Reference year 2026
Version 2026
Drafted by Alexandra Costa Artur, Director, IMANOVATION,Lda, and member of Cedefop's Community of apprenticeship experts for Portugal
1Scheme history
Pilot projects were implemented from 1980 to 1984. and the legal regime was introduced in 1984 by the Decreto-Lei (Decree-Law) n.º 102/84, de 29 de março (see Q4 on the country fiche).
This Decree-Law established the National Apprenticeship Committee, a body composed of representatives of the ministries and the social partners (employers and trade unions), responsible for monitoring the system. The National Apprenticeship Committee was abolished as part of the reform of the vocational education and training system introduced by Decreto-Lei n.º 396/2007. Currently, social partners are not involved in the monitoring of apprenticeship programmes.
The scheme was inspired by the German dual system and the French system, with the involvement of the social partners, some big companies and industrial business associations.
2Beneficiaries
In upper secondary apprenticeship programmes, minimum age is not formally set. Trainees (apprentices) have to have completed lower secondary education (9th year of schooling, corresponding to basic education) or a legally equivalent qualification. They should also be 29 years old maximum.
In post-secondary apprenticeship+ programmes, trainees (apprentices) have to be between 18 (minimum) and 29 years old (maximum). Exceptions are foreseen for the maximum age, in the case of vulnerable groups, beneficiaries covered by labour market policies or who are trained to cover specific sectoral needs.
Apprenticeship programmes (upper secondary): there is no information available about the average age of learners, but they range between 15 and 29 years old.
Apprenticeship+ programmes (post-secondary): there is no information available since these programmes were introduced in 2023 and data is not available.
In 2025/26, there were 10,819 learners attending apprenticeship programmes at upper- secondary level and 3,758 in the apprenticeship+ strand.
In 2024/25, there were 13,477 learners attending apprenticeship programmes at upper- secondary level and 3,903 in the apprenticeship+ strand.
Source: https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/sea…;
In 2023-24, there were 15,038 learners attending apprenticeship programmes at upper- secondary level and 1,814 in the apprenticeship+ strand.
For comparison, the number of apprentices in 2019/20 were 20,674 and in 2020/21 was 18,688.
Source: Direção-Geral de Estatísticas da Educação (DGEEC) –Educação em Números Dashboards page 27
3Qualifications
Apprenticeship programmes award qualifications at level 4 of the QNQ/EQF.
Apprenticeship+ programmes award qualifications at level 5 of the QNQ/EQF.
Cedefop’s NQF online tool presents information on the state of play of the NQF: https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/nqfs-online-tool
Apprenticeship programmes at upper-secondary level award ISCED 3 ISCED 354, according to Deliberação (Deliberation) n.º 343/2017, de 2 de maio - 52.ª Deliberação da Secção Permanente de Coordenação Estatística - Versão Portuguesa e Implementação da Classificação Internacional Tipo de Educação 2011 (ISCED/CITE 2011): ‘Upper secondary education – apprenticeship programmes ISCED 3 ISCED 354’ (Ensino secundário - Cursos de aprendizagem)
Since apprenticeship+ programmes at post-secondary level were created only in 2022, they are not included in ISCED 2011. However, it can be assumed that they award ISCED 4 ISCED 454 level, by analogy with technological specialization programmes which are post-secondary (non-tertiary) and award level 5 of NQF/EQF too [Deliberação (Deliberation) n.º 343/2017, de 2 de maio - 52.ª Deliberação da Secção Permanente de Coordenação Estatística - Versão Portuguesa e Implementação da Classificação Internacional Tipo de Educação 2011 (ISCED/CITE 2011)]. ‘Post- secondary education non-tertiary – technological specialization programmes ISCED 4 ISCED 454’ (Ensino pós -secundário não superior — Curso de Especialização Tecnológica ISCED 4 ISCED 454)
Qualifications linked with apprenticeship programmes at upper-secondary level can be obtained through school-based professional programmes (cursos profissionais) too.
Qualifications linked with apprenticeship+ programmes (post-secondary level) can be obtained through technological specialization programmes too.
Apprenticeship programmes, award a double certification, i.e. an education certificate (upper secondary level/12th year of schooling) and a vocational qualification (level 4 of the QNQ/EQF).
Apprenticeship+ programmes also award a double certification (but not a degree) and a vocational qualification (level 5 of the QNQ/EQF).
All apprenticeship graduates (apprenticeship programmes and apprenticeship+ programmes) can continue studies in higher education through special access contests, under the terms of the legislation in force.
Total duration of apprenticeship programmes ranges from 3 000 to 4 000 hours, split in three periods, distributed to the following training components:
• Sociocultural -700 to 800 hours.
• Scientific – 200 to 400 hours.
• Technological – 1000 to 1300 hours.
