Law No.3 of 2018 on the National System for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials.

This Law, comprising 13 articles, aims to regulate the inventorying and control of nuclear materials - whether used or produced in all activities, including research - by defining the functions of the National Committee for the Prohibition of Weapons, established by Decree-Law No. 31 of 2002 and operational since 2004. For this purpose, the Committee is entrusted with the following competencies (i) inventorying nuclear facilities and issuing or withdrawing the licenses required for activities related to the circulation of nuclear materials, in coordination with the Ministry of Municipality and Environment where relevant; (ii) establishing systems to measure the quantities of nuclear material received, produced, shipped, or lost by nuclear facilities; (iii) compiling and maintaining baseline data on nuclear materials, including monitoring unconfined materials, losses, and annual outputs; (iv) evaluating the accuracy and precision of measurements, including estimating uncertainty; (v) setting procedures to identify, review, and assess discrepancies between shipper and recipient measurements; (vi) reviewing physical inventory data and monitoring unconfined materials; (vii) reviewing procedures for assessing the accumulation of unmeasured materials and losses; (viii) developing and approving record-keeping and reporting systems that track, for each measurement area, nuclear material quantities and any changes, including incoming materials; (ix) monitoring changes in nuclear material stocks, whether surplus or deficit; (x) overseeing restrictions and amendments to inventory records; (xi) identifying strategic and key measurement points to track the movement and storage of nuclear materials, and supervising book inventories; (xii) requesting necessary data from licensees and verifying their compliance with the provisions of this Law and its implementing decisions.
The Committee shall coordinate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) with regard to the inspections mentioned in Article 9 of the Agreement for the Application of Safeguards under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Under Article4, nuclear facilities are required to support regulatory oversight by fulfilling the following core obligations by (i) providing the Committee with all relevant data on the circulation, receipt, and export of nuclear materials, as well as any additional information needed to meet the Agency’s requirements under the Agreement; (ii) promptly reporting design information and any changes to it; (iii) granting full access and assistance to authorized Committee personnel to carry out inspection and control duties, and comply with all directives related to monitoring, inspection, and accounting of nuclear materials; (iv) maintaining accurate, organized records of nuclear materials, including inventory levels, unrestricted materials, and any modifications thereto.
The Law establishes criminal liability for a range of unlawful acts involving nuclear materials, including their unauthorized handling, acquisition, misuse, or related deceptive conduct. It also penalizes violations of key regulatory provisions, as well as the failure to report known or attempted offenses. The framework applies not only to completed acts but also to attempts and related actions that facilitate such violations.