Military ranks of Portugal

The military ranks of Portugal form the system of hierarchical relationships in the Portuguese Armed Forces.

There are two basic systems of ranks. The first one is used in the Portuguese Army (Exército) and in the Portuguese Air Force (Força Aérea), consisting of traditional land military ranks. This system is also used in the National Republican Guard (GNR, Guarda Nacional Republicana), a gendarmerie force that can be put under the command of the Armed Forces in case of war. The second system is used by the Portuguese Navy (Marinha), consisting of traditional naval ranks.

In the Armed Forces of Portugal, the hierarchy of ranks divides them in three large categories: Officers (oficiais), Sergeants (sargentos) and Enlisted (praças). The officers category is, in turn, subdivided into three subcategories: General officers (oficiais generais), Senior officers (oficiais superiores) and Junior officers (oficiais subalternos).

The insignia of rank used in all branches of the Armed Forces is generally similar, despite some particular details existing in each branch.^[1]^[2]

Commanders

Rank group	Head of state	Chief of the General Staff
Portuguese Army^[3]
Portuguese Navy^[4]
Portuguese Air Force^[5]

Commissioned officer ranks

The rank insignia of commissioned officers.

NATO code	OF-10	OF-9	OF-8		OF-7	OF-6	OF-5		OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1
Portuguese Army^[6] v t e
Portuguese Army^[6] v t e	Marechal do Exército	General	Tenente-general		Major-general	Brigadeiro-general	Coronel-tirocinado ^[a]	Coronel	Tenente-coronel	Major	Capitão	Tenente	Alferes
Portuguese Navy^[7] v t e
Portuguese Navy^[7] v t e	Almirante da Armada	Almirante	Vice-almirante		Contra-almirante	Comodoro	Capitão de mar e guerra		Capitão de fragata	Capitão-tenente	Primeiro-tenente	Segundo-tenente	Guarda-marinha/ Subtenente
Portuguese Air Force^[8] v t e
Portuguese Air Force^[8] v t e	Marechal da Força Aérea	General	Tenente-general		Major-general	Brigadeiro-general	Coronel		Tenente-coronel	Major	Capitão	Tenente	Alferes
National Republican Guard^[9] v t e
National Republican Guard^[9] v t e			Tenente-general Comandante-general	Tenente-general	Major-general		Coronel		Tenente-coronel	Major	Capitão	Tenente	Alferes
NATO code	OF-10	OF-9	OF-8		OF-7	OF-6	OF-5		OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1

Student officer ranks

Rank group	Student officer
Portuguese Army^[10]	^[b]

	Tenente aluno	Alferes aluno	Aspirante aluno	Cadete aluno do 4° ano	Cadete aluno do 3° ano	Cadete aluno do 2° ano	Cadete aluno do 1° ano
Portuguese Navy
Portuguese Navy				Cadete aluno do 4° ano	Cadete aluno do 3° ano	Cadete aluno do 2° ano	Cadete aluno do 1° ano
Portuguese Air Force
Portuguese Air Force				Cadete aluno do 4° ano	Cadete aluno do 3° ano	Cadete aluno do 2° ano	Cadete aluno do 1° ano

Other ranks

The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel.

NATO code	OR-9		OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5		OR-4		OR-3	OR-2		OR-1
Portuguese Army^[6] v t e
Portuguese Army^[6] v t e	Sargento-mor	Sargento-chefe	Sargento-ajudante	Primeiro-sargento	Segundo-sargento	Furriel	Segundo-furriel	Cabo de secção		Cabo-adjunto	Primeiro-cabo	Segundo-cabo	Soldado
Portuguese Navy^[7] v t e												No insignia	No insignia
Portuguese Navy^[7] v t e	Sargento-mor	Sargento-chefe	Sargento-ajudante	Primeiro-sargento	Segundo-sargento	Subsargento		Cabo-mor	Cabo	Primeiro-marinheiro	Segundo-marinheiro	Primeiro-grumete	Segundo-grumete
Portuguese Air Force^[8] v t e
Portuguese Air Force^[8] v t e	Sargento-mor	Sargento-chefe	Sargento-ajudante	Primeiro-sargento	Segundo-sargento	Furriel	Segundo-furriel	Cabo-de-secção		Cabo-adjunto	Primeiro-cabo	Segundo-cabo	Soldado
National Republican Guard^[9] v t e
National Republican Guard^[9] v t e	Sargento-mor	Sargento-chefe	Sargento-ajudante	Primeiro-sargento	Segundo-sargento	Furriel		Cabo-mor	Cabo-chefe	Cabo-de-curso	Cabo	Guarda principal	Guarda
NATO code	OR-9		OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5		OR-4		OR-3	OR-2		OR-1

Lusophone comparative tables

Army
- Officers
- Enlisted
Navy
- Officers
- Enlisted
Air force
- Officers
- Enlisted
Military police
- Officers
- Enlisted

Notes

^ Colonel who has completed the General Officer training course. Between 1929 and 1937, the Coronel-tirocinado was called Brigadeiro.
^ worn on the left sleeve, 15 cm from the shoulder.

