As set out in its Internal Regulations (Article 5):

The objectives of the Ducal Palace are:

a) Carrying out the registration, investigation, disclosure and preservation of its assets (Paço dos Duques, Castelo and Church of S. Miguel), as well as the collections in each of the assets;

b) Tying the Ducal Palace to schools and the community through the promotion of educational, cultural and social activities;

c) Developing actions and activities to increase, diversify and retain publics;

d) Encouraging cultural activities of interest to the region;

e) Acquiring collections of interest for the monuments, within its incorporation policy and within financial restraints;

f) Establishing and enforcing the rules for the preventive conservation of the monuments and their collections;

g) Defining and enforcing the rules of access and circulation in the monuments in order to guarantee the security of the monuments, collections and people;

h) Maintaining the Palace records updated, namely the inventory of its collections;

i) Integrating on the local, regional and national levels;

j) Developing studies on the history and evolution of the Bragança Household;

k) Promoting the internationalization of the Paço dos Duques - Monte Latito. Developing institutional relations with national and foreign entities in order to foster the exchange of information and the eventual development of common projects;

l) Creating and developing a Science and Research Centre on the foundation of Portugal.

As set out in its Internal Regulations (Article 4):

The main vocation of the Paço dos Duques - Monte Latito is the following:

1 – To conserve, inventory, document, value, disseminate and study its heritage:

1.1. Property, which includes the Ducal Palace, the Guimarães Castle, the Church of S. Miguel and the area surrounding these National Monuments;

1.2. Movable Heritage, namely the collections in these monuments.

2 – The Palace is the official residence of the Portuguese Presidency.