Implementing the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention Phase 4 Two-Year Follow-Up Report: Portugal

This report presents the Working Group on Bribery’s summary andconclusions on Portugal’s progress on its implementation of Phase 4recommendations, its foreign bribery enforcement actions, anddevelopments related to the follow-up issues. It was adopted by the OECDWorking Group on Bribery during its plenary meeting on 8-11 October2024. © OECD 2024. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Member countries of theOECD. This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitationof international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area. Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) This work is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. By using this work, you accept to bebound by the terms of this licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ). Attribution– you must cite the work. Translations– you must cite the original work, identify changes to the original and add the following text:In the event of anydiscrepancy between the original work and the translation, only the text of original work should be considered valid. Adaptations– you must cite the original work and add the following text:This is an adaptation of an original work by the OECD.The opinions expressed and arguments employed in this adaptation should not be reported as representing the official views of theOECD or of its Member countries. Third-party material– the licence does not apply to third-party material in the work. If using such material, you are responsible forobtaining permission from the third party and for any claims of infringement. You must not use the OECD logo, visual identity or cover image without express permission or suggest the OECD endorses youruse of the work. Any dispute arising under this licence shall be settled by arbitration in accordance with the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)Arbitration Rules 2012. The seat of arbitration shall be Paris (France). The number of arbitrators shall be one. Table of contents Summary and conclusions 5 Summary of findings5Recommendations regarding prevention and detection of foreign bribery:6Recommendations regarding enforcement of the foreign bribery and related offences:10Recommendations regarding liability of, and engagement with, legal persons:14Recommendations regarding other measures affecting the implementation of the Convention:15Dissemination of the Phase 4 report16Conclusions of the Working Group on Bribery17 Annex A. Phase 4 Evaluation of Portugal - Two-Year Written Follow-Up Report byPortugal18 Additional information provided on 9 august 202491Notes102 Summary and conclusions 1.In October 2024, Portugal presented its Phase 4 written follow-up report to the OECD Working GrouponBribery(Working Group).The report outlined Portugal’s efforts to implement the 45recommendations and to address the follow-up issues identified during itsPhase 4 evaluationinOctober 2022. In light of the information provided, the Working Group concludes that Portugal has fullyimplemented 5 recommendations, partially implemented 20 recommendations, and not implemented20 recommendations. Summary of findings1 2.The Working Group welcomes Portugal’s efforts to implement several Phase 4 recommendations. Theincrease of resources and expertise allocated to law enforcement authorities conducting foreign briberyinvestigationsis a positive development.Law enforcement authorities have also implementedmeasures to prioritise foreign bribery investigations. These measures translated in the indictment ofeight natural persons and one company in two complex ongoing foreign bribery cases. Portugal hasalso actively participated in the Working Group’s law enforcement networks events. The WorkingGroup also notes the effective implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Mechanism (MENAC),and the publication by the MENAC of practical guidance on the adoption of the anticorruption measuresrequired under the General Regime for the Prevention of Corruption (RGPC). Additionally, Portugalreports notable efforts to regularise the provision of feedback by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)to reporting institutions regarding suspicious transactions reports (STRs). 3.Nevertheless, Portugal has yet to take concrete steps to implement a number of recommendations.Notably,Portugal has taken very limited measures to address recommendations related towhistleblower protection, self-reporting, waiver of sanctions, and the mechanism for suspension ofproceedings. Portugal also reports limited steps undertaken to maintain detailed statistics. WhilePortugal reports several prospective measures aiming at discussing such issues, this does nottranslateinto concrete measures to implement such recommendations.The Working Groupencourages Portugal to expedite the implementation of these measures. 4.Longstanding se