Portugal–Spain border

The Portugal–Spain border, also referred to as "The Stripe" (Spanish: La Raya, Portuguese: A Raia, Galician: A Raia, Mirandese: La Raia), is one of the oldest borders in the world. The current demarcation is almost identical to that defined in 1297 by the Treaty of Alcañices. The Portugal–Spain border is 1,214 km (754 mi) long, and is the longest uninterrupted border within the European Union, being free of border control since March 26, 1995 (the effective date of the Schengen Agreement), with the exception of a brief period during the COVID-19 pandemic. The border is not defined for 18 km (11 mi) between the Caia river and Ribeira de Cuncos, because of the disputed status of Olivenza/Olivença, which has been disputed between the two countries for two hundred years.

Portugal–Spain border
Guadiana International Bridge, connecting Portugal and Spain
Characteristics
Entities Portugal  Spain
Length1214 km (de facto)
History
Established1143
The victory of king Afonso I of Portugal over his cousin king Alfonso VII of León at the Battle of Valdevez, forced the Kingdom of León to recognise Portugal as a country, thus establishing the northern borders of Portugal.
Treaties

A microstate existed previously on the border called Couto Misto.

Bordering districts and provinces
Sign when entering Portugal from Spain.
Sign when entering Spain from Portugal.

Districts on the Portuguese side of the border from North to South:

Provinces on the Spanish side of the border from North to South:

Customs and identity checks

Portugal and Spain signed the Schengen Agreement in June 1991. This came into effect on 26 March 1995, making Portugal and Spain part of the Schengen area, and thus their boundary became an open border.[1]

Portugal has since reintroduced border checks several times along the border with Spain: during the UEFA Euro 2004 championships, during the NATO 2010 Lisbon summit, and during Pope Francis's visit to Fátima in May 2017.[2]

On 16 March 2020, Portugal and Spain reintroduced border checks due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with most people unable to cross; cross-border workers and goods were allowed to pass.[3] The checks were planned until 15 May 2020.[4] They were initially extended until 15 June 2020 [5] and eventually until 1 July 2020.[6]

On 29 January 2021, Portugal closed the border with Spain due to the COVID-19 pandemic; only people with exceptional reasons (force majeure) were able to cross. The planned closure was expected to last for fourteen days, but this was extended to 1 March.[7][8] The closure was further lengthened to 16 March 2021, then again to 5 April 2021.[9][10] It was extended again to 15 April 2021[11] and then to 3 May 2021. This was eventually shortened to 1 May 2021.[12][13]

Border crossing checkpoints

Maritime borders

Portugal's maritime borders, also known as the Exclusive economic zone of Portugal is currently disputed by Spain in the Savage Islands area, between Madeira and the Canary Islands.

Important treaties

Border crossings
Vilar Formoso - Fuentes de Oñoro border crossing

The busiest crossing point between Portugal and Spain is Tui-Valença, with the main international bridge concentrating half of the total international road traffic between both countries.[14][15] Other important crossings are Vilar Formoso - Fuentes de Oñoro, Caminha and Bragança to Galicia, Portalegre and Elvas to Badajoz, and Castro Marim and Vila Real de Santo António to Ayamonte.

Bridges across the border include the Guadiana International Bridge and the Lower Guadiana International bridge.

An international bridge connects the Portuguese village of Várzea Grande (Arronches municipality) with the Spanish village of El Marco (La Codosera municipality). It is a wooden bridge only 3.2 meters long.[16]

A zipline across the border exists between Sanlucar de Guadiana in Spain and Alcoutim in Portugal; it is the first and currently only zip line over an international border.[17][18]

References
  1. "The Schengen area - PDF by EU" (PDF). Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  2. "Portugal declares Papal holiday". Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  3. "Coronavirus: What you need to know about Spain closing its borders". Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  4. "Border with Spain to remain closed". Retrieved 18 April 2020.
  5. "Land borders with Spain to remain closed until June 15". Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  6. "Spain to open borders to EU, but Portugal remains off limits". Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  7. "Portugal closes land border with Spain as virus cases soar". 28 January 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  8. "Spain-Portugal border closure extended until March 1st". 9 February 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  9. "Border with Spain closed until 16 March". Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  10. "Land and river border control will continue until April 5th". Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  11. "Portugal extends restrictions on Spanish border until April 15". Reuters. 4 April 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  12. "Flight rules remain and land border with Spain remains closed". Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  13. "Land borders with Spain reopen tomorrow". Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  14. El cierre de la frontera del Miño entre Galicia y Portugal cuesta 300 euros al mes a cada trabajador. El Español.
  15. A fronteira máis transitada reabre afastada dos focos e das prioridades de Madrid e Lisboa. praza.gal
  16. "The World's Shortest International Bridge". Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  17. "Spain becomes home to world's first-ever 'time-travelling' zipline". Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  18. "Travel From Spain To Portugal In Less Than A Minute With This Zany Zip-Line". Retrieved 2020-03-29.
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