Directive 2021/2167 aims to foster the development of a well-functioning secondary market for non-performing loans by establishing rules for the authorisation and supervision of buyers and managers of loans.

According to the EU executive, Portugal is one of seven Member States – alongside Austria, Bulgaria, Spain, Finland, Hungary and the Netherlands, also cited to the EU court – that have not notified Brussels of national measures to implement the directive on non-performing loans (NPL), which occurs when a bank customer stops paying the instalments of a loan.

The directive also provides for a set of harmonised criteria that allow loan servicers to market non-performing loans on a cross-border basis.

The deadline for transposing European rules into national legislation ended on 29 December 2023.