THE ESSENTIALS
Before you start
- A family member providing permanent assistance can be treated as a third person.
- The benefit depends on permanent incapacity and the need for help with basic daily needs.
- The helper, assistance arrangements and benefit amount require different checks.
Family relationship does not prevent the statutory equivalence
Article 53(3) of Portuguese Law 98/2009 treats an injured worker's family member who provides permanent assistance as a third person. The benefit supplements the injured person's pension to compensate for assistance costs; this equivalence does not remove the remaining requirements.
This guide concerns the regime for employees. Tiago identifies the benefit under discussion before comparing information about help at home. An answer about a temporary cleaning service does not establish this statutory benefit for permanent dependence.
The need concerns basic daily activities
Article 53(1), (2) and (5) link the benefit to permanent incapacity for work resulting from the accident's injury and inability to meet basic daily needs alone. The law identifies personal hygiene, eating and mobility among those activities, with permanent third-person assistance required.
Clara helps Tiago prepare a factual account of tasks requiring help, frequency and existing support. She does not turn an occasional difficulty into a dependency assessment or assign incapacity. Clinical assessment and recognition of the benefit belong within the competent case process.
The helper and assistance arrangements matter too
Paragraph 4 excludes as a third person someone who also lacks autonomy in basic daily activities. Paragraph 6 allows successive, combined participation by several people, including home support, for a minimum of six hours daily.
In the preparation exercise, Tiago separates who provides support, the tasks covered and the times involved. A schedule listing several people does not itself establish that the conditions are met. It provides a consistent account for the case without the intermediary selecting carers or certifying their suitability.
The amount and any suspension have their own rules
When checking the amount, article 54 must be read alongside Constitutional Court Judgment 380/2024. With generally binding force, it declared the provision unconstitutional insofar as it permits a maximum below the guaranteed minimum monthly wage. The figure of 1.1 IAS should not be presented as a standalone ceiling ignoring that decision; the judgment does not determine an individual benefit here.
Article 55 provides for suspension where hospital or similar institutional admission exceeds 30 days, during the time costs are borne by the responsible entity. Ask any communication to identify the rule and circumstances concerned rather than calculating effects from the total days alone.
For an existing accident, use Support and claims and the case's private channel. For future employee protection, select Work accidents in RMACHADO's 'Request a quote'. Clara helps organise the question without deciding dependency, an amount or payment.
Sources: DR — consolidated Law 98/2009, complete articles 3 and 53–55; last amendment shown 7 November 2024; read 2 November 2026 ↗ · DR — Constitutional Court Judgment 380/2024, decision III and relevant context; published 4 June 2024, read 2 November 2026 ↗
KEEP THESE QUESTIONS
Your checklist for the next conversation
- Identify the pension supplement and regime governing the accident.
- Describe basic daily needs and assistance actually provided.
- Record helpers and schedules without assuming family relationship satisfies every condition.
- Ask for the grounds of the amount and any suspension, using appropriate case support.
FROM THE ARTICLE TO YOUR SITUATION
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Sources and transparency
Content updated on .
Consultation dates are stated in individual references when available.
Numerical examples are fictional and explain concepts. Editorial interpretations are identified in the text.
- DR — consolidated Law 98/2009, complete articles 3 and 53–55; last amendment shown 7 November 2024; read 2 November 2026 ↗
- DR — Constitutional Court Judgment 380/2024, decision III and relevant context; published 4 June 2024, read 2 November 2026 ↗
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