Tap Air Portugal Airline Baggage Allowance Policy 2026

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Tap Air Portugal (or TAP) is Portugal’s most popular airline to and from the country. Just like KLM is to the Netherlands, Tap Air Portugal is the country’s flag carrier airline.

So, after its 80th birthday back in March in 2025, what changes? The answer is not much. But as travellers, we tend to worry about even the littlest things when it comes to flying with a certain airline, especially baggage allowance.

Here’s everything TAP you need to know before starting your journey, either within Portugal, around Europe, or to any of their new long-haul fleets. We will get you in the know about their cabin bag, personal item, and more.

Don’t worry. We’ll keep it streamlined for you, coupled with some packing tips to make your trip hassle-free.

Is Tap Portugal A Good Airline?

Tap Air Portugal Airline Baggage Allowance Policy - CabinZero

TAP is one of Portugal’s very first airlines. Photo by nebo13 on Adobe Stock.

Tap Air Portugal is Portugal's national airline, based at Portela Airport in Santa Maria dos Olivais, Lisbon. It was founded on March 14, 1945.

Tap Air Portugal is a 3-star airline, and it’s not considered a low-cost carrier. This means that you get a full range of services, with some budget-friendly options, but generally, each tier has more services by default.

TAP earns a 7-star rating on safety and is considered one of the safest airlines globally in 2024 by AirlineRatings.

Tap Air Portugal flights span across all nations. Other than domestics, the majority of its direct flights center around destinations within Europe, Africa, South America, and North America. Flights to and from mainland Asia such as China or Japan are codeshare.

In March 2025, TAP opened a direct route from Porto to Dubai. If you’re visiting Portugal this summer from the US in 2025, then you can catch direct flights from Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Tap Air Portugal Hand Baggage

Tap Air Portugal baggage allowance is pretty standard of most airlines. There’s hand baggage and checked-in baggage, and fare types and destinations determine their limits. Sometimes, aircraft sizes also affect these restrictions, but this should not be a common occurrence.

Here’s what to note before packing.

Tap Air Portugal Carry-On Size and Weight

TAP Airlines Portugal carry-on and personal items size and weight.

Tap Air Portugal allows free cabin baggage for all passengers. It’s the type of cabin baggage and how much you’re allowed of each that vary.

Tap Air Portugal hand baggage includes:

Hand baggage, which can be a suitcase or backpack and must fit in the overhead compartments or under the seat in front of you.
A small personal item (personal article) such as a handbag, a laptop bag, or a small backpack
And special cabin baggage, such as musical instruments.

So, what is the hand baggage allowance for TAP Portugal? Here’s a summary.

For the regular hand baggage (or a cabin bag) in Economy, it should measure no bigger than 55 × 40 × 25 cm (22 × 16 × 10 inch) and weigh no heavier than 10 kg/22lbs.

For the personal article, it should measure no bigger than 40 x 30 x 15 cm (16 x 12 x 5 inch) and weigh no more than 2kg/4.4lbs.

For the special item, it should measure no bigger than 155 × 42 × 25 cm (61 × 17 × 10 in) when laid down and weigh no more than 30kg. However, if the measurement exceeds, you either have to pay for an extra seat or put it in cargo.

Tap Air Portugal Hand Baggage Allowance

Passengers in Economy class are allowed to carry 1 cabin bag and 1 personal item on all flights.

Both Economy and Business passengers flying to and from North America are allowed the same number of bags.

Business passengers flying to and from other destinations, including Europe and domestic Portugal, are allowed to carry 2 cabin bags and 1 personal item.

Many flyers often ask if they can take a backpack and a carry-on bag on TAP. A backpack and a carry-on bag qualify as two pieces of luggage.

If you’re in Economy, the backpack cannot be bigger than the weight and size limits of a personal article, and the same applies to a carry-on bag and weight and size limits of a cabin bag.

To keep both a backpack and carry-on bag within the limits, the tip is to carry an underseat backpack. It’s a bag that has been made with the intention to be stowed under the seat comfortably.

For example, CabinZero’s 28L Underseat Bag is 39 x 29.5 x 20 cm (15.4 x 11.6 x 7 inch), which falls comfortably within the restrictions of most airlines, even stingy ones.

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Tap Air Portugal’s Checked Baggage Allowance

Tap Air Portugal checked baggage weight limits differ between cabin types. For Economy, the maximum weight is 23 kg (50 lbs). In Business, it’s 32 kg (70 lbs).

For all cabins, the Tap Air Portugal checked baggage size limit is a maximum of 158 cm (62 inches).

