In France, a seller must hand you a dossier of mandatory technical diagnostics before the sale. In Spain, older buildings must pass a periodic structural inspection, the ITE. In the Netherlands, an energy label is compulsory and a condition survey is standard practice. In Portugal, there is no equivalent technical diagnostic of the building's condition, only an energy certificate at the sale and periodic inspection of gas installations. The one technical examination of the property you are buying is the one you commission yourself. A pre-purchase inspection by an OE-registered engineer is that diagnostic, the check many buyers' home markets build into a purchase by law or by habit, and it costs a fraction of what hidden defects cost to fix after purchase.
Table of Contents
- What does France require that Portugal does not?
- What is Spain's ITE, and which buildings must pass it?
- How do the Netherlands and other source markets compare?
- What does Portugal actually mandate before a sale?
- If the law does not require it, what should you do?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
What does France require that Portugal does not?
France obliges the seller to compile a technical diagnostic file, the DDT, and annex it to the sale agreement, covering energy, asbestos, lead, gas, electrics, and risk exposure.
A property sale in France runs through the dossier de diagnostic technique (DDT), a file of mandatory technical diagnostics the seller must prepare and attach to the sale agreement. Depending on the property's age and location, it gathers the energy diagnostic (DPE), an asbestos report for buildings permitted before July 1997, a lead report (CREP) for homes built before 1949, gas and electrical assessments for installations more than 15 years old, a natural and technological risk statement (ERP), a termite report in designated zones, and a septic system report where the property is not on mains drainage.
The legal weight sits with the seller, who organises the diagnostics, and the buyer reads them before committing. If a required diagnostic is missing, the seller cannot rely on a clause excluding liability for the hidden defects it would have shown, and the buyer can seek a price reduction, cancellation of the sale or damages (PAP, guide for sellers). Nothing in the French file replaces a full structural survey, but it forces a baseline technical disclosure that Portugal does not require at all.
What is Spain's ITE, and which buildings must pass it?
Spain's ITE requires older buildings, commonly from 50 years and from 45 or 30 in some regions, to pass a periodic technical inspection.
Spain runs the Inspección Técnica de Edificios (ITE), a periodic technical inspection of older buildings. Since a 2017 Constitutional Court ruling annulled the national rules, the regions set them: 50 years of age is the common trigger, some regions use 45 (Catalonia) or 30, and the old national threshold of 25,000 inhabitants no longer applies everywhere. A qualified technician carries it out, usually an architect or technical architect, and it is commonly renewed every 10 years.
The inspection examines structural stability, habitability and safety, hygiene, and accessibility. A failed or absent ITE can block works, trigger municipal orders, and weigh on a sale. The contrast with Portugal is direct: an older apartment block in Barcelona faces a recurring mandatory technical check, while the same building in Lisbon faces none. A buyer who wants that assurance in Portugal arranges a pre-purchase inspection privately.
How do the Netherlands and other source markets compare?
Most markets that send buyers to Portugal treat an independent technical check as routine, whether through a mandatory label or a standard pre-purchase survey.
The Netherlands requires an energy label (energielabel) at the point of sale, and a structural survey (bouwkundige keuring) is so routine that Dutch buyers expect one as a normal step before signing, even though it is not legally compulsory. The United Kingdom, where buyers commission RICS surveys, and Germany, where a Gutachter assessment is common, follow the same cultural baseline: an independent technical opinion on the building before money changes hands.
This matters because of who buys in Portugal. Many buyers come from countries where a diagnostic file, a periodic inspection, or a standard survey is simply part of buying a home. Many arrive in Portugal assuming the same protection exists here, and find that it does not. The foreign buyer guide sets out the wider gap, and the inspection is the part of it a buyer can close.
What does Portugal actually mandate before a sale?
Portugal mandates an energy certificate at sale and periodic gas inspections, but no technical diagnostic of the building's structural or physical condition before a sale.
Portugal does require two technical checks. The energy certificate (certificado energético) is mandatory for every sale under Decreto-Lei n.º 101-D/2020, de 7 de dezembro, issued through ADENE, with fines of €250 to €3,740 for individuals where it is absent (DL 101-D/2020, Art. 35). Gas installations need periodic inspection under Decreto-Lei n.º 97/2017, de 10 de agosto: one made before 26 August 2018 needs its first inspection by 26 August 2028 or at 20 years, whichever comes first. It is a duty on the installation, not a sale document. Both are useful, and neither examines whether the structure is sound, the roof leaks, or a wall was removed.
