Portugal's Ministry for State Reform is piloting AI tools to speed construction-licensing reviews in municipalities led by Coimbra, timed to an October 2026 law requiring electronic licensing, with a 2027 nationwide target and final decisions kept with elected officials.
50 days
Target factory-licensing time
2027
Nationwide rollout target
Details
Maturity
Pilot
Promoter
Ministerio-Adjunto e da Reforma do Estado / Municipio de Coimbra
Period
2026 pilot; nationwide target 2027
Region (NUTS)
PT16
Keywords
urban planning, construction licensing, digital government
Context
Portugal's new Legal Regime for Urbanisation and Building (RJUE), in force from 1 October 2026, requires electronic construction-licensing and opens the door to AI support. Coimbra is a confirmed pilot municipality.
Objectives
A single-entry-point AI tool is designed to help caseworkers assess construction-licensing applications faster, with a stated target of licensing a factory within 50 days, and a 2027 target to extend to all Portuguese municipalities.
Conclusions
Officials were explicit that AI 'will only help accelerate the process, but without replacing the human'; the municipal president or delegated councillor retains final licensing authority.
Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Short (< 1 year)
Staffing & skills
Ministry for State Reform, Municipio de Coimbra caseworkers
Conditions for success
retaining final licensing authority with elected officials
extending the tool without 'dehumanising' the licensing service
Commonly funded by
National / regional programmes
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Data sources
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