References

^ Statute of the Military Personnel of the Armed Forces of Portugal
^ Statute of the Military Personnel of the National Republican Guard
^ Ministry of National Defence 2011, pp. 3847, 3884.
^ Ministry of National Defence 2022, pp. 20, 160.
^ Ministry of National Defence 1997, pp. 5546, 5617.
^ ^a ^b "POSTOS E DISTINTIVOS EXÉRCITO". antigo.mdn.gov.pt (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 1 March 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Os Postos". marinha.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 26 February 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Postos e Distintivos". emfa.pt (in Portuguese). Portuguese Air Force. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Distintivos". gnr.pt (in Portuguese). Republican National Guard. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
^ Ministry of National Defence 2011, pp. 3846, 3880–3881.

External links

"Os Postos". marinha.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 26 February 2021.
"Postos e Distintivos". emfa.pt (in Portuguese). Portuguese Air Force. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
"Distintivos". gnr.pt (in Portuguese). Republican National Guard. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
"Postos e Distintivos" (PDF). protocoloimagem.pt (in Portuguese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
Ministry of National Defence (30 June 2011). "Portaria n.º 254/2011" (PDF). diariodarepublica.pt (in Portuguese). pp. 3844–3847, 3876–3885. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
Ministry of National Defence (9 September 2022). "Portaria n.º 234/2022" (PDF). files.dre.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 16 November 2023.
Ministry of National Defence (16 October 1997). "Portaria n.º 1054/97" (PDF). diariodarepublica.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 16 November 2023.

[Coronel-tirocinado-7] Colonel who has completed the General Officer training course. Between 1929 and 1937, the Coronel-tirocinado was called Brigadeiro.

[12] worn on the left sleeve, 15 cm from the shoulder.

[1] Statute of the Military Personnel of the Armed Forces of Portugal

[2] Statute of the Military Personnel of the National Republican Guard

[FOOTNOTEMinistry_of_National_Defence20113847,_3884-3] Ministry of National Defence 2011, pp. 3847, 3884.

[FOOTNOTEMinistry_of_National_Defence202220,_160-4] Ministry of National Defence 2022, pp. 20, 160.

[FOOTNOTEMinistry_of_National_Defence19975546,_5617-5] Ministry of National Defence 1997, pp. 5546, 5617.

[Portugal_Army-6] "POSTOS E DISTINTIVOS EXÉRCITO". antigo.mdn.gov.pt (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 1 March 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2021.

[Portugal_Navy-8] "Os Postos". marinha.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 26 February 2021.

[Portugal-AirForce-9] "Postos e Distintivos". emfa.pt (in Portuguese). Portuguese Air Force. Retrieved 29 April 2021.

[Portugal_NRG-10] "Distintivos". gnr.pt (in Portuguese). Republican National Guard. Retrieved 11 May 2021.

[FOOTNOTEMinistry_of_National_Defence20113846,_3880–3881-11] Ministry of National Defence 2011, pp. 3846, 3880–3881.

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v t e Portuguese Armed Forces
Branches	Navy (Marinha) Army (Exército) Air Force (Força Aérea)
Equipment and facilities	Naval ships Military aircraft Army's equipment Air bases
Organisation	Ministry of National Defence General Staff of the Armed Forces (EMGFA)
Academies and colleges	Joint Command and Staff College (IESM) Naval School Military Academy Air Force Academy Military College Pupilos do Exército
Special forces	Commandos Force Protection Unit Marines Paratroopers Pathfinders Sappers Divers Special Actions Detachment Special Operations
Related	CIGeoE CISMIL Eurofor Euromarfor Eurogendfor Instituto de Odivelas JALLC JC Lisbon Military history of Portugal Military ranks of Portugal National Republican Guard (GNR) NATO NATO CIS School Portuguese Naval Aviation STRIKFORNATO