News
Lisbon New Airport: work on the PSNAL begins and 11 municipalities enter the planning area
The order determining the preparation of the Lisbon New Airport Sectoral Programme (PSNAL) was published on 11 August 2026. The new instrument will set the territorial framework for the siting and operation of the future Luís de Camões Airport at the Alcochete firing range, together with its airport city and the associated infrastructure, facilities and uses.
The coverage set out in the order takes in 11 municipalities, from Vila Franca de Xira to Vendas Novas.
One distinction matters more than any other here. The PSNAL is only now being prepared and does not, at this stage, create new planning rules or prohibitions. The restrictions that currently apply come from the preventive measures established by Council of Ministers Resolution no. 30/2026, of 20 February.
What the new order sets out
Despacho no. 10018/2026, published in Diário da República no. 154/2026, 2nd series, Part C, opens the procedure for preparing the PSNAL.
Preparation of the programme follows the legal regime for territorial management instruments, established by Decree-Law no. 80/2015 (RJIGT), and is assigned to EGAPA, working with the Directorate-General for Territory.
Monitoring of the procedure involves the municipalities covered and several bodies with responsibilities in the fields of territory, environment, aviation and infrastructure, including the DGT, the Alentejo and Lisbon and Tagus Valley regional commissions, the environment agency APA, the civil aviation authority ANAC, NAV Portugal, ANA and the National Association of Municipalities.
The PSNAL is subject to environmental assessment, and the proposal will go to public discussion for 20 days. Preparation is due within 12 months of the award of the Environmental Assessment Study, extendable under the RJIGT.
Watch the calendar. That period does not start with publication of the order. It runs from the award of the environmental study, and that date is not fixed in the order itself.
The 11 municipalities covered
The coverage area set out in Annex I of the order includes:
Administrative boundaries: CAOP. The PSNAL boundary is indicative, on the terms of the order.
Greater Lisbon
Lezíria do Tejo
Setúbal Peninsula
Central Alentejo
also under preventive measuresPSNAL area only
The boundary is indicative and may be adjusted while the programme is being prepared, on the terms set out in the order. The area actually subject to the preventive measures has to be checked at plot level.
PSNAL and preventive measures: two different instruments
Right now this is the distinction that matters most to owners, investors and developers.
PSNAL
Instrument under preparation
- Procedure orderedorder published on 11.08.2026, in force on 12.08.2026
- 11 municipalitiesindicative area, from Vila Franca de Xira to Vendas Novas
- Future frameworkwill set the territorial framework for the airport and associated areas
- No new prohibitions at this stagedoes not, on its own, establish new planning prohibitions
Preventive measures
Regime already applicable
- In force since 21.02.2026for two years, extendable under the RJIGT
- 7 municipalities covereda narrower area than the PSNAL
- Restrict operationssubdivision, urbanisation, construction, extension, alteration and reconstruction
- Prohibition or binding opinionprohibition in identified zones and a binding ANAC opinion across the remaining covered areas
What is already in force on the ground
The preventive measures of RCM no. 30/2026 exist to prevent changes to current conditions that could compromise the new airport and its associated infrastructure, or make them more costly to deliver.
The regime covers an area spanning seven municipalities: Alcochete, Benavente, Coruche, Montemor-o-Novo, Montijo, Palmela and Vendas Novas. The restrictions vary by zone.
Three levels of restriction
The regime provides specific exemptions, notably for operations promoted by public bodies and by the entities directly involved in the airport project. The resolution further establishes that an administrative act issued without the binding opinion required is void under article 143 of the RJIGT.
What if you already have a planning file under way?
This is one of the most relevant points for anyone who has already bought land or opened a planning file.
As a rule, the preventive measures do not cover urbanistic operations validly authorised before they came into force, nor cases where a favourable prior information decision or a valid approval of the architecture project already exists, on the terms set out in the RJIGT.
There is, however, an important exception. That protection does not apply where the operation could seriously and irreversibly harm the construction or operation of the airport.
A favourable prior information decision, a permit or an approved architecture project can therefore be decisive when assessing a property, but the specific situation and the validity of the existing acts have to be checked. An intention to build and an established planning right are not legally equivalent.
Palmela: three layers of planning
Palmela deserves particular attention right now.
- 02.2026Preventive measuresin force since 21 February
- 08.2026PSNALpreparation procedure opened
- 11.08.2026New Palmela master planin force
Different instruments and territorial regimes can therefore sit on top of one another on a single plot, with distinct effects.
Where different regimes cover the same area, how they apply depends on the nature and object of each instrument. In some situations they apply cumulatively; where they share the same object and nature, the most restrictive one prevails. Assessing a plot therefore cannot rest on a single document.
What this means for owners and investors
For anyone holding or assessing land in the new airport area, the essential point is simple: the exact location of the plot and its specific planning position matter more now than ever.
Before buying land, signing a contract or moving ahead with a project, check:
- whether the plot falls within the preventive measures;
- which zone it sits in;
- which urbanistic operations are permitted;
- whether a binding opinion from ANAC is required;
- whether there are favourable prior information decisions, permits or valid architecture project approvals predating 21 February 2026;
- how the various territorial management instruments apply cumulatively to the plot.
In short: the PSNAL is only now being prepared, but it is February's preventive measures that currently restrict urbanistic operations across the covered area.
Do you have land or a project in the new airport area?
Before buying, licensing or proceeding with an urbanistic operation, confirm the territorial regime applying to the plot and any ANAC requirements.
CertiAmb can review the territorial framework of the property and the constraints applying to your project. geral@certiamb.com · +351 910 441 470
Official documents
Despacho no. 10018/2026, Diário da República →
Council of Ministers Resolution no. 30/2026, preventive measures →