Portugal lagging behind in adopting the pan-European personal pension product (PEPP)

Subject: Portugal lagging behind in adopting the pan-European personal pension product (PEPP)

The Regulation establishing the pan-European personal pension product (PEPP)1 was published in July 2019. The Portuguese Government stated2 that the PEPP was available in Portugal in October 2022, more than three years later, under the assumption that it could be purchased by families by the end of that year. However, the relevant bill was put before Parliament more than a year after this announcement3. However, the resignation of the government meant that this bill lapsed.

Portuguese citizens still do not have access to this important savings product owing to the national government‘s inaction and the passivity of the parliamentary majority that supported it for four and a half years. Portugal remains the Member State with the lowest level of savings (7.07%) in the euro area, 50% below the area average4.

In light of the above:

1. What view does the Commission take of the varying levels of household savings rates in the euro area and, in particular, the situation in Portugal?

2. What is its view of the Portuguese authorities' delay in adopting the PEPP?

Submitted:15.2.2024

1 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/PT/TXT/?qid=1707498143764&uri=CELEX%3A32019R1238

2 https://eco.sapo.pt/2022/10/04/governo-quer-disponibilizar-ppr-europeu-as-familias-ainda-este-ano/

3 https://www.parlamento.pt/ActividadeParlamentar/Paginas/DetalheIniciativa.aspx?BID=263417

4 https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/teina500/default/table?lang=en

Answer given by Ms McGuinness on behalf of the European Commission (7 May 2024)

As pointed out in the recent Alert Mechanism Report (5), the household savings rate in Portugal is modest in comparison with other Member States.

In the context of the Capital Markets Union and the retail investment strateg y (6), the Commission is actively working on enhancing financial literacy and improving the conditions for people to save and invest more, and to do it in a better, safer, and less costly way, so that they can achieve their financial goals, including preparing for retirement.

The introduction of Pan European Personal Pension products (PEPPs) (7) is part of that endeavour. The regulation, directly applicable in the Member States since March 2022, requires national implementing measures for the supervision, sanctioning and licensing of providers.

The Commission is taking all necessary steps to ensure that Member States adopt those national implementing measures as soon as possible.

1 ∙ ⸱ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/PT/TXT/?qid=1707498143764&uri=CELEX%3A32019R1238

2 ∙ ⸱ https://eco.sapo.pt/2022/10/04/governo-quer-disponibilizar-ppr-europeu-as-familias-ainda-este-ano/

3 ∙ ⸱ https://www.parlamento.pt/ActividadeParlamentar/Paginas/DetalheIniciativa.aspx?BID=263417

4 ∙ ⸱ https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/teina500/default/table?lang=en

5 ∙ ⸱ https://commission.europa.eu/publications/2024-european-semester-alert-mechanism-report_en

6 ∙ ⸱ https://finance.ec.europa.eu/publications/retail-investment-strategy_en

7 ∙ ⸱ Regulation (EU) 2019/1238 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on a pan-European Personal Pension Product (PEPP) (OJ L 198,

25.7.2019, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/1238/oj).