Excavator operator licence in Portugal: what training is required, how to get it, cost and duration (2026)

In short: Portugal has no official "excavator licence" or state-issued operator card. The law requires anyone driving an excavator, backhoe loader or wheel loader to be "properly qualified" (Decree-Law 50/2005, article 32), which is proven with a training certificate from a certified training provider, plus training on the specific machine. A short excavator operator course usually costs €100 to €200 and takes 8 to 16 hours; a more practical single-machine course about €300 and 25 hours. Free training exists (25 to 50-hour units of the national catalogue, at IEFP, CICCOPN and CENFIC). A driving licence only matters when the machine drives on public roads, and since most backhoe loaders weigh over 3,500 kg, they need category C.

Is there an official excavator licence?

No. The Portuguese state does not issue any licence to operate earthmoving machines. What the law says:

• Self-propelled work equipment may only be driven by properly qualified workers (Decree-Law 50/2005, article 32). Crawler and wheeled excavators, mini excavators, backhoe loaders, wheel loaders, dumpers, rollers and bulldozers are all self-propelled work equipment.
• Equipment with specific risks may only be used by an operator "specifically qualified for the purpose" (same law, article 5).
• The employer must provide information and training suited to the job and to high-risk activities (Law 102/2009, articles 15 and 20), at no cost to the worker.

The law does not set a number of training hours or create an official card. In practice, the accepted proof is a vocational training certificate from a provider certified by DGERT (recorded in SIGO and the Passaporte Qualifica), plus training on the machine the worker will actually use.

A national qualification, "Earthmoving equipment driver/operator" (level 2), exists in the National Qualifications Catalogue, but it is flagged as a non-regulated profession: you do not need the full qualification to work. The old certification for driver-operators (Ordinance 58/2005) was voluntary and is no longer in force.

Which training for which machine

Short courses usually cover several machines at once ("earthmoving machine operator"), but the practical part is on one or two. Pick a course whose hands-on part is on the machine you will drive.

Common to all machines are units 3915 (commissioning and driving on site and on the road, 25 h), 3916 (manoeuvring and parking, 25 h), 3917 (checks and testing, 25 h) and 3918 (maintenance, 50 h).

How much it costs and how long it takes

Most paid courses have a theory part, often online, and a practical part on a site or machine yard, over one or two Saturdays. Examples of courses with a published price:

Free courses

• Certified Modular Training (IEFP and training centres): the units in the table above, 25 to 50 hours each, are free for employed or unemployed adults when funded. They run on fixed dates, often in the evening.
• CICCOPN (the construction training centre, Maia and Prior Velho): 25 to 100-hour evening courses, such as "Backhoe loader: loading and digging" (25 h) or "Backhoe loader driver/operator" (100 h), and the full driver-operator course.
• CENFIC (Prior Velho): units such as "Excavator: excavation and earthmoving" (50 h).
• The full level 2 qualification has 950 hours of technical training (23 units), plus up to 120 hours of on-the-job training. It is the route for a career in the trade, not for someone who needs a certificate next week.

Online-only courses

There are 16-hour online courses for €75 to €150. They cover the theory (safety rules, stability, signalling), but without hours on the machine they hardly prove that someone can operate an excavator. The employer is still required to provide the practical part.

How to get the "licence", step by step

1. Choose the machine: excavator, mini excavator, backhoe loader or wheel loader. A forklift course does not cover an excavator, and vice versa.
2. Check that the provider is DGERT-certified and that the certificate is issued through SIGO. Ask for the programme and the practical hours per trainee: in a large group, 8 hours of practice can mean 2 hours on the machine each.
3. Do the theory (in person or online) and the practical part with a trainer, on a site or machine yard.
4. Pass the theory and practical assessment.
5. Receive the certificate and, with many providers, an "operator card".
6. At work: the employer should complete the training on the specific machine (manufacturer's manual, controls, load chart, safety devices) and the site rules, and keep a record.

The "operator card" is not a licence

Many providers hand out, besides the certificate, a plastic card with a photo and the machines the person was trained on. It is handy to show on site, but it is a training provider's document, not a state one. Portugal has no national operator card for construction machines, unlike the IPAF card for aerial platforms or the French CACES. Large contractors and clients may require specific training in the tender or site safety plan: ask before you start.

