Family mediation for families in Portugal

For families between Portugal and England or Wales, including questions about a property and about children moving between two countries.

Contents 9 sections

For many families in Portugal the hardest decision is about a single property, because it represents most of what there is.

Portugal has drawn a growing British population, some working, many retired, and separations there frequently centre on a property that represents most of what a couple owns – which makes the decision about it harder, not easier.

Where children are involved, the distance is short enough for regular contact, and Portuguese schools and the English school year can usually be worked around with a plan that is specific about dates rather than vague about "sharing the holidays".

Situations we are asked about

A jointly owned Portuguese property, and no agreement about selling or staying.
Retirement income and pensions split between two countries.
Children moving between Portugal and England in the holidays.
An English divorce where the assets are largely Portuguese.

Money and property in two countries

Portuguese property and pensions can be discussed in mediation. Ownership, tax and inheritance rules differ from the English ones, and any agreement about a Portuguese asset should be checked with a Portuguese lawyer before it is relied on.

If a child is taken or kept without agreement

Portugal ratified the 1980 Child Abduction Convention in 1983 and the 1996 Child Protection Convention in 2011, and both are in force between Portugal and the United Kingdom.

This is a summary, not advice, and the exceptions and detail matter enormously. Our guide to the Hague Conventions explains how they work. If a child has already been taken or is not being returned, take specialist legal advice immediately – mediation must never delay that.

School years and holidays

Portuguese schools break from late June to mid-September, a summer of around eleven weeks, with shorter breaks at Christmas and Easter. As in Spain, the long summer is where most shared time is arranged, and English half terms fall in Portuguese term time.

Travel, distance and contact

Two to three hours' flying to Lisbon or Faro, and no time difference for most of the year – Portugal keeps the same clock as the UK. That absence of a time difference makes everyday video contact far easier than it is with most countries on this list.

Language and timing

Mediation is held in English. Interpreters are arranged for Portuguese where they are needed. Much of this site can also be read and listened to in six other languages.

Portugal is currently the same time as the UK, so sessions are arranged for a time that works in both places. Appointment times are agreed with each of you beforehand.

How this would work

Everything is held online. Each of you meets the mediator separately first – that is the MIAM, and it is where suitability is assessed, including whether an English mediator is right for your situation at all. After that, joint sessions are arranged at a time that works in both countries, or as shuttle sessions where being in the same call is not right.

A MIAM matters only if a case in England and Wales is possible; a MIAM certificate carries no weight before a foreign court. Mediation cannot decide which country has authority, cannot give legal advice, and what you agree is not enforceable until a lawyer makes it so – so independent advice, usually in both countries, runs alongside.

Where there has been abuse or controlling behaviour, mediation may not be suitable at all: see domestic abuse and mediation.

Fees: a MIAM is £125 per person and joint sessions £180 per person – full fees. The Government voucher and Legal Aid have eligibility rules most families living abroad will not meet; it is checked individually, never assumed.

Not sure an English mediator is the right choice? That is what the free chat is for. If a mediator in your own country would serve you better, we will say so.

Questions we are asked

We are both retired in Portugal. Can you help?

Where the decisions connect to England and Wales – an English divorce, pensions or property here – yes. If everything is Portuguese, a mediator in Portugal is likely to be the better route, and we will tell you so.

Can we agree what happens to the house in mediation?

You can discuss it and reach a proposal. Making that binding, in a way Portuguese law recognises, is a separate legal step.

Sources

Treaty status and official guidance checked on 27 September 2026.

This page is general information about family mediation. It is not legal advice about your own situation. Whether a court in England and Wales can deal with your case is a legal question, and it needs advice here and in Portugal.

Written by an FMC-accredited family mediator Last reviewed September 2026