The British Embassy is located in the Estrela/Lapa area, a pleasant area of Lisbon, central and easily accessible, in the vicinity of Parliament, the Prime Minister's official residence and the Estrela Park.  This is also an area with long established historical links with Britain and the original British community in Portugal.  Key sites include the Anglican (St George) Church of Lisbon, the British Cemetery, and the former British Hospital.  The previous historic Residence of the British Ambassador and Embassy building were also located in the Estrela/Lapa area.  

Between 1840 and 1941 the Embassy was co-located with the Ambassador's Residence at Rua de São Francisco Borja. It moved to Rua São Domingos (Porto Covo Palace) in 1942 after this building was purchased by HM Government.  The Embassy remained at Rua São Domingos until 1995, when it was decided that the building no longer met the Embassy's operational requirements and needed extensive recovery works.  It moved again to a newly recovered building at Rua São Bernardo where it is currently located.  The new building was inaugurated by the then British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd and Portuguese Foreign Minister José Manuel Barroso.

The old Residence and the old Embassy have in the meantime ceased to be the property of the British Government.