Decreto-Lei n.º 84/2021, suspension on communication

A notified defect does not time out while the developer stalls

The guarantee periods run from delivery. They stop running from the date the consumer communicates the non-conformity, and for any period the property cannot be used.

What owners assume happens

Clock keeps running
Delivery → list handed over → period expires

On this reading, every month of silence costs the owner protection, and a developer who waits long enough wins by default.

What the diploma provides

Clock suspends on notice
Delivery → denúncia received → suspended

The period stops at the date of receipt of the defect notice. Time spent waiting for the developer is not time taken off the guarantee.

The two conditions behind that sentence

Suspension attaches to the communication, so an undated conversation on site does nothing. And it attaches to the specific non-conformity communicated, not to the property in general, which is why an item-level list protects more than a complaint about finish quality.

10 years
Structural construction elements, from delivery
5 years
Other non-conformities, from delivery
Applies to a consumer buying from a professional seller. Where the seller is not a professional, or the claim runs directly against the builder, different periods apply and must not be merged. Sources: Decreto-Lei n.º 84/2021, de 18 de outubro · Código Civil, Art. 1225.º · InspectOS, inspectos.pt