In 2018, 12.4% of large companies in Portugal (companies with 250 or more employees) relocated their services abroad, while only 4.6% of companies with 50 to 99 employees did so, as well as 8% of companies with 100 to 249 employees.

This trend is similar to what happens in the EU, with 9.2% of large European companies relocating services abroad. Only 4% of EU companies with 50 to 99 employees have done so and 5% of companies with 100 to 249 employees.

On the other hand, according to data released by Eurostat — based on information only from Portugal, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Denmark, and Romania — it is possible to observe that of the Portuguese companies that relocated services, the largest number was held by foreigners (51, 2%), while national investors represented 48.8%. Among the other four countries analysed, this trend is also observed in Romania, with foreign investors at 54.8% and national investors at 45.5%.