• Work-based - 1 100 to 1 500
Total duration of apprenticeship+ programmes ranges from 1 325 to 1 675 distributed to the following training components:
• Sociocultural and scientific -125 to 175 hours.
• Technological – 700 to 850 hours.
• Work-based – 500 to 850 [1]
[1]Portaria (Ordinance) nº 70/2022, de 2 de fevereiro.
4Governance
Apprenticeship is coordinated by the IEFP (Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional), the Public Employment Service, traditionally responsible for CVET, apprenticeship programmes and active labour market policies.
Social partners, who have a seat in the tripartite Standing Committee for Social Dialogue (CPCS), are represented on the IEFP's board of directors.
Sectoral councils for Qualifications, were employer and employee representatives were appointed, had a role in validating qualification references/standards, but have been abolished.
The VET system is currently undergoing reform with a new organisational structure. Until the moment of writing (March 2026) there is no structured mechanism for social partner involvement.
The board of the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional is based on tripartite representation. However, this involvement is at the level of institutional governance and does not appear to translate into a direct, operational role in shaping the content or design of apprenticeship programmes.
Available information does not allow the identification of a formal role (advisory or decision-making) for social partners in the current framework.
There is no evidence of involvement of apprentice associations or unions.
Employers’ associations and trade unions have a role in the implementation of apprenticeship programmes, as they can set up apprenticeship training centres, which they manage under protocols of collaboration with the IEFP (protocol centres).
The Decreto-Lei n.º 104/2025 from 11 September created a shared governance model between Ministry of Education and Ministry of Labour.
The National Agency for Qualifications and VET (ANQEP) was abolished and its functions are redistributed across different bodies:
• Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional (IEFP)
• Direção-Geral do Emprego e das Relações de Trabalho
• Instituto de Educação, Qualidade e Avaliação (new body)
• Comissões de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional (regional approach)
A new governance layer is introduced by the Council for coordination of the National Qualifications System (SNQ), body not regulated yet. Regulatory laws to clarify the September 2025 Decree-law are still missing at the time of writing (March 2026).
In this context is possible to laid down as follows:
• Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security (MTSSS) – responsible for the political coordination of apprenticeship programmes.
• Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional (IEFP) – responsible for the implementation, coordination, monitoring and evaluation of apprenticeship programmes, and for managing training centres. (Decreto-Lei n.º 42/2026, of 16 February, which revised the organisational framework and responsibilities of IEFP.)
• Direção-Geral do Emprego e das Relações de Trabalho, Instituto de Educação, Qualidade e Avaliação, Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional and Comissões de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional – share responsibilities for the development and updating of qualifications and standards within the National Qualifications System, following the extinction of ANQEP.
• Council for coordination of the National Qualifications System – responsible for coordinating the management of the system and its key instruments (e.g. CNQ), under government supervision.
• VET providers – responsible for delivering training, coordinating work-based learning and assessing learners (including IEFP centres, protocol centres and certified entities).
• Alternation support entities (ASE) – companies or other employers responsible for delivering work-based training.
• Monitoring and evaluation – mainly carried out by IEFP, within the new institutional framework.
VET institutions providing apprenticeships:
Apprenticeship programmes (cursos de aprendizagem) are mainly delivered by the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional through its network of training centres (direct management centres and protocol centres). Also, external training providers (Entidades Formadoras Externas, selected, regulated and coordinated by IEFP) can offer apprenticeship programmes.
Training is provided, combining training centres with companies (alternation support entities) where work-based learning takes place.
Profile of VET teachers/trainers:
Training is delivered by ‘trainers’ (formadores) holding a certification which combines pedagogical qualifications (training-of-trainers certification) and technical/professional expertise in the relevant occupational area.
Company-based trainers/tutors (in alternation support entities) supervise work-based learning and are usually experienced professionals in the sector. Specific pedagogic certification is not required for company-based trainers.
For more detailed information, you can also see Cedefop’s activities on VET teachers and trainers: https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/themes/vet-youth-teachers-trainers
Monitoring and quality assurance of apprenticeship programmes are mainly ensured by the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional.
There are structured monitoring processes during the implementation of apprenticeship programmes, including follow-up by training centres, coordination with alternation support entities (companies), and continuous assessment of learners.
Output evaluation is also ensured, as learners are subject to assessment procedures leading to certification (school and professional qualification).
In the Final Assessment Exam (Prova de Avaliação Final - PAF) according to the IEFP Specific Regulations, the examination jury consists of:
- The Pedagogical Coordinator of the course and the President of the jury
- One trainer from the sociocultural or scientific components.
- One trainer from the technological component.
- The Workplace Tutor from the employer's company, if possible
IEFP publishes online, in its portal, statistical data on the employability of beneficiaries of the main employment and training measures.
