Justified Absences: Days Off by Reason

Every justified absence in the Código do Trabalho

Art. 249(2) lists the reasons; arts. 251 and 252, the parenthood rules and a few specific laws set the days. Any absence outside this list is unjustified (art. 249(3)). These are the 25 cases, with pay as set by art. 255.

Articles of the Código do Trabalho unless stated. Lei 14/79: parliamentary election law. Lei 37/2012: blood donor statute.

Bereavement: how many days for each relative

In the original 2009 Code, the death of a spouse or child gave 5 days. The 20 days came with Lei 1/2022, and today’s wording, 20 days for a spouse, child or stepchild, comes from Lei 13/2023. An unmarried partner or household member counts as a spouse (art. 251(2)).

Degrees follow the Código Civil (Civil Code): in the direct line there is one degree per generation (parent, 1st; grandparent, 2nd); in the collateral line you go up to the common ancestor and down the other branch (sibling, 2nd; uncle and nephew, 3rd; cousin, 4th), under art. 1581. Affinity links each spouse to the other’s relatives and does not end when the spouse dies (arts. 1584 and 1585): a widow or widower still gets 5 days when a parent-in-law dies. Strictly, your sibling’s spouse is not your in-law, because affinity only forms with your own spouse’s relatives; the ACT note just says «cunhado(a)».

Calendar days or working days? Counting bereavement leave

The law says «dias consecutivos» and two readings are in use. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on 25 June 2025 that these are calendar days in a row, whether working days or rest days, as it had already ruled for a collective agreement clause in Ruling 4/2023. The ACT keeps the view in its Nota Técnica n.º 7 that rest days and holidays in between do not count, because there is no absence on those days.

• Start: the ACT counts from the day of the death; if it happens after the worker has finished that day’s hours, the count starts the next day. Another start can be agreed.
• Example: a father dies on Friday 30 October 2026. In calendar days the 5 days end on Tuesday 3 November; counting only working days, they end on Thursday 5 November.
• The ACT reading skips the national holidays in art. 234 (see the public holiday calendar). A brother who dies on Thursday 2 April 2026 gives Thursday and Friday under the court reading, but Thursday and Monday 6 April under the ACT one, because 3 April is Good Friday.
• A death during your holiday: the holiday is suspended by an event that is not your fault, provided you tell the employer (art. 244(1)); the ACT applies this to bereavement. The unused holiday days are booked later.

Marriage leave: 15 days in a row

The marriage absence lasts 15 days in a row and is paid (art. 249(2)(a)). «Seguidos» (in a row) includes weekends and holidays: marrying on a Friday and starting that day, the absence covers two weeks and one more day. The law says «por altura do casamento», around the time of the wedding, so the 15 days can start before or after the date, by agreement. Because the date is known, notice must be given 5 days ahead (art. 253(1)). Starting an unmarried partnership does not give this absence: the law only mentions marriage.

Illness: SNS 24 self-declaration, sick notes and endometriosis

Since 2023, a short illness can be justified without seeing a doctor: the self-declaration of illness, on your word of honour, through the SNS digital service, covers up to 3 consecutive days and can be used only twice a year (art. 254(5)). It can be issued up to 5 days after the illness starts (Portaria 11/2024). The employer does not pay those days and neither does Segurança Social: the self-declaration gives no right to sickness benefit, though it counts towards the waiting days if a sick note follows.

For longer illness the proof is a statement from a hospital or health centre, or a medical certificate (art. 254(2)), and the sick note (CIT) goes to Segurança Social. The employer stops paying when you have sickness cover (art. 255(2)(a)), and the sickness benefit starts on day 4. The employer can have the illness checked by a doctor; refusing without good reason makes the absence unjustified (art. 254(3) and (6)).

Lei 32/2025 added art. 252-B: anyone with severe, disabling pain from endometriosis or adenomyosis can be absent up to 3 days in a row for each month of work, with no loss of pay. The medical prescription confirming the condition is handed in once.

Sick children, grandchildren and family: days per year

For a sick or injured child under 12 (or of any age with a disability or chronic illness) you can be absent up to 30 days a year, or the whole hospital stay; from 12 years old, 15 days a year. Add one day for each child after the first: with three children under 12, that is 32 days. The parents cannot take it at the same time for the same reason (art. 49). The employer does not pay these days, but they count as time worked (art. 65). For the leave after a birth, paid by Segurança Social, see the parental benefit.

Grandparents can be absent up to 30 consecutive days after the birth of a grandchild who lives with them and whose parent is under 16, and can stand in for the parents when a grandchild is ill (art. 50). For a spouse or partner, parents, grandparents, in-laws, siblings and siblings-in-law there are 15 days a year, plus 15 if the spouse or partner has a disability or chronic illness; parents, grandparents and parents-in-law do not have to live with you (art. 252(4)). These days are unpaid but count as time worked (art. 255(3)).

Time off that is not an absence: antenatal, PMA and breastfeeding

Some parenthood absences are dispensas (paid time off) rather than faltas. They cost no rights, pay included, and count as time worked (art. 65(2)).

How to justify an absence: notice and proof

• Foreseeable absence (wedding, exam, planned surgery): tell the employer at least 5 days ahead and give the reason (art. 253(1)).
• Unforeseeable absence (a death, sudden illness): tell the employer as soon as possible; if the absence continues, tell them again (art. 253(2) and (4)).
• Proof: the employer can ask for it within 15 days of being told, to be provided within a reasonable time (art. 254(1)).
• Without notice or proof the absence becomes unjustified (arts. 253(5) and 254(6)). False statements about the reason are grounds for dismissal (art. 351(2)(f)).

Sample notice (in Portuguese, as sent to the employer): «Informo que faltarei ao trabalho de 20 de outubro a 8 de novembro de 2026 por falecimento do meu cônjuge, ao abrigo do art. 249.º n.º 2 b) e do art. 251.º n.º 1 a) do Código do Trabalho. Entregarei a prova do óbito se for pedida.»

Unjustified absences: what happens

• You lose the pay for that time, and it does not count towards seniority (art. 256(1)).
• An unjustified absence right before or after a rest day or holiday is a serious breach, and the pay deduction covers those days too (art. 256(2) and (3)).
• Lateness: over 60 minutes at the start of the day lets the employer refuse work for the whole day; over 30 minutes, for that part of it (art. 256(4)).
• Five unjustified absences in a row or 10 separate ones in a calendar year can be grounds for dismissal without notice or severance, even with no harm to the company (art. 351(2)(g)).

Absences and holidays

A justified absence does not touch your holiday entitlement of 22 working days (arts. 238(1) and 255(1)). When an absence is unpaid, justified or not, you can choose to give up holiday days instead of losing pay, one for one, as long as you keep 20 working days; the holiday allowance stays the same and the employer cannot refuse (arts. 257 and 238(5)). If your employer’s collective agreement allows it, the lost pay can also be made up with extra working time.

Collective agreements, contracts and the public sector

The reasons and length of justified absences cannot be changed by a collective agreement or an employment contract; the only exception is absences of workers’ representatives, which an agreement can improve (art. 250). The employer can always approve other absences (art. 249(2)(k)).

In the public sector the Lei Geral do Trabalho em Funções Públicas (Lei 35/2014) applies. Its art. 134 repeats the Código do Trabalho reasons, with the same effects, and adds others with no loss of pay: appointments, tests and treatments that cannot be done outside working hours, preventive isolation, blood donation and first aid, and recruitment tests. There are also absences charged to the holiday allowance, up to 2 a month and 13 a year, subject to approval (art. 135).