On February 1st 2026, the Portuguese Government announced a package of measures to address the damage caused by the Kristin depression, approving the creation of a Mission Structure for the Reconstruction of the Central Region of the Country, under the coordination of engineer Paulo Fernandes.
- Simplified Lay-Off Regime – reduction or suspension of activity in a situation of business crisis, upon request by the employer to the Social Security Institute;
- Tax Extensions – postponement of tax compliance deadlines applicable to taxpayers and accountants based in the affected municipalities between 28 January and 31 March. These tax obligations must be fulfilled by April 30th;
- Total or partial exemption from paying social security contributions – the total exemption may be valid for up to 6 months, extendable for an equal period, while the partial exemption (50% of the contribution rate payable by the employer) may last up to 1 year;
- Financial support for habitational housing – €10,000 in support for the costs of works and interventions necessary for the repair, rehabilitation or reconstruction of permanent owner-occupied housing damaged by Storm Kristin;
- Financial support for agriculture and forestry up to €10,000, to restore the productive capacity of agricultural or forestry holdings, under a scheme similar to that applied in the case of forest fires;
- Moratoriums on bank loans relating to habitational housing, businesses and other legal entities in areas affected by the Storm. The moratoriums apply for a period of 90 days, starting on 28 January 2026;
- Cash credit line in a total of € 500 million with a maturity of 5 years and a grace period of 12 months;
- Credit line for recovery and reconstruction investment in the amount of €1 billion, with a maturity of 10 years and a grace period of 36 months;
- Extraordinary transfer of €400 million to Infraestruturas de Portugal allocated to the recovery of roads and railways affected by Storm «Kristin»;
- Extraordinary transfer of €200 million for financial support to local authorities for the restoration of municipal equipment and infrastructure, prioritizing schools;
- Exceptional regime of exemption from prior administrative controls on public and private works for the reconstruction of infrastructure, equipment and buildings affected by the disaster resulting from Storm «Kristin».
- Support for families in need or who have lost income as a result of Storm Kristin;
- Support for private social solidarity institutions and similar organisations to strengthen the social response in areas affected by Storm «Kristin».
- Support in the field of employment and vocational training for dependent and independent workers, to be granted by the Institute for Employment and Vocational Training, I. P. (IEFP).
These measures were approved at the extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers, which decided to extend the state of emergency until 8 February, maintaining in force the exceptional mechanisms designed to prevent, respond to or restore normality in the affected areas.
