According to the new rules, temporary accommodation for workers can be provided in “temporary buildings” of lightweight or modular construction “with a demountable or removable nature”, in “adapted buildings” designed for non-residential use, but “subjected to functional alterations” for that purpose, and also in “residential buildings” that can be used immediately without the need for alterations.

If the construction period exceeds 36 months, the displaced workers “may choose to remain in the temporary accommodation or request the employer to pay the costs related to their accommodation,” states Decree-Law No. 123/2025 of November 21.

The employer is obliged to ensure that the temporary accommodation provides “adequate conditions for the rest, health and hygiene of the displaced workers,” and must offer conditions of “ventilation, lighting, safety and comfort,” supply of water, electricity, natural gas and piped liquefied petroleum gases, sewage and waste collection and treatment, electronic communications, postal service, and passenger transport.

Temporary accommodations existing on the date the new law comes into force, expected within 30 days, “must adapt to its provisions within a maximum period of 12 months.”

Occupancy to be defined

The maximum capacity of the accommodation, as well as the standards and technical specifications, will be defined by a decree to be published at a later date. The Authority for Working Conditions (ACT) is responsible for overseeing aspects related to the temporary accommodation of workers.

The preamble to the new law refers to “the need for the dignified integration of foreign workers, namely through the provision of decent accommodation that guarantees their safety, health and well-being”.

In the case of the construction industry, decent accommodation for workers depends on “the creation of a new, faster, simpler and temporary accommodation model, otherwise precarious and overcrowded situations will proliferate”.

A “displaced worker” is defined as a worker who is prevented from returning to their residence daily because they need an average travel time “equal to or greater than two hours”, because they have to travel a distance “greater than 50 km per journey”, or because “the temporary or mobile site” is located “in a remote or difficult-to-access area where there is no public transport”.

The Government acknowledges that the need for housing construction nationwide, the new Lisbon Airport, the high-speed rail link between Lisbon and Madrid, the third crossing of the Tagus River, a set of priority road projects, as well as urban redevelopment measures in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, require "the hiring and settlement in the country of an increased number of construction workers, for whom it will be necessary to create accommodation conditions."