 15-B sets out the specific rules for containment areas.

The wording chosen by the legislature matters. Under Article 15-B(1)(e), municipalities may use their regulations to establish “proportionate limitations on the transferability of new registration numbers” for AL establishments in the moradia and apartamento categories.

The reference to “new registration numbers” is significant for Alojamento Local (AL). The law does not impose a general rule making every existing registration in a containment area non-transferable. Instead, it allows municipalities to set proportionate restrictions on the transfer of new registrations through their own regulations.

The law also identifies circumstances that municipal restrictions cannot affect: inheritance; certain gratuitous transfers to a spouse or de facto partner, descendants or ascendants; and situations arising from divorce, legal separation or the dissolution of a de facto union. These restrictions concern the moradia and apartamento categories; they do not apply in the same way to estabelecimentos de hospedagem or quartos. (Articles 15-A and 15-B)

What about registrations that existed before a containment area was created?

This distinction is especially relevant when an AL registration was already in the RNAL before the municipal regulation creating or governing the relevant containment area came into force.

In that situation, the transaction does not involve assigning a new registration number. It involves an already registered establishment and a proposed change to the operator named on that registration.

That distinction is often overlooked: applying for a new Alojamento Local registration in a containment area is different from changing the operator of an existing registration.

The containment-area regime supports this distinction because many of its restrictions are expressly framed around installing establishments and assigning new registrations.

As a result, someone buying a property with an existing AL establishment may, in principle, be able to change the registration to their name even if the property is now in a containment area. The registration date and the specific municipal regulation still need to be checked.

Does the RNAL registration number stay the same?

Changing the operator does not necessarily mean cancelling the existing AL registration and applying for a new one. The establishment may retain its RNAL registration number while the operator’s details are updated.

That can matter commercially. An establishment operating for several years may have built up hundreds of booking-platform reviews, a particular rating, commercial recognition and an operating history. Those may form part of the business’s economic value.

Whether listings, reviews and ratings remain available after a change depends on each booking platform’s rules. From an administrative perspective, however, the transaction may involve continuity of the registered establishment rather than the creation of a new Alojamento Local (AL) .

Can the operator be changed before the deed of sale?

In some situations, yes. It may be possible to prepare the change of operator between signing the preliminary purchase and sale agreement (contrato-promessa de compra e venda, or CPCV) and completing the final deed.

A transaction can sometimes be structured so that the prospective buyers become the operators before the purchase is completed. But the legal basis for using the property in the meantime needs to be addressed.

A CPCV is a promise to buy and sell. As a general rule, it does not immediately make the prospective buyer the property owner or, on its own, give them sufficient title to operate the establishment.

One possible solution is to sign a free loan-for-use agreement (contrato de comodato) at the same time, and coordinate it carefully with the CPCV. Under this arrangement, the owner allows the prospective buyer to use the property and operate the AL without charge.

The agreement should expressly state this purpose and be coordinated with the planned sale, including its duration and what happens if the final transaction does not go ahead.

What if the sale does not reach completion?

The contracts should address how to restore the previous position if the sale is not completed.

The CPCV and the loan-for-use agreement should include mechanisms for reversing the change. One option described in the source material is an irrevocable power of attorney that allows the prospective seller to restore the previous position if the deed is not completed.

A generic CPCV may not be enough when the parties want to change the AL operator before the sale. The overall arrangement may need to coordinate the CPCV, the loan-for-use agreement, the authorisations needed to update the RNAL and any future reversal of the operator change.

If the property owner and the person named as the AL operator are different people, both may need to take part in the legal steps required for the transaction.

What does the Tax Authority say about a free loan-for-use agreement?

The Portuguese Tax Authority (AT) has considered a free loan-for-use arrangement involving a property used to operate an Alojamento Local establishment.

Under Article 1129 of the Civil Code, a comodato is a free contract in which one party lets another use an item, including a property, and the recipient must return it. In a 2017 binding ruling, the AT stated that where the agreement provides no income to the owner, and no income is presumed under the IRS Code, the owner is not subject to IRS on income from that free transfer. (AT binding ruling, Process 2213/2017)

The ruling is relevant because it illustrates that the property owner and the person operating the Alojamento Local do not necessarily have to be the same person.

This does not mean that a property sale connected to an AL business is tax-neutral.

Tax consequences need to be checked

Changing the operator should also be assessed from a tax perspective, especially where the future owner of the property will also become the new operator.

The relevant facts can vary from case to case. They may include how the property has been used in the business, the previous operator’s tax regime, the new operator’s tax regime and the possible tax consequences of a later sale.

The transaction should therefore not be handled solely as an administrative update in the RNAL. The registration change needs to be coordinated with the legal and tax structure of the purchase.

What needs to happen after the change?

The process does not end when the new operator’s name appears in the RNAL. The new operator must meet the obligations associated with running the establishment.

These include having the required civil liability insurance in place for the new operator and providing proof as required by law. The tax position relating to the activity should also be updated, and the other administrative obligations for the establishment should be checked. Failure to meet applicable requirements may result in the competent municipality cancelling the RNAL registration.

Where a lawyer or other representative handles the process, their powers of representation should also be checked.

Why this distinction can matter financially

The central point is straightforward but has important practical consequences: the existence of a containment area does not, by itself, mean that an existing Alojamento Local establishment cannot change operator.

Decree-Law 76/2024 repealed the general non-transferability rule in Article 7 and restored certain regulatory powers to municipalities. It also specifies that municipal regulations may impose proportionate transfer restrictions on “new registration numbers.”

An AL establishment that was legally registered before municipal restrictions came into force does not automatically become a “new registration” merely because the property is sold and the operator changes. The situation concerns the change of operator of an existing establishment, rather than the installation of a new one.

Anyone considering buying a property with an AL registration in a containment area should not assume they will necessarily lose the registration when they acquire the property. They should check when the registration was made, identify the applicable municipal regulation and structure the transaction correctly.

In some circumstances, the change of operator may be prepared before the final deed through a CPCV coordinated with a loan-for-use agreement and the necessary authorisations.

When properly structured, the buyer may acquire a property while maintaining the legal and commercial continuity of an Alojamento Local establishment that was already registered and operating.

We hope this article has been useful and informative.

Frequently asked questions

Can an Alojamento Local registration be transferred in a containment area?

It may be possible. The answer depends on when the existing registration was made and on the municipal regulation that applies to the property. A containment area does not, by itself, establish that every existing registration is non-transferable.

Will the buyer need to apply for a new RNAL number?

Not necessarily. The transaction may involve updating the operator’s details on the existing registration rather than cancelling it and applying for a new number.

Can the operator change before the final deed of sale?

In some situations, the parties may prepare the change between signing the CPCV and completing the sale. This requires a carefully coordinated legal arrangement, which may include a free loan-for-use agreement and the necessary authorisations.

Will the property’s booking-platform reviews and ratings transfer?

That depends on the rules of each booking platform. Keeping the same RNAL registration does not, by itself, guarantee that listings, reviews or ratings will remain unchanged.

Does a free loan-for-use agreement make the sale tax-neutral?

No. The AT has stated that a qualifying free comodato may produce no IRS income for the property owner from the agreement itself. That does not make the wider purchase or sale tax-neutral; the facts and tax position need to be assessed individually.

What should the new operator check after the change?

The new operator should check the required civil liability insurance, tax registration and other administrative obligations. They should also make sure any representative has the necessary authority to act.