The special eviction procedure is a procedural means designed to bring about the termination of the lease, regardless of the purpose for which it is intended, when the tenant fails to vacate the premises on the date provided for by law or on the date set by agreement between the parties, and may be combined with a request for payment of unpaid rents.
1. Scope
1.1 The special eviction procedure, which is processed electronically, takes place exclusively at the National Rental Counter (BNA), a body under the Directorate-General for the Administration of Justice (DGAJ) and which covers the entire national territory.
1.2 This procedure applies in cases of termination of the contract by agreement (revocation), by opposition to renewal by either the landlord or the tenant, by expiry of the term set out in the contract, by termination of the contract by the landlord or the tenant, by termination on the grounds of late payment of rent and by termination on the grounds of the tenant’s opposition to the carrying out of works.
1.3 Admission to this procedure depends, in addition to other conditions, on the existence of a written lease and proof that the respective stamp duty has been paid.
2. Procedure
2.1 The eviction request is a specific form, essentially electronic, approved by order of the Minister of Justice, through which the landlord requests that the rented premises be vacated.
2.2 The request for eviction is submitted to the BNA in one of the following ways:
a) Through a lawyer or solicitor, by filling in and sending an electronic form available on the CITIUS computer system;
b) Through the BNA platform – http://www.bna.mj.pt – by electronically signing the citizen’s card, attaching all the documentation in scanned form and electronically signing the application;
c) By filling in the eviction request form directly on the BNA platform. Once validated, the system will provide a reference with which the landlord, within 10 days, must go, accompanied by a paper version of all the documents he wishes to attach, to a court office where the process will be completed;
d) By submitting a paper application to a court office, accompanied by all the documents you wish to attach, duly completed and signed, and then entered into the BNA platform by the respective officials.
2.3 After submitting the eviction request electronically, the system will automatically assign a reference that will be made available to the landlord for the purpose of paying the court fee, without prejudice to the fact that the landlord may have previously been granted legal aid by the social security system.
3. Opposition
3.1 The tenant has 15 days from the notification of the eviction request to submit the opposition electronically, which can be submitted in one of the following ways:
a) By lawyer, through electronic submission in the CITIUS computer system;
b) It can be delivered in paper form to the BNA, together with the paper version of all the documents that must accompany it;
c) It can also be sent by post, under registration, to the BNA, together with the paper version of all the documents that must accompany it.
3.2 If the tenant does not oppose the eviction request, it is automatically converted into a notice to vacate the premises. In this case, the tenant has 30 days to remove their belongings, failing which they will be considered abandoned.
3.3 The judge will only intervene if the tenant objects to the eviction request, in which case a court hearing will take place.
