The

Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics or NUTS () is a geocode standard for referencing the administrative divisions of countries for statistical purposes. The standard, adopted in 2003, is developed and regulated by the European ...

(NUTS) is developed by

Eurostat Eurostat ("European Statistical Office"; also DG ESTAT) is a department of the European Commission ( Directorate-General), located in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statist ...

, and employed in both

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and the entire

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

for statistical purposes. The NUTS branch extends from NUTS1, NUTS2 and NUTS3 regions, with the complementary LAU (''Local Administrative Units'') sub-categorization being used to differentiate the local areas, of trans-national importance. Developed by Eurostat and implemented in 1998, the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) regions, which comprises three levels of the Portuguese territory, are instrumental in

's Structural Fund delivery mechanisms. The standard was developed by the

and extensively used by national governments, Eurostat and other EU bodies for statistical and policy matters. Until 4 November 2002, the ''Sistema Estatístico Nacional'' (SEN) used a NUTS codification system that was distinct from the Eurostat system. With the enactment of Decree Law 244/2002 (5 November 2002), published in the Diário da República, this system was abandoned in order to harmonize the national system with that of Eurostat.

Subdivisions

The NUTS system subdivides the nation into three levels: NUTS I, NUTS II and NUTS III. In some European partners, as is the case with Portugal, a complementary hierarchy, respectively LAU I and LAU II (posteriorly referred to as NUTS IV and NUTS V) is employed. The LAU, or ''Local Administrative Units'', in the Portuguese context pertains to the 308 municipalities (LAU I) and 3092 civil parishes (LAU II) respectively. In the broadest sense, the NUTS hierarchy, while they may follow some of the borders (municipal or parish) diverge in their delineation.

Changes NUTS 2-3 (1986—2024)

NUTS PT 1986.png, 1986 NUTS PT 1989.png, 1989 NUTS PT 1999.png, 1999 NUTS PT 2002.png, 2002 NUTS PT 2010.png, 2010 NUTS PT 2013.png, 2013 NUTS PT 2024.png, 2024

NUTS I

The first and broadest subdivision of Portugal is between ''

continental Portugal Continental Portugal (, ) or mainland Portugal comprises the bulk of the Portuguese Republic, namely that part on the Iberian Peninsula and so in continental Europe, having approximately 95% of the total population and 96.6% of the country's l ...

'' and the two

autonomous regions An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, zone, entity, unit, region, subdivision, province, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or internal territory of a sovereign state that has a degree o ...

of the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

and

Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...

NUTS II

Although the districts are still the most socially relevant subdivision, their function is being phased in favour of locally oriented regional units, and regions are growing in importance. Since the creation of

Oeste e Vale do Tejo Oeste e Vale do Tejo (in English: West and Tagus Valley) is a subdivision of Portugal as defined by the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS). It is one of the nine classified NUTS-2 statistical regions of Portugal. It is locat ...

in 2024, Portugal is divided into seven regions, in

, plus the two autonomous regions that are their own NUTS II regions.

NUTS III

The nine regions of Portugal are likewise subdivided into 25 subregions () that, from 2015, represent the 2

metropolitan areas A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metropolitan area usually ...

, the 21 intermunicipal communities and the 2

. Therefore, since the 2013 revision (enforced in 2015), the Portuguese subregions have a statutory and administrative relevance.2013 Apresentação INE NUTS
The two autonomous regions () in the Atlantic, correspond to their own NUTS I, II and III categories.

NUTS Codes

The regions, subregions and their NUTS codes are:

LAUs

Municipalities and civil parishes were at NUTS IV and V levels, but these nomenclature units have been abolished and substituted by

LAUs Laus may refer to: Places * Laüs, an ancient city on the west coast of Lucania * Laus River, a river of southern Italy * Lag da Laus * Saint-Étienne-le-Laus, an administrative division in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France * No ...

: the municipality is classified as LAU 1, while the civil parish is LAU level 2. Below the NUTS levels, the two LAU (Local Administrative Unit) levels are: The LAU codes of Portugal can be downloaded at:

References

Sources

Hierarchical list of the Nomenclature of territorial units for statistics - NUTS and the Statistical regions of Europe

Overview map of EU Countries - NUTS level 1
*
PORTUGAL - NUTS level 2
*
PORTUGAL - NUTS level 3

* ttp://simap.europa.eu/codes-and-nomenclatures/codes-nuts/codes-nuts-table_en.htm List of current NUTS codes*
Download current NUTS codes (ODS format)

Statoids.com

Statoids.com
Regiões de Portugal
LOCAL.PT {{NUTS

Nuts Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed * Nut (food), a dry and edible fruit or seed, including but not limited to true nuts * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut, NUT or Nuts may also refer to: A ...