Government Confirms Rent Support Payments for 129,000 Tenants, Suspends Nearly 59,000 Amid Program Failures
The Portuguese government has announced that over 129,600 tenants will receive payments from the Extraordinary Rent Support Program (PAER) in September, including retroactive amounts dating back to January 2025. However, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing also confirmed that payments for 58,659 beneficiaries have been suspended due to data inconsistencies, revealing significant operational flaws in the state-run initiative.
The announcement follows mounting criticism over the program's effectiveness and a formal inquiry by the Provedoria de Justiça (Ombudsman's Office), which has called for an urgent and comprehensive review of the PAER. According to a statement from the Ministry, the program's design, inherited from the previous government, created a complex system dependent on the cross-referencing of data from five distinct public entities, including the Institute of Housing and Urban Rehabilitation (IHRU), the Tax Authority (AT), and the Social Security Institute (ISS), without ensuring the necessary interoperability between them.
This lack of integration has resulted in what the Ombudsman described as "grave irregularities" and a violation of citizens' fundamental rights. The office reported receiving approximately one thousand complaints between May 2023 and July 2025, detailing issues such as a lack of notification before support was suspended, extreme delays in receiving payments, and the absence of the promised retroactive funds. Beneficiaries reported being passed between agencies without resolution, while the IT platforms used are deemed "fragile and inadequate."
In response to the public and official pressure, the government has stated that a revision of the program is forthcoming. "A review of the program is planned for the near future to ensure its operationalization," a government spokesperson communicated to the Lusa news agency. The objective is to correct the structural issues that have led to the current backlog and suspensions, which have reportedly worsened the financial stability of many families the program was intended to help.
The Provedoria de Justiça's report highlighted that the legal framework was conceived without sufficient attention to fundamental administrative principles, such as the right to be heard and the right to a reasoned decision. "Citizens have been repeatedly forwarded from service to service, without being able to obtain the information they seek," the report noted, adding that the failures have caused a "deep distrust" in the state's ability to deliver on its promises.
The suspended beneficiaries are now required to regularize their information through the IHRU's online portal, a process that adds another administrative hurdle for those affected. The situation has drawn attention from various sectors, as the stability of the rental market is closely linked to the financial health of tenants, especially in major urban centers like Lisbon and Porto. The government has not yet provided a specific timeline for the completion of the program's review or the resolution of the suspended cases. Understand policy impacts on your Portugal property plans at realestate-lisbon.com.
