Finance and Law

Portugal Taxes for Expats: All You Need to Know about the Tax System

<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Every year&comma; a large number of tourists visit Portugal to enjoy the warm climate and relax on the ocean&period; Some foreigners consider this country not only as a holiday destination but also as a permanent place of residence or business&comma; which is justified by the low cost of living compared to other Eastern <a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;newsforpublic&period;com&sol;european-championship-vacation-summer&sol;">European countries<&sol;a>&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Those who are going to move to Portugal or do business in the territory of this state should definitely take into account the tax regime&period; Non-residents pay taxes only on the income that was received in the territory of Portugal&comma; at a rate of 25&percnt;&period; Tax residents must pay tax on any income ranging from 14&period;5&percnt; to 48&percnt;&period; Taxpayers file tax returns once a year from April to June&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Tax residency in Portugal<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p>Foreigners who have taken part in the Portugal Golden Visa program or otherwise qualified to live in this country can become tax residents&colon; <a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;immigrantinvest&period;com&sol;residence-in-portugal-en&sol;" target&equals;"&lowbar;blank" rel&equals;"noopener">https&colon;&sol;&sol;immigrantinvest&period;com&sol;residence-in-portugal-en&sol;<&sol;a>&period; It can be obtained in the following ways&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Live in Portugal 183 days a year&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>If the head of household is already a tax resident&comma; you also get this status&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>If you are a Portuguese civil servant&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>If you are a crew member of a Portuguese transport company&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>If you have permanent residence in Portugal&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<h2>Features of the tax system in Portugal<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;immigrantinvest&period;com&sol;blog&sol;portuguese-taxes-en&sol;" target&equals;"&lowbar;blank" rel&equals;"noopener">Taxes in Portugal<&sol;a> are federal and local&period; Federal taxes are&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Tax on capital gains<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Inheritance taxes<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Corporate tax<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>VAT<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Tax on earnings as an employee or individual worker<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Local taxes are taxes collected by the municipality&period; Tax rates depend on the area where the taxable object is located&period; Portugal property taxes and the wealth tax &lpar;paid by owners of property valued at over €600&comma;000&rpar; are local taxes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>Portuguese taxes on goods and services<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If a Portuguese company has a turnover of 10&comma;000 euros&comma; it must pay VAT&period; At the moment&comma; the rate varies from 3&percnt; to 23&percnt; and depends on&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Type of product or service<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>The area of &ZeroWidthSpace;