However, there is limited evidence of systematic graduate tracking or impact evaluation mechanisms specifically dedicated to apprenticeship programmes.
5Training at the workplace
The Work-based (workplace) component is a mandatory part of the apprenticeship and apprenticeship+ programmes (1 100-1 500 and 500-850 hours respectively).
There is no distinction regarding the time spent at the workplace. There is only a distinction between the school-based components (sociocultural, scientific and technological training) provided by a VET provider and the work-based training component provided by an employer (company or other).
In apprenticeships programmes, work-based training takes place as a block at the end of each of the three training periods in which the programmes are organized.
In apprenticeship+ programmes, work-based training usually takes place throughout the training process. However, it also can occur at the end of the training path.
VET providers can adapt the periods, either in alternation or in block at the end of theoretical part.
All VET programmes (including apprenticeships, school-based VET for young people and adult education and training courses) share the same referential in what refers to the technological/professional competences (technological component), which are included in the National Qualifications Catalogue.
They differ, in what refers to the workplace component, in the duration, in the articulation between training in centre/school and training in company and in the training contents. These contents are defined by the companies. However, they should be closely linked with the competences integrated in the referential.
Therefore, apprenticeship is implemented on the basis of the common referential, but its programmes have their own specificities, based on the dual system, especially in relation to the workplace component. The workplace component is unique to the characteristics of dual learning.
The standards for the apprenticeship programmes are included in the National Qualifications Catalogue (Catálogo Nacional de Qualificações, CNQ), as all VET programmes standards
The set of learning outcomes to be achieved by apprenticeship programmes is defined in the Catálogo Nacional de Qualificações, which establishes the standards applicable to all VET pathways.
Apprenticeship programmes lead to double certification and include learning outcomes structured into different components:
• Sociocultural component – covering general and basic skills (e.g. communication, citizenship, digital competences);
• Scientific component – providing theoretical knowledge relevant to the occupational area;
• Technological component – focused on technical and professional competences defined in the qualification standards;
• Work-based learning (formação em contexto de trabalho) – aimed at the development of technical, organisational and interpersonal competences in real work environments.
Digital skills, autonomy, teamwork and problem-solving, are integrated across the different components.
There is an agreement between the training provider and the employer (company or other). Workplace training is based on an individual activity plan which sets the competencies to be acquired and/or consolidated and the professional activities to be performed by the trainee (apprentice).
It is usual to have a staff member of the training center in charge of accompanying the work-based learning period in the companies. That person is the facilitator between the trainee, the training center and the company.
Employers (companies or other) should meet certain formal and substantive requirements to be able to provide workplace training in the context of apprenticeship programmes.
The formal requirements are:
• To be regularly constituted and duly registered.
• To have their situation regularized in terms of taxes, contributions to Social Security and refunds within the scope of public funding.
• To have not been convicted of violating the legislation on child labour and discrimination at work and employment, namely on the basis of gender, as well as for illegal dismissal of pregnant, puerperal or breastfeeding women.
• The substantive requirements are:
• To have a working environment, health and safety conditions and technical, human and material means capable of ensuring the necessary and appropriate professional training to qualify for a profession.
• To have qualified workers in the profession object of training in work context.
The selection of an employer (company or other) to provide workplace training is up to the training provider. An agreement between them may be concluded, which refers to a joint effort to provide work-based learning in the context of the apprenticeship programme.
According to the agreement, employers are asked to appoint an in-company trainer (tutor) and to agree, together with the training provider, on a plan of activities guiding the learning to be carried out or to be consolidated by the trainee (apprentice) during the period in which the practical training takes place. (www.iefp.pt/modalidades-de-formacao?tab=cursos-de-aprendizagem (anexo21 and -22.Minuta de Acordo EAA) There are 26 annexes to cover all the process.
An activity plan and evaluation plan also exist:
(www.iefp.pt/modalidades-de-formacao?tab=cursos-de-aprendizagem (Anexo 6 – Plano Individual de atividades - avaliação (FPCT)
During training at workplace, trainees (apprentices) are guided and accompanied by a tutor designated by the company/employer (alternation support entity).
The tutor has to be an experienced worker in the qualification being acquired or in a related area and has, namely, the following tasks/attributions:
• Participating in the elaboration of WBL trainee´s individual plan of activities.
• Assuring the necessary logistical and material conditions, in order to provide the trainee (apprentice) with the acquisition/consolidation of skills in the work environment, to develop interpersonal relationships and to facilitate their integration and adaptation to professional contexts.
• Collaborating with the pedagogical responsible of the VET provider, whenever deemed necessary or requested.
Termination of the agreement with the employer (company or other) is foreseen, and eventually the employers are removed from the list of institutions that may provide in- company training for the apprenticeship scheme.
