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The European Order for Payment (Regulation No 1896/2006)
This procedure is applied when the accused does not deny the existence of the debt in question. That is what is known as an "uncontested pecuniary claim".

The process is initiated by fulfilling standard forms available in all official EU languages along with many other pieces of information. These forms are available on the website of the European Judicial Atlas in Civil Matters: http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/judicialatlasciv... B.

The European Enforcement Order (Regulation 805/2004).
The European Enforcement Order is a certificate that accompanies a national judgment, a court settlement or an authentic document that bestows enforceability in another Member State.

This procedure also applies to legal proceedings in which the required party does not dispute the debt, where a national court has established the existence of the claim in question. Normally, in order to obtain an enforceable title, it is necessary to appeal to the court that judged the merits and to comply with the legal provisions applied in the respective Member State. In this procedure, the credit will be considered uncontested if the required party has confessed to the debt in court, in a court-approved transaction or in an authentic document, if he has never contested the existence of the credit, or, if having initially challenged it, he has missed the court hearing (tacit admission).

The European Small Claims Procedure (Regulation 861/2007).
This procedure applies to cross-border litigation in which the value of the claim does not exceed two thousand euros, excluding tax fees. It is usually a written procedure, which begins with the fulfillment of a standardized form, to which the required party may respond in http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/judicialatlasciv... lling_pt.htm

The Website of The European Judicial Network in Civil and Commercial Matters provides a lot of information on civil justice in the European Union, and on the procedures of each Member State: http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/homepage/homepag... pt.htm

The Judicial Atlas in Civil Matters provides practical information on cross-border actions and contains all forms of a standardized application that may need to be fulfilled. Find out more in http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/judicialatlasciv... index_pt.htm.


What is the appropriate procedure for each case? Is the claim's value lower than 2.000 EUR?
If so, you must consider the possibility of using the European Small Claims Procedure. However, if you believe that the debtor will not contest the existence of his claim, you may also use the European Enforcement Order or the European Order for Payment.

It is important to remember that the European Enforcement Order starts with a national judicial procedure (a conviction is already in place) and only then does it become a European case, providing the enforcement of the judgment in a different Member State. On the other hand, the European Order for Payment is, from the get-go, a European procedure.

If you need to bring an action against a person from another Member State, it may be easier to use the European Order for Payment, as the forms and information will be available in their language. If a conviction has already been handed down in your favor, the European Enforcement Order will probably be the most appropriate procedure. If you wish to file a civil action in which the value is higher than two thousand euros, and/or you expect it to be contested, other rules apply, which are explained further on.

ARI – AUTORIZAÇÃO DE RESIDÊNCIA PARA ATIVIDADE DE INVESTIMENTO, (Residence Permit for Investment Activity) (ARI)

The Residence Permit for Investment Activity (ARI), effective as of October 8, 2012, allows third-country nationals to obtain a temporary residence permit for investment activity with the exemption of residence visa to enter national territory. The beneficiary of ARI have the possibility of:

– Enter Portugal with a residence visa waiver;
– To reside and work in Portugal, and to stay in Portugal, for a period of no less than 7 days, at least, in the first year and no less than 14 days in the subsequent years;
– Move through the Schengen area, without visa;
– Benefit from family reunification;
– Request the granting of a Permanent Residence Permit under the Foreigners Law (Law no. 23/2007, of July 4, within the current version);
– Possibility of requesting the acquisition of Portuguese nationality, by naturalization, fulfilling the other requirements required by the Nationality Law (Law no. 37/81, of October 3, within the current version).

Who may request it?

All citizens of Third States that:

• Have a permanent establishment in Portugal;
• Carry out an investment activity, either in person or through a company incorporated in Portugal or in another EU State;
• Who meet one of the quantitative and time requirements named in the applicable legislation.

May apply for a Residency Permit for Investment Activity, by abiding by one of the following terms:

i) The transfer of capital in an amount equal to or greater than 1 million euros;

ii) The creation of at least 10 workstations;

iii) The acquisition of real estate property with a value equal to or greater than 500 thousand euros;

iv) The acquisition of real estate property that:

• Whose construction has been completed for at least 30 years;
• Is located in an area of urban rehabilitation;
• Or that has had rehabilitation works made to, in the total amount equal to or greater than 350 thousand euros;

v) The transfer of capital in an amount equal to or greater than 350 thousand euros, that is to be used in:

• Research activities, conducted by public or private scientific research institutions;
• Or to be integrated into the national scientific and technological system.

vi) The transfer of capital in an amount equal to or greater than 250 thousand euros, that is:

• Applied in investment or support to the artistic production
• Invested into the recovery or maintenance of the national cultural heritage,
• Applied through services of the direct central and peripheral administration, such as, public institutes, entities that make up the public business sector, public foundations, private foundations with public utility status, inter-municipal entities, entities that are part of the local business sector, municipal associations and public cultural associations, that pursuit assignments in the field of artistic production, restoration or maintenance of the national cultural heritage;

vii) The transfer of capital in an amount equal to or greater than 500 thousand euros, for the acquisition of units of investment funds or venture capital funds, meant to be used for the capitalization of small and medium-sized companies that present a viable capitalization plan.

The ARI regime is not applicable to citizens who have Portuguese nationality or to citizens of the EU and EEA.

In the last decades, EU policies have been aimed at:

• ensuring a high level of employment and sound social protection
• improving working and living conditions
• protecting social cohesion

The EU aims to promote social progress and improve living and working conditions for Europeans - see the preamble to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

With regard to labor law, the EU complements national policy initiatives, setting minimum standards. In accordance with the Treaty, in particular Article 153 thereof, the EU shall adopt legislation (directives) that lay down minimum requirements for:

• conditions of employment and work
• information and consultation of workers

EU countries are free to provide higher levels of protection if they wish so. For example, although the European Working Time Directive gives entitlement to 20 days of paid annual leave, many countries have adopted more generous provisions for the benefit of workers.

National authorities and Labor Law
The EU adopts directives that Member States must transpose into national law and apply. National authorities (for example labor inspectorates and courts) are thus responsible for enforcing the rules.

Court of Justice of the European Union and Labor Law
If a case examined by a national court raises questions as to the interpretation of an EU directive, that court may refer those questions to the Court of Justice of the EU. The latter will then provide the national court with the necessary answers so that it can rule on the case.

European Commission and Labor Law
The Commission verifies if EU directives are transposed into national law and ensures, through systematic monitoring, the proper application of the rules laid down therein.

If the Commission considers that a particular EU country has not correctly transposed a directive into national law, it may decide to initiate an infringement procedure.

This way, it is ensured that all the rights enshrined in the directives are provided for in national legislation. However, the Commission can not obtain redress for citizens (this is compensate for damage or correct a specific situation): that role lies with the competent national authorities.


What are the results?
With more than 240 million workers in the EU, rights enshrined in EU labor law directly benefit a large number of citizens and have a positive impact on one of the most concrete and important areas of their daily lives.

EU labor law is equally important for employers and society as a whole as it provides a clear framework of rights and obligations in the workplace, protects the health of workers and encourages sustainable economic growth
In addition, there is a close link between EU labor law and the single market. The free movement of goods, services, capital and workers must be accompanied by labor law rules in order to ensure that countries and companies compete fairly, based on the quality of their products and not on reducing the level of labor standards.