Number of homicides in Portugal 2010-2023, by type

Despite fluctuations, namely during the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of homicides in Portugal has generally decreased. In 2023, the Portuguese police registered 90 homicides consummated in the country, down from 97 manslaughter cases reported a year earlier. There were 336 involuntary homicides due to traffic accidents in Portugal, and 22 homicides that happened under other circumstances, such as negligence.

Manslaughter cases and incarceration rates are shrinking in Portugal

Portugal had one of lowest homicide rates in Europe as of 2022, at 0.72 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. The county of the nation’s capital, Lisbon, registered 21 voluntary manslaughter cases in 2023, which represented a decrease in comparison to the previous year and to pre-pandemic times. In Portugal, the incarceration rate has also been on a downward trend. In 2022, there were 114 people incarcerated per 100,000 inhabitants. This rate had not been this low since 2010, and it was in 2015 that the incarceration rate peaked at 137.1.

Despite decreasing homicide numbers, domestic violence is increasing in Portugal

Domestic violence, which triggers multiple manslaughter cases in Portugal, has been increasing over recent years. In 2022, there were almost 30,500 recorded incidences of domestic violence, which represents a rise compared to pandemic and pre-pandemic years. This type of crime takes place in the domestic environment and between people with a degree of kinship. In 2022, 37 percent of cases occurred between spouses or partners, while 14 percent of recorded occurrences concerned ex-spouses or ex-partners. In the same year, 24 percent of domestic violence victims were children or stepchildren of the accused, while the parents or stepparents of the alleged criminals were the victims of domestic violence in over seven percent of cases.