There is no Portuguese equivalent of the DDT or the ITE, no mandatory pre-purchase diagnostic of the building's condition. Decreto-Lei n.º 10/2024, de 8 de janeiro then removed the licence check (licença de utilização) at the deed, although no public check of a building's physical condition ever sat before a sale, and the mechanics of that change are in our Simplex guide. The result is a market where 35.8% of buildings need some repair (INE, Census 2021: 21.8% light, 9.4% medium, 4.6% deep), yet no law requires anyone to check the specific building you are buying.
If the law does not require it, what should you do?
Commission the inspection the law leaves out: a pre-purchase examination by an OE-registered engineer, the technical diagnostic Portugal does not mandate but many buyers' home markets require or expect.
The answer is to supply the check the Portuguese system omits. A pre-purchase inspection by an engineer registered with the Ordem dos Engenheiros (OE) examines the structure, the roof and building envelope, moisture, the electrical and gas installations, and compares the property with its approved drawings. It is the closest equivalent to the French DDT and the Spanish ITE combined, arranged by the buyer rather than mandated by the state, and timed before the CPCV so the findings can still shape the deal before the deed (escritura).
The case for it is the same one France and Spain already made into law. An independent technical opinion protects the buyer from defects the paperwork does not show, and it costs a fraction of what hidden defects cost to fix once the purchase is complete. Portugal will not hand you the diagnostic. You commission it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a property inspection mandatory in Portugal?
No. Portugal mandates an energy certificate (certificado energético) under DL 101-D/2020 and periodic gas inspections under DL 97/2017, but it does not require a technical diagnostic of the building's structural or physical condition before a sale. Unlike France's DDT or Spain's ITE, a pre-purchase inspection in Portugal is the buyer's choice, not a legal obligation.
What is the French DDT?
The dossier de diagnostic technique (DDT) is a file of mandatory technical diagnostics that a French seller must compile and annex to the sale agreement. It covers energy, asbestos, lead, gas, electrics, natural and technological risks, termites in designated zones, and septic systems, depending on the property. If one is missing, the seller loses the usual exclusion of liability for the hidden defects it would have shown, and the buyer can seek a price reduction or cancellation.
Does Spain require a building inspection to sell?
Spain's ITE (Inspección Técnica de Edificios) requires older buildings to pass a periodic technical inspection by a qualified technician, usually an architect or technical architect. Since 2017 the regions set the rules: 50 years is the common age trigger, some regions use 45 or 30, and renewal is commonly every 10 years. It is a recurring obligation on the building, distinct from a one-off survey at sale.
Why does this matter for foreign buyers in Portugal?
Many foreign buyers come from countries where a diagnostic file, a periodic inspection, or a standard survey is part of buying a home. Many assume the same protection exists in Portugal and discover it does not. Commissioning a pre-purchase inspection restores the technical check their home market would have provided automatically.
Conclusion
France writes the technical check into the DDT, Spain writes it into the ITE, and the Netherlands and other source markets treat it as routine. Portugal mandates an energy certificate and periodic gas inspections and stops there, leaving the building's condition unexamined by law. The one technical diagnostic of the property you are buying is the one you arrange. A pre-purchase inspection by an OE-registered engineer is that diagnostic, for a fraction of what fixing hidden defects costs after purchase. Commission it before you sign.
→ Book a Pre-Purchase Inspection · get a quote at inspectos.pt/en/home-inspections
Updated October 2026 | Reviewed by the InspectOS engineering team | InspectOS Portugal
Sources
- Decreto-Lei n.º 101-D/2020, de 7 de dezembro
- Decreto-Lei n.º 97/2017, de 10 de agosto
- Decreto-Lei n.º 10/2024, de 8 de janeiro
- France dossier de diagnostic technique (DDT, Service-Public / Notaires de France)
- PAP (pap.fr), guide for sellers on missing diagnostics and hidden-defect claims
- Spain Inspección Técnica de Edificios (ITE), regional regulations
- Netherlands energielabel
- INE (Census 2021)