Portugal places no restrictions on foreigners who want to buy a home: an American retiree, a British family or a buyer from Brazil goes through the same notary, the same tax office and the same Land Registry as a Portuguese citizen. The difficulty lies in the sequence of steps and in Portuguese terms that have no exact match in English. This guide is for buyers from abroad, whether or not they plan to live in Portugal. It follows a purchase from the tax number to the final registration, lists the checks a lawyer runs, names the taxes involved and explains what happens after the keys change hands.
First steps: a tax number and a bank account
No purchase can go ahead without a NIF (Número de Identificação Fiscal), the Portuguese tax number. The deed is signed and the purchase taxes are paid under it, and it is also needed for the bank account, the utilities and the yearly property tax. Foreigners can obtain it at any local tax office, and buyers who are abroad usually ask a lawyer to apply through a representative; the NIF application page covers both ways. Residents of countries outside the EU have traditionally needed a fiscal representative in Portugal for their tax dealings, and the rules on when one is still needed have been relaxed, so the lawyer confirms the position at the start.
A Portuguese bank account follows. The price is usually paid by bank transfer or by bank cheque, and the account pays the property tax, the condominium charges and the utility bills later on. Banks ask for the NIF, a passport, proof of address and evidence of the source of the money. Buyers who need a mortgage usually approach banks at this stage, since the bank's valuation sets how much it will lend.
Finding a property
Estate agents in Portugal must hold a licence, and their licence number appears on adverts and contracts. Like elsewhere, they are paid by the seller and do not check the legal side for the buyer. Many foreign buyers look along the Algarve coast, around Lisbon and Porto, or in quieter towns in the centre of the country. Lawyers in Faro, Lagos and Tavira handle much of the Algarve market, while those in Lisbon and Porto deal mainly with city flats. Because the registers are online, a lawyer in one town can handle a purchase in another.
Legal checks before signing
Before any money changes hands, a lawyer handling the property purchase confirms that the seller is the owner, that the property is free of debts and charges, and that it can lawfully be lived in. The usual checks are:
- the certidão permanente of the registo predial (Land Registry), which shows the owner, the description and any mortgage, seizure (penhora) or other charge;
- the caderneta predial, the tax office's record of the property, with its tax value and description;
- the licença de utilização, the town hall's licence that allows the building to be used as a home;
- for newer homes, the ficha técnica da habitação, a technical file of the building;
- the energy certificate (certificado energético), which the seller has to provide;
- a statement from the building's management that no condominium charges are owed;
- whether the property is let, and whether a tenant or the town hall has a right of first refusal (direito de preferência);
- for rural land, whether it lies in a protected agricultural or ecological reserve where building is heavily restricted.
Differences between the registry, the tax record and the house as it stands, such as an unrecorded extension or pool, are common in older homes and are best put right before completion. Disputes over boundaries or rights of way fall under property rights and disputes.
The promissory contract: CPCV
Most purchases go through a written promise to buy and sell, the contrato-promessa de compra e venda (CPCV), signed with a deposit, the sinal. It sets the price, the date of the deed, the condition of the property and any conditions such as obtaining a mortgage. Under Portuguese law a buyer who backs out loses the sinal, and a seller who backs out returns it doubled. The signatures are often certified so that the promise can, in some cases, be enforced in court. Buyers commonly have the draft checked through contract review and advice before paying the deposit.
Completion: the deed and the registration
The transfer of ownership needs a formal document. It can be a public deed (escritura pública) signed before a notary, a document authenticated by a lawyer or a solicitador (a Portuguese legal professional), or a deed signed at a registry office under the Casa Pronta service. The order is usually:
- The lawyer obtains fresh registry and tax extracts to confirm that nothing has changed.
- The buyer pays the property transfer tax and the stamp duty before the signing, since the deed cannot be completed without proof of payment.
- Buyer and seller, or their representatives, sign; the deed is read in Portuguese, with an interpreter for a party who does not follow it.
- The buyer pays the balance, and any mortgage of the seller is cancelled from that money.
- The purchase is registered in the buyer's name at the Land Registry, often online by the professional who handled the deed.
Buyers who cannot attend sign a power of attorney in Portugal or abroad before a notary, apostilled and with a certified translation, and the lawyer signs for them.
Taxes and costs, by name
Rates are left out here because they change; the names are what matter at first:
The IMT (Imposto Municipal sobre as Transmissões Onerosas de Imóveis) is the property transfer tax paid by the buyer, and the Imposto do Selo is a stamp duty on the purchase and, where there is one, on the mortgage. The notary or registry charges fees, the lawyer charges for the work, and banks add their own costs. After the purchase, the town hall's yearly property tax, IMI (Imposto Municipal sobre Imóveis), is charged on the tax value of the home, and owners of higher-value property can also face the additional tax known as AIMI. Both are explained under property tax for foreign owners. A later sale may bring tax on the gain, see capital gains tax.