6Contract and compensation
The learner has the status of trainee. The status of trainee is laid down in the Decreto-Lei (Decree-Law) nº 242/88 de 7 de julho, which remains the general legal reference for participants in vocational training.
More recent regulations governing apprenticeship programmes, such as Portaria n.º 70/2022, do not establish a distinct legal status combining student and employee. Apprentices therefore remain trainees under a training contract.
The legislation of apprenticeship programmes [1] mentions that a training contract needs to be signed between the trainee (apprentice) (or legal representative for underage trainees) and the training provider.
By signing this contract, the provider assumes the responsibility to deliver the agreed training (applies also to the workplace component) and the trainee (apprentice) commits to attend training and perform all the activities included in the programme curriculum.
The training contract sets the location, the number of hours and the schedule of the training, the duties of the provider, the duties and the rights of the trainee (apprentice), including the amounts of social support (allowance) to be awarded, if it is the case, personal accident insurance, under the responsibility of the training provider, and vacation time.
The employer responsible for the workplace training does not sign the training contract. However, a cooperation agreement may be concluded between the provider and the company, to jointly carry out learning courses regarding the practical (work-based) learning, as part of the apprenticeship programme. It refers to commitments by the company side to provide an in-company tutor and to agree with the VET provider on the training to be carried out at the workplace.
[1] https://files.dre.pt/1s/2022/02/02300/0001200031.pdf
The regulation of the apprenticeship programme [1] mentions that the training contract does not generate or entitle subordinate work relationships (not an employment contract) and is terminated at the end of the training programme for which it was concluded. The trainee does not have employee status.
It also mentions that the daily workload and the number of hours the trainee (apprentice) can work are those practiced at the company. It also specifies that, under agreement of the trainee or the legal representative, training on weekly rest days is possible, if it is advantageous for learning and also if it applies to the company's workers.
In case the trainee (apprentice) is underaged, all acts must be made known to their legal representative and, if applicable, obtain their consent, [2].
In terms of social protection, trainees are entitled to training allowances and support measures (e.g. meals, transport, insurance against accidents), but they do not benefit from the full set of rights associated with an employment contract.
[1] https://files.dre.pt/1s/2022/02/02300/0001200031.pdf
[2] https://www.iefp.pt/documents/10181/13470202/Reg+Especifico_Aprendizage…
At the VET center.
Apprentices do not receive reimbursement from participating companies.
The training contract sets the amounts of social support (allowance) to be awarded to the apprentice, if it is the case.
It also sets apprentices rights for personal accident insurance, under the responsibility of the training provider.
The value of the social support is based in the IAS index, updated annually (the indexing reference of social support. For 2026 the value is 537,13 Euros. Portaria n.º 480-A/2025/1
7Financing and incentives
Employers generally do not pay wages, as apprentices are trainees rather than employees.
The cost of allowances for apprentices is mainly covered by the State, with co-financing from European funds under the Pessoas 2030 programme (Portugal 2030), supported by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).
These funds finance training allowances and support measures (e.g. meals, transport, insurance), managed primarily by the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional.
Public funding supports the overall organisation of training, including the coordination of work-based learning and trainee allowances.
Employers (companies acting as alternation support entities) do not receive direct financial compensation for training costs, but contribute in kind, notably through: provision of training infrastructure and equipment and trainers/tutors time and supervision
There are no specific sectoral training funds to financing apprenticeship in Portugal.
The cost of allowances for apprentices is mainly covered by the State, with co-financing from European funds under the Pessoas 2030 programme (Portugal 2030), supported by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).
These funds finance training allowances and support measures (e.g. meals, transport, insurance), managed primarily by the Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional.
There are no financial incentives for companies that offer apprenticeship.
Employers do not contribute to the allowance of trainees (apprentices), as they do not have employee status, and they also do not receive direct financial compensation for providing training.
Apprenticeship programmes are promoted primarily through IEFP channels, including its website and the network of IEFP training centres. In the past, national campaigns were organised, but this is not systematically followed-up currently.
The Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional provides some support through online platforms and information systems that facilitate the matching of trainees with companies and the management of apprenticeship placements (Iefpoline - portal of the Employment Public Service – IEFP). The portal provides overall information about the apprenticeship system, with all the components well explained.
The portal provides access to all documents regarding work-based learning elements for the companies, e.g. annexes to the Regulamento específico dos Cursos de Aprendizagem 2022 – 3.ª revisão and the Regulamento.
The IEFP platform publishes detailed guidelines for participating companies: https://www.iefp.pt/modalidades-de-formacao?tab=cursos-de-aprendizagem
It is usual to have a staff member of the training center in charge of accompanying the work-based learning period in the companies (pedagogical responsible). That person is the facilitator between the apprentice, the training center and the company, and works with the in-company trainer(s) to define the training plan and support its implementation.