In a statement, the police force guarantees that “its mission, among others, is to protect, rescue and assist citizens and defend and preserve their property whenever they find themselves in dangerous situations”, noting that “tourists belong to groups of people who, due to language barriers and/or ignorance of the Portuguese legal system, may encounter difficult situations”.

The National Directorate of the PSP recalls that Portugal was voted “Europe’s Leading Tourist Destination” in 2023 at the 30th World Travel Awards ceremony, winning 17 European awards in various categories, with the city of Porto considered the “Europe’s Leading City Break Destination”, the Algarve, winner of “Europe’s Leading Beach Destination”, Lisbon as “Europe’s Leading City Destination” and Madeira as “Europe’s Leading Island Destination”.

According to provisional data from the official website of Turismo de Portugal, the PSP reports that the tourism sector is the country’s largest economic export activity, accounting for 48.1% of service exports and 20.8% of total exports in 2024, with tourism revenues contributing 9.7% to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

In this regard, the PSP, within the scope of its criminal prevention and community policing duties, has launched Operation Come On throughout the country, which will run until 18 July, through visibility, awareness, prevention and surveillance actions in areas with the highest flow and concentration of tourists, as well as in areas best known for hosting events, “contributing to an increase in subjective and objective indices of security and trust in the police”.

In the context of international cooperation and through strategic partnerships, Portugal has established protocols with Spain, France and Italy to allow members of the Policía Nacional (Spain), the Police Nationale (France) and the Polizia di Stato (Italy) to travel to Portugal to take part in joint policing actions.

In order to prevent and protect against possible criminal offences (theft, robbery, fraud, etc.), the PSP advises carrying your wallet, money and cards in the inside pockets of your clothing and never putting anything in your outside pockets, not to carry large amounts of cash or valuable items, to keep bags and backpacks closed at all times and preferably in front of the body, and to always report any theft, robbery or fraud (even if only attempted) to the police.

It also advises tourists to take note of any suspicious people or vehicles they see and pass this information on to the PSP (Public Security Police) and, if in doubt, to alert the nearest PSP police station for clarification.

The PSP also advises all tourists travelling with children to join the Estou Aqui! Crianças (I am Here! Children) programme, given the likelihood of children momentarily going missing, whether on beaches or in any other crowded places.

For clarification of questions related to bracelet requests, please consult the programme’s official website at https://estouaqui.mai.gov.pt/Pages/Home.htm.

To better assist tourists visiting Portugal, the PSP has tourist police stations in Lisbon, Porto and Cascais, where reports can be made or any requests for help and clarification can be provided.