According to APAV, 61.8% of victims are adult women between 18 and 64 years old. The group of children and young people up to 17 years old recorded the highest growth in the period analysed.
The Associação Portuguesa de Apoio à Vítima (APAV) helped 50,495 women over the last four years, representing an overall increase of 22.8%, the majority for domestic violence crimes, according to data released today by the organisation.
The data, published on Friday ahead of International Women’s Day on Sunday, show a continuous increase between 2022 and 2025: 11,410 victims in 2022, 12,398 in 2023, 12,681 in 2024 and 14,006 last year — an overall rise of 22.8%.
Over the four-year period, APAV recorded 97,149 crimes and forms of violence committed against women, corresponding to an increase of 21.7%. On average, each woman supported was a victim of two crimes simultaneously, APAV notes.
Domestic violence crimes continue to predominate, accounting for 81.1% of registered cases, followed by offences such as threats or coercion, child sexual abuse, physical assault, defamation or insult, and fraud.
According to APAV, 61.8% of victims are adult women between 18 and 64 years old. Children and young people up to 17 years old represent 15.3% — the group that recorded the most significant growth over the period (+47.2%). Elderly people aged 65 or over account for 10.5% of victims supported.
Regarding nationality, 74% of victims are Portuguese citizens, with 8,587 foreign nationals also supported (17%), a figure that increased 58.6% over the period.
Most of the victims supported resided in the districts of Lisbon, Faro, Porto, Braga and Setúbal, broadly reflecting the country’s population distribution.
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Between 2022 and 2025, 51,769 perpetrators were identified, a 28% increase, with the majority being male (71.2%). In almost half of cases, perpetrators maintained or had maintained an intimate relationship with the victim.
APAV data also indicate that “more than half of women suffered ongoing victimisation, with a significant portion seeking support only after several years of violence.” Among these victims, 54.7% filed a complaint or report with authorities, while 33.9% did not.
