Portugal’s 350,000 Civil Servants to Get February Pay Rise, Higher Meal Allowance

The Portugal Council of Ministers has confirmed the 2026 public-sector pay rise, a decision that will put a few extra euros in 350,000 pay-packets and subtly reshape the State budget for the next four years.

Why This Matters

• First salaries hit bank accounts on 20 February, with back-pay to January already included.

• Minimum monthly uplift of €56.58—slightly above the 2% inflation forecast—keeps most civil servants’ purchasing power intact.

• Meal allowance climbs to €6.15 per day, easing lunch-time costs in urban centres where a prato do dia now averages €9.

• Spill-over to State-owned companies: payroll envelopes can grow up to 4.6%, affecting utility bills and ticket prices downstream.

1. How the New Grid Works

For 2026 the Base Remuneration of the Public Administration (BRAP) jumps to €934.99, up 6.44%. Workers earning up to €2,734.36 receive the flat €56.58 boost; anyone above that threshold sees a 2.15% percentage raise. Taken together, every employee is guaranteed at least €238.14 extra by 2029 under the multi-year accord.

From 2027 to 2029 the formula flips to the higher of €60.52 or 2.30% each year, meaning lower grades gain proportionally more than top-tier directors.

2. Timeline & Practicalities

Payroll teams inside the Portugal Directorate-General for Public Administration and Employment closed January salaries before the decree was published, so the adjustment appears in the February pay-slip. Staff should check two lines:

"Retroactivos 01/2026"—the back-pay.

"Novo Vencimento"—the revised monthly wage.

Anyone on a fixed-term contract inside universities, municipalities or hospitals must wait for local HR validation, typically another 30 days.

3. Cost to the State Coffers

The Ministry of Finance puts the 2026 wage measure at "mid-three-hundred-million euro" once employer social contributions are factored in. Add the subsídio de refeição increase—about €26.5 M every year—and the four-year envelope exceeds €1.2 B. That is roughly the same amount Lisbon spends servicing public debt in a single quarter.

4. What the Unions Say

Two federations—FESAP and the STE—signed on, calling the deal "a floor, not a ceiling." The CGTP-aligned Frente Comum refused, blasting the package as a "plan for continued impoverishment" and demanding a 15% flat raise or €150 minimum. Expect further demonstrations when the 2027 review opens this autumn.

5. Comparison with Inflation & Private Sector

With the Bank of Portugal projecting 2.1% inflation, the headline 2.15% adjustment only just keeps pace. However, the lowest grades benefit from a 6.44% leap, outstripping both inflation and the €820 national minimum wage in the private sector. Private-sector salary negotiations will likely use the BRAP figure as a reference in collective-bargaining rounds later this year.

What This Means for Residents

• Civil servants: Verify February pay-slips and update monthly direct-debit budgets; the net gain for a BRAP-level worker is roughly €39 after tax—enough to cover a monthly metro pass outside Lisbon.

• Private employees: Expect unions to cite the 6.44% BRAP hike as leverage. Salaries in hospitality and retail could inch upward, pressuring SMEs and possibly nudging consumer prices.

• Taxpayers: The larger wage bill may narrow the fiscal surplus, limiting room for fresh tax cuts in the 2027 State Budget.

• Investors & expats: Higher public wages can sustain domestic demand, a positive for retail REITs and service-oriented businesses, but could fuel future interest-rate caution from the national debt office.

In short, the Government has opted for measured generosity—more than inflation but well below the unions’ wish-list—hoping to safeguard public-service morale without endangering Portugal’s hard-won fiscal reputation.