In 1992, Luís Portela was awarded the Commendation of the Order of Merit. He also received two other distinctions, both granted by the President of the Portuguese Republic: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit (2002) and Grand Cross of the Order of Public Instruction (2020).

Furthermore, in 1998, he received an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Medicine of Cádiz (Spain). Receives three more honorary doctorates: University of Porto (2009), Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Coimbra (2016) and Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon (2021).