Portugal’s 5th RRF payment request for €2.9bn endorsed by EU Commission

Today, the EU Commission has endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of Portugal’s fifth payment request for €2.9 billion (net of pre-financing), of which €1.65 billion in grants and €1.25 billion in loans, under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the centrepiece of  NextGenerationEU. 

Following its assessment of the payment request submitted on 3 July 2024, the Commission has preliminarily concluded that Portugal has satisfactorily completed the 27 milestones and 15 targets set out in the  Council Implementing Decision for the fifth instalment. 

11 reforms and 27 investments will drive positive change for citizens and businesses in the areas of housing, greening of transport and fire prevention. The capitalisation of companies, digitalisation of businesses, capital market development, as well as the modernisation of tax and customs systems are also included. 

Flagship measures in this payment request include: 

• Support for access to housing: This investment will provide decent and adequate housing for families with the greatest needs and the most vulnerable groups. Under this payment request, 1,500 homes have already been delivered to eligible households.  

• Promoting the circular economy and more efficient waste management: Through the introduction of harmonised and mandatory criteria, the fees to be paid by producers to the managing authorities for the management of their waste are better adjusted based on the environmental impact of their products and the actual cost of managing their waste. This approach creates financial incentives for the production of more durable, repairable, and recyclable products. 

Next steps 

The Commission has now sent its preliminary assessment of Portugal´s fulfilment of the milestones and targets required for this payment to the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC), which has four weeks to deliver its opinion. The payment to Portugal can take place following the EFC’s opinion, and the adoption of a payment decision by the Commission.