Portugal Government Updates Fisheries Fuel Subsidies with 2026 Budget Up to €800,000

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Portuguese government has issued a decree updating the fuel subsidy scheme for the fisheries sector, with a maximum budget of €800,000 for subsidy disbursements in 2026.

The decree, numbered 350/2026/1, was published in the Diário da República this Wednesday. This subsidy falls under the de minimis aid (auxílio de minimis) for the fisheries sector, implemented by reducing the final price of gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) consumed by small-scale artisanal fisheries, coastal fisheries, small-scale agriculture, and the salt industry, by an amount equivalent to the reduction level corresponding to the applicable tax rate on diesel used in fisheries.

The subsidy costs are covered by the budget of the Directorate-General for Natural Resources, Safety and Maritime Services (DGRM), up to a maximum of €800,000. Eligible beneficiaries are owners of vessels registered in the mainland Portugal fishing fleet, holding valid licenses, engaged in small-scale artisanal or coastal fisheries, and using gasoline or LPG as fuel.

Individuals and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises holding an aquaculture activity license (Título de Atividade Aquícola) in mainland Portugal are also eligible if their average production declared in production records over the past three years is below 20 tonnes, and they are equipped with local support vessels or coastal support vessels used to support production activities and fueled by gasoline or LPG. Equipment such as water pump units, generators, tillers, mowers, pressure washers, crane engines, shellfish stringing machine engines, lifts, sorting/calibrating machine engines, or other aquaculture activity equipment may also be included.

Additionally, individuals and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises holding operating licenses for salt production sites, owning equipment such as agricultural tractors, crane engines, high-pressure pumps, or rotating machinery, are also eligible.

Applications must be submitted to the DGRM or the Maritime Electronic Desk (BMar) by September 15. Subsidies amounting to less than €25 will not be paid.

The decree was signed by the Minister of Finance, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, and the Secretary of State for Fisheries and Oceans, Salvador Malheiro, and takes effect on January 1, 2026.