obligados

Obligados is a term used in Portuguese texts to denote persons or entities that are bound by an obligation under law, contract, or regulation. In standard Portuguese, the common form is obrigados for masculine plural or obrigadas for feminine plural; obligados may appear as an older or less common variant or in direct translations from other languages. The word designates those who bear duties, such as paying taxes, declaring information, or complying with contractual terms.

In legal and administrative contexts, obrigados may be described as the parties responsible for fulfilling a duty. For example, obrigados tributários are taxpayers required to declare income and pay taxes, while obligaciones arising from contracts can bind parceiros or proprietários to perform agreed actions. In some situations, obrigados can be jointly liable, a concept known as responsabilidade solidária, where multiple parties share the obligation of a debt or duty.

The scope of obligation can vary: civil obligations may require performance or forbearance, administrative obligations may involve reporting or compliance with regulations, and tax obligations focus on reporting and payment. The term also appears in phrases such as cumprir as obrigações or atender às obrigações legais, underscoring the broad notion of duty across different legal regimes. In contrast, those who receive obligations from obrigados are typically creditors, authorities, or beneficiaries under a contract or statute.

Etymology traces the term to des- forms of obligare, from Latin obligatus, related to obligation. Related concepts include obrigação (obligation), dever (duty), and dívida (debt).