{
  "id": "legal/drug-possession-decriminalized-not-legal",
  "signature": "AI tells a traveler that drugs are 'legal' in Portugal, or that carrying any amount for personal use carries no legal consequence",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(portugal.*(drugs? (are )?legal|legalized drugs)|drugs.*legal.*portugal|portugal drug policy)",
  "domain": "legal",
  "category": "legal_restriction",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "Lei n.o 30/2000 reclassified the acquisition, possession, and consumption of drugs for personal use as a 'contraordenacao' (administrative offense) rather than a crime, when the quantity held does not exceed the amount needed for an average 10-day individual supply. It never legalized drugs: buying, selling, trafficking, and cultivation, as well as possession beyond that 10-day reference quantity, remain criminal offenses. Cases within the threshold go to a regional Comissao para a Dissuasao da Toxicodependencia (CDT), which can still impose fines or other sanctions - it is unlawful, just not prosecuted in criminal court.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Tell a traveler or resident that drugs are 'legal' in Portugal, or that carrying drugs carries no legal consequence",
      "why_fails": "Lei 30/2000 (Article 2) makes acquisition, possession, and consumption for personal use within a 10-day reference quantity a 'contraordenacao' - an administrative offense handled by a regional Dissuasion Commission (CDT), not a decriminalized-into-nonexistence act. It is still unlawful and can lead to fines or other sanctions; trafficking, dealing, and cultivation beyond personal-use quantities remain criminal offenses under separate narcotics legislation.",
      "fail_rate": 0.85,
      "condition": "Personal possession/consumption of a substance covered by Lei 30/2000",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.pgdlisboa.pt/leis/lei_mostra_articulado.php?nid=186&tabela=leis&so_miolo="
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Assume any quantity carried 'for personal use' is treated the same and stays out of the criminal system",
      "why_fails": "The law only shields possession up to the amount needed for an average 10-day individual supply. Exceeding that quantity is treated as an indication of trafficking intent, referred to a judicial authority, and only excluded from prosecution if the person proves it was exclusively for personal consumption.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "Possession exceeding the 10-day personal-use reference quantity",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.pgdlisboa.pt/leis/lei_mostra_articulado.php?nid=186&tabela=leis&so_miolo="
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "Explain that possession/use within the 10-day personal-use threshold is an administrative offense handled by a regional Dissuasion Commission (CDT) - not a criminal court - but can still mean fines or mandatory measures; it is not risk-free or 'legal'",
      "success_rate": 0.85,
      "how": "",
      "condition": "General explanation of Portugal's drug policy",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.euda.europa.eu/publications/drug-policy-profiles/portugal_en"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Warn that buying, selling, or possessing quantities beyond the personal-use threshold remains a criminal offense, and that Portugal's framework (documented by the Library of Congress comparative report) is decriminalization, not legalization",
      "success_rate": 0.8,
      "how": "",
      "condition": "Trafficking, dealing, or quantities beyond personal-use thresholds",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.loc.gov/item/2016479004/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": []
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.7,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-08-23",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-08-23",
  "last_updated": "2026-08-23",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "legal/drug-possession-decriminalized-not-legal/pt"
  ]
}