The Tax and Customs Authority (AT) has been conducting the "Mar à Vista" tax enforcement and awareness operation on Portuguese beaches since 29 July, which will continue throughout September. The Algarve is among the regions covered, in an effort that involves 63 AT inspectors and 58 Maritime Police officers.
The inspection teams have visited beaches in the districts of Aveiro, Beja, Coimbra, Faro, Leiria, Lisbon, Porto, Setúbal and Viana do Castelo. So far, several violations have been identified, mainly related to failure to issue invoices and the use of invoicing programs that do not comply with legal requirements.
The operation aims to promote voluntary compliance with tax obligations through direct contact with the economic operators responsible for bathing concessions. The Ministry of Finance states that the action seeks to contribute to strengthening tax fairness and fair competition conditions among economic agents.
The operation began at a time of transition in AT's leadership. Mário Campos took office as Director-General of the Tax Authority on 1 August, succeeding Helena Borges after a decade as Deputy Director-General for information systems.
