Portugal public sector workforce statistics

In mid‑2026 the Portuguese government continued to issue detailed public‑sector staffing data. A June report from the Directorate‑General for Administration and Public Employment recorded a modest 1.3% rise in senior managers to 16,115 by the end of 2025, with growth concentrated in regional and local bodies, modest salary adjustments and a slowdown in retirements.

Later in July, the Institute of National Statistics released a more granular picture of the 2024 medical workforce. The system comprised 46,131 active doctors, of whom 65% were women and 32.9% were under 35, while 7.3% were over 65. Specialists made up 86.8% of physicians, placing Portugal third in the EU after Greece and Bulgaria, with pediatrics accounting for 9% of specialist posts. Dental physicians rose to 12,796, a three‑fold increase since 2002, giving a dentist‑to‑population ratio of 1.12 per 1,000, highest in the Porto metropolitan area and Viseu Dão Lafões. The foreign medical staff share reached 9.5% in 2025, dominated by Brazilians (53.6%), followed by Italians (17.5%) and Spaniards (6%).

The INE also reported 87,843 active nurses, more than double the 2002 figure, with a national density of 7.7 per 1,000 and a peak of 14.4 in the most served region.

Together, these releases illustrate ongoing monitoring of Portugal’s public employment, showing modest senior‑management growth and a younger, increasingly female health workforce that is becoming more specialized, internationally diverse, and supported by a rapidly expanding nursing cadre.