Qualitative Selection and Exclusion of Economic Operators in Portugal

This paper provides an overview of the qualification, selection, and exclusion of economic operators rules under Portuguese public procurement law (approved by Decree-Law no 18/2008, hereinafter “Public Contracts Code 2008”). As Directive 2014/24/EU is yet to be transposed into national law, the chapter will focus on the law which transposed Directive 2004/18/EC. This chapter shows that the Portuguese law departs significantly from the EU template on rules regarding qualification, selection and exclusion of economic operators in public procurement. The Public Contracts Code is at times more similar to the new Directive 2014/24/EU than the Directive 2004/18/EC it transposed