Viana do Castelo council fined for undisclosed tax benefits to firms

A 67‑page audit by Portugal's Tribunal de Contas found that the Câmara Municipal de Viana do Castelo granted €4.5 million in tax benefits between 2017 and 2022 without objective criteria, describing the allocations as “strongly discretionary.” The benefits included exemptions from IMT (€1.5 million), urban planning fees (€0.9 million) and land‑price reductions (€2.1 million), of which €2.3 million went to just three multinational companies.

The audit concluded that the municipality failed to verify legal requirements before granting the benefits and did not conduct cost‑benefit analyses for the investment contracts. The court issued 14 recommendations, set a fine of €17,164, and ordered the council to report the measures taken within 180 days. The council president said the recommendations are already being implemented.