How many pieces of checked luggage you can put in the hold with TAP depends on fare types and routes. Here’s a summary of checked baggage allowance on intercontinental flights:

Discount fare has 0 checked bag, as this is the most budget-friendly no-frill option (for all routes)
Basic and Classic fare: 1 checked bag, no more than 23 kg.
Plus fare, which is still considered Economy, but with 2 checked bags, no more than 23 kg each.
Executive and Top Executive fares, which are Business, allow 2 checked bags, 32 kg each.

Tap Air Portugal’s Excess Baggage Policy

Tap Air Portugal excess baggage charge is based on whether you exceed the weight or the size limits or both and where you’re flying to.

For example, if your checked bag exceeds 23 kg on a domestic flight, the fee is 60 EUR. On flights between America and Europe, it can be 130 EUR.

If you wish to buy extra baggage, you will have to pay extra depending on the route and the number of items. Check the detailed fees applied to different routes on TAP Air Portugal website.

Note: prices will change during peak season. As of 2025, TAP announces the period of their peak season is mid July-August, December-January, and March-April.

Bags heavier than 32 kg have to be transported through their cargo service.

Bags exceeding carry-on allowance will be checked in. Photo by skyNext on Adobe Stock.

Tap Air Portugal Check In and Booking Process

Before diving into Tap Air Portugal check in and booking, let’s look at their fare scheme.

Booking

As of 2025, TAP offers 6 fare tiers: Discount, Basic, Classic, Plus, Executive, Top Executive, going from lowest to highest. Discount to Plus is considered Economy class, while the rest is Business. Tap Air Portugal baggage allowance and frills differ between tiers.

To book with TAP, you can book directly on their official website using the “Book A Flight” button. It should be right there on the homepage.

A screenshot of Tap Air Portugal booking page.

Then you can start inputting your trip information. Once you’ve found the ticket you like, you will be prompted to select fare types.

After successfully booking your ticket, you can check your Tap Air Portugal flight status in “My Flights”.

Check In

To check-in for a Tap Air Portugal flight, you can do it online 24-36 hours before boarding or for up to 5 hours before boarding at the airport.

If you check-in online via their official website or their app:

For flights to and from the US: 24 hours before boarding
Other flights: 36 hours before boarding

Note that their app may crash, thus you should print the boading pass beforehand.

If you check-in at the airport counter:

Departing from Lisbon (Humberto Delgado Airport): no later than 45 minutes for domestic and European flights and no later than 1 hour for intercontinental flights.
Departing from other airports: it depends on how the airports operate. It’s best to check carefully.

Click here for more information on bag drop and check-in counters opening hours.

Note: if this is your first time travelling around Europe and to/from Portugal, some airlines do treat flights within Europe under the same structure as domestic ones.

FAQs

Here are the answers to some questions about Tap Air Portugal to give you a clearer picture.

1. Can You Bring Sports Equipment On TAP?

You can travel with your sports equipment, such as golf kit, fishing kit, diving kit, a bicycle, and ski kit, as checked baggage. This means that it should not exceed the checked baggage allowance and size and weight restrictions.

In Economy your sports equipment should not exceed 23 kg (50 lb) and 32 kg (70 lb) in Business. The maximum size is 158 cm (62 inches).

Checked sports equipment is considered a checked bag.

If your fare is Discount, your allowance is 0. If your fare is Classic and you’re checking in a bicycle, then your allowance is 01 bicycle. The same applies for Business fares.

2. How Much Liquid Can You Take on Tap Portugal?

While it is not stated by Tap Air Portugal baggage allowance policy, packing liquids, gels, and aerosols are not that different from TSA liquid rules.

You are allowed to bring one 19 x 20 cm clear bag. Each container in the bag should not exceed 100 millilitres. The total capacity of the bag is 1 litre.

However, you should always check with all ports in case your liquids are allowed in one but not others.

For example, you can buy a pocket-sized bottle of whiskey in Heathrow and bring it on board but have to get rid of it upon entering Saudi Arabia.

3. Does TAP Weigh Bags At The Gate?

The experiences are mixed, but the possibility is never zero. Just like how it is for any other airline out there.

They can weigh your bags at the gate. If they are more than a few kilos overweight, your bag will be placed in hold and you will be charged an extra baggage fee. When it comes to measurements, a few centimetres of the soft backpack handle should not pose an issue.

However, you only have to worry about being gate-checked and charged if you overpack. Just stick to the restrictions and learn how to pack efficiently!