Property and residence
Buying a home no longer qualifies anyone for a Portuguese Golden Visa: the property options were removed from the investment residence programme in 2023, and only other kinds of investment remain, see Golden Visa. A home in Portugal can still help a residence application, since owning or renting accommodation is one of the conditions of the D7 visa for people living on passive income.
After completion
Once registered, the owner moves the water, electricity and gas contracts into their own name, joins the condominium of the building and sets up payment of IMI. Letting the home to holidaymakers requires registration as alojamento local (local accommodation) with the town hall, see tourist rental licence and registration. Long-term lettings use a written lease, which lawyers for lease and rental contracts draft and review. Owners also think about who will inherit the home; a Portuguese will that covers it makes the heirs' task simpler, see make a will. Wider topics are grouped under property law in Portugal.
Questions and answers
Are there limits on foreigners buying a home in Portugal?
Yes. Portugal does not limit purchases by foreigners, whether they live in the country or not. They follow the same procedure as Portuguese buyers and need a NIF.
Is a NIF required to buy a house in Portugal?
Yes. The transfer tax is paid and the deed is signed under the buyer's NIF. Buyers abroad usually obtain it through a lawyer before they sign the promissory contract.
Does buying property in Portugal give residency?
Not by itself. The property routes of the Golden Visa closed in 2023. A home can support another application, for example as the accommodation required for a D7 visa.
Does a buyer in Portugal have to hire a lawyer?
No law requires one, but the notary does not act for the buyer. Most foreign buyers use a lawyer to check the registry, licences and debts, review the CPCV and handle the tax payments.
What taxes does a buyer pay in Portugal?
Before the deed, the buyer settles IMT (the transfer tax) and stamp duty. Afterwards come the yearly IMI and, for valuable portfolios, AIMI. Rates depend on the price, the use of the home and the buyer's situation.
Can a house in Portugal be bought remotely?
Yes. Many foreign buyers never attend: a representative holding their power of attorney requests the NIF, signs both the CPCV and the deed, settles the taxes and completes the registration.
Prepared by Legal Help Tool. Last updated . General information, not legal advice.
Portugal Property Tax for Non-Residents
Open the full tool →Estimate the taxes a non-resident pays on a Portuguese home — the new 7.5% IMT when buying, IMI and rent tax while owning, and tax on a sale.
How it works
Using the calculator
- Choose what you want to work out: buying, owning or selling.
- For buying, say whether you buy as a non-resident or a resident, and where; for owning, pick your town's IMI rate.
- Enter the figures the form asks for. Each tax and cost appears on its own line with how it is worked out, and the total below.
Buying: the new 7.5% IMT for non-residents
Since 25 May 2026 (Decreto-Lei 97/2026) a buyer who is not tax resident in Portugal — and never was — pays the property transfer tax IMT at a flat 7.5% on any home, with no reductions. The difference to the normal rates is refunded if you become resident within two years, or if you let the home long-term within six months at up to €2,300 a month and for at least 36 of the first 60 months. Residents pay IMT by the 2026 tables (0% to 8%, higher brackets on the Azores and Madeira). Stamp duty is 0.8% of the price, plus 0.6% of a mortgage. You need a NIF.
Owning
The town charges IMI, 0.3% to 0.45% of the tax value (VPT) a year; owners of homes and building land worth more than €600,000 together pay AIMI on top. An empty home has no imputed-income tax. Rent is taxed at 25% after expenses — less for long leases, and 10% for rents up to €2,300 a month from 2026 to 2029.
Selling
Since 2023 non-residents are taxed like residents: half of the gain — the sale price less the purchase price adjusted for inflation, the costs and the improvements — at the progressive income tax rates, which are set by your worldwide income. There is no withholding at the sale and no municipal tax on the gain. A lawyer checks the title, the licences and the refund conditions before you buy or sell.
1Your details
If higher than the price, the taxes are on it
2Your result
| IMT 7.5% (non-resident)Flat on any home since 25 May 2026, no reductions | €30,000 |
| Back if you move to Portugal within 2 yearsThe difference to the resident's rate for an own home (€18,237), claimed within 6 months | €11,763 |
| Back if you let it long-termLet within 6 months at up to €2,300 a month, and 36 of the first 60 months | €10,700 |
| Stamp duty 0.8%On the same value as IMT | €3,200 |
| Deed and registration (Casa Pronta)Typical fee; a notary is more | €375 |
| Lawyer (about 1% + VAT)Typical fee, often a minimum of €1,500 | €4,920 |
| Buying costs on top of the price | €38,495 |
- About 9.6% of the price.
- You need a Portuguese tax number (NIF); a fiscal representative is not needed if you sign up for the tax office's electronic notifications.
- The 7.5% does not apply if you were ever tax resident in Portugal before; a couple pays it only if both are non-resident.
An estimate for planning, not legal or tax advice. Figures checked 26 Oct 2026. Sources: Decreto-Lei 97/2026 (Diário da República), CIMT art. 17 — IMT tables (Portal das Finanças), AT circular 40131/2026 — the 7.5% rate, CIRS art. 72 — rental income, Portaria 457/2026/1 — coefficients.
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