Under it statutes (Decree-Law no. 39/2015https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=1351851 of 16 March), the responsibilities assigned to ANACOM as regards the postal sector are as follows:
- promote competition in the provision of networks and services;
- guarantee access to networks, infrastructure, resources and services;
- ensure the freedom to provide networks and services;
- contribute to the development of the European Union internal market of postal networks and services;
- settle administrative disputes arising between bodies subject to its regulation, including disputes arising between providers of postal services, under the terms of applicable legislation;
- protect the rights and interests of consumers and other end-users;
- ensure access to the universal postal service, in particular by ensuring fulfilment of universal service obligations;
- promote out-of-court settlement of disputes arising between undertakings subject to its regulation and consumers and other end-users, with simple and expeditious procedures, and, as a rule, on a free of charge basis; foster and cooperate with existing out-of-court conflict settlement mechanisms or, on its own initiative or in conjunction with other organisations, set up other mechanisms; ANACOM shall promote participation in said schemes by undertakings subject to its regulation;
- participate actively in the activities and decisions of regulator bodies, specifically the European Regulators Group for Postal Services (ERGP);
- promote technical standardisation, in cooperation with other organisations, in the communications sector and related fields;
- ensure the performance of studies in the area of postal communications.
To carry out its work and fulfil its responsibilities, ANACOM is granted powers of regulation, supervision and oversight, and is also granted sanctioning powers; as such, ANACOM shall:
- impose specific obligations on the providers of the universal postal service;
- issue declarations and titles governing the exercise of the postal activity;
- provide information, guidance and support to consumers and other end-users, cooperating on a mutual basis with Direção-Geral do Consumidor (Directorate General for the Consumer) and other relevant bodies, with a view to protecting consumers and promoting their rights and interests in the postal communications sector;
- implement laws and regulations, as well as European Union acts applicable to the postal communications sector;
- verify compliance with the laws, regulations and other acts to which the persons and undertakings covered by its activity are subject;
- oversee the activity of undertakings subject to its supervision and monitor the functioning of the communications market;
- regularly examine complaint records and complaints made by consumers and other end-users to undertakings covered by its activity, which are required to maintain appropriate complaint records;
- examine the complaints made by consumers and other end-users as come to its attention in the course of its work and, in cases where it finds indications of non-compliance with the legal provisions whose application is overseen by ANACOM, make recommendations or order the adoption of corrective measures;
- enforce compliance by undertakings covered by its activities with the obligations to which they are subject, as a result of the law, regulations, other applicable rules and its own determinations;
- enforce the contracts as concern the universal service or public service obligations, where applicable;
- take all steps necessary to prosecute and sanction violations of laws and regulations which ANACOM is responsible for implementing or supervising, as well as violations resulting from failures to comply with its determinations, entailing, as applicable, the adoption of protective measures, the application of sanctions, including penalty payments and fines;
- draw up and approve regulations as provided for by law and when deemed necessary to the exercise of its assigned responsibilities, as well as instructions or other rules of a specific nature with reference to the interests, obligations or rights of undertakings, regulated activities or users;
- issue orders, instructions and determinations and make recommendations.