On public roads: driving licence, registration and insurance

On a closed site, training is enough. An excavator, backhoe loader or wheel loader driving on the road is an "industrial machine" (Highway Code, article 109), light or heavy depending on whether its gross weight exceeds 3,500 kg, and the driver needs the right licence category (Driving Licence Regulation, article 3):

• Registration: excavators, backhoe loaders and wheel loaders that drive on public roads must be registered (Decree-Law 107/2006). Driving an unregistered machine is fined €600 to €3,000 (Highway Code, article 117).
• Roadworthiness test (IPO): industrial machines are not on the list of vehicles subject to the periodic roadworthiness test. Do not confuse this with the periodic checks that Decree-Law 50/2005 requires for the machine as work equipment, which are mandatory (see the mandatory inspections guide).
• Insurance: a backhoe loader or wheeled excavator that drives on the road needs motor insurance. The law waives it when the machine is used purely for industrial work, and very slow tracked machines fall outside compulsory motor insurance, but they still need liability insurance. See the machinery and construction equipment insurance guide.

Towing a mini excavator on a trailer

With a category B licence you can tow a trailer up to 750 kg, or a heavier one if the car + trailer combination does not exceed 3,500 kg (maximum authorised mass). A 1.5 t mini excavator on a trailer easily goes over that limit. Category BE allows trailers up to 3,500 kg. There is also a specific practical test that lets B holders drive combinations up to 4,250 kg (Driving Licence Regulation, articles 3 and 21).

Lifting loads with an excavator

Using an excavator as a crane (pipes, manholes, concrete rings) is common, but it is only allowed if the machine is equipped for it: equipment may only be used for operations it is suited to (Decree-Law 50/2005, article 31). Under European standard EN 474-5, an excavator used for lifting should have:

• safety (check) valves on the boom and arm cylinders, which hold the load if a hose bursts;
• an audible or visual overload warning, required from 1,000 kg of lifting capacity, switched on whenever a load is lifted;
• the machine's load chart in the cab, and a proper lifting point (hook or eye), not the bucket teeth.

In operation, the lifting rules apply: the machine stable on the ground, nobody under the load, the lift planned and, when the operator cannot see the whole path of the load, a signaller (Decree-Law 50/2005, articles 33 to 35). Ask for this to be part of the course if you will be lifting.

Trenches, cables and power lines: where the accidents are

Excavations, the risk of burial and work near power lines are "special risks" under the construction site law (Decree-Law 273/2003, article 7). In practice:

• Trenches: excavation walls must be shored or sloped, except in rock or hard clay (Construction Safety Regulation, Decree 41821/1958). The machine and the spoil should be kept back from the edge. In an ACT (labour inspectorate) sheet on a fatal trench collapse, the excavator was less than 1 m from the edge, and one of the causes listed was the operator's lack of safety training, despite "long experience".
• Buried cables: before digging, ask E-REDES and the gas and water operators for network maps. According to E-REDES, work within 1.5 m of a cable must be supervised by a qualified person, and next to the cable only hand tools may be used.
• Overhead lines: E-REDES recommends keeping every part of the machine and load at least 3 m from lines up to 60 kV and 5 m above 60 kV.
• People on foot: nobody should be in the machine's working area without need, and people may only be carried in the seats provided (Decree-Law 50/2005, article 32). The bucket is not a lift.

Validity and refresher training

• The law sets no expiry date for the training. But the employer must retrain workers when they change job or start using new or modified equipment (Law 102/2009, article 19).
• Every worker is entitled to 40 hours of training a year (Labour Code, article 131), which can include refreshers.
• Many companies and clients require a refresher every 3 to 5 years, as an internal or contractual rule.

What the employer risks

Letting someone without training drive an excavator is a serious offence (Decree-Law 50/2005, article 43); failing the duty to inform is very serious. Fines depend on the company's turnover and on whether there was negligence or intent (Labour Code, article 554; 1 UC = €102):

Going to work in Spain or France?

• Spain: no state licence either; the law requires specific training (Royal Decree 1215/1997). On construction sites, the industry collective agreement sets a 20-hour course (14 common + 6 specific) for earthmoving machine operators, recorded on the Tarjeta Profesional de la Construcción.
• France: the employer must issue an "autorisation de conduite", usually based on the CACES R482 (category A for compact machines, B1 for excavators, C1 for loaders), valid for 10 years.

Common myths

• "IMT issues an operator licence." It does not. IMT handles driving licences, which only matter on public roads.
• "The operator card is a licence." It is a training provider's document; what counts is the training certificate and the training on the machine.
• "With a car licence I can drive a backhoe loader on the road." Only if it weighs up to 3,500 kg; most weigh 7 to 9 t and need a category C licence.
• "Experienced operators don't need training." Experience does not replace proof of training, and ACT lists the lack of it in serious accidents.
• "A forklift course covers everything." Each type of machine has its own training; see the forklift and aerial platform licence guide.

Where Trapézio de Prismas comes in

We are JLG and Power Curbers representatives in Portugal and carry out the periodic checks that Decree-Law 50/2005 requires for work equipment, with a written report. A machine used outside the company, for example rented or moved to another site, must carry a copy of its last check report (article 7). We do not run excavator operator courses, but we can check your machines before they go on site.