The Portuguese Catholic University (Universidade Católica Portuguesa - UCP) was established in 1967 by decree of the Holy See, at the request of the Portuguese Bishops' conference and under Concordat Law. The Portuguese government's official recognition of UCP occurred in 1971, through decree-law 307/71, which acknowledged the Portuguese Catholic University as on a par with the other Portuguese universities and conferred on the degrees it grants - presently ?licentiate?, master and doctor, - the same value and the same effects as those awarded by State universities. The creation of the University, the fulfilment of a 40-year dream of the Portuguese Church, constitutes a milestone in modern higher education in Portugal: for the first time the State was not directly involved in and responsible for a university. Nowadays, and following the general trend in Portugal and abroad, Portuguese Catholic University enjoys a large degree of autonomy in the creation and running of new campuses, schools and courses. Taking advantage of this fact, it has been a pioneer in some respects of university development in Portugal, either with regard to areas of knowledge not previously taught (e.g. business administration and management, food engineering, etc.) or to the regional dispersion of campuses.

　　葡萄牙天主教大学(Universidade Católica Portuguesa - UCP)于1967年经圣座法令批准成立，该法令应葡萄牙主教团请求并依据《协约法》颁布。葡萄牙政府于1971年通过第307/71号法令正式承认该校地位，确认葡萄牙天主教大学与其他葡萄牙大学具有同等地位，并授予其颁发的学位——现为学士、硕士及博士学位——与国立大学授予的学位具有同等效力与法律效力。该大学的创立实现了葡萄牙教会四十年的夙愿，标志着葡萄牙现代高等教育发展的重要里程碑：这是国家首次未直接参与并承担大学运营责任。如今，遵循葡萄牙国内外普遍趋势，葡萄牙天主教大学在创建和运营新校区、学院及课程方面享有高度自主权。凭借这一优势，该校在葡萄牙大学发展某些领域成为先行者，无论是开辟全新学科领域(如工商管理、食品工程等)，还是实现校区的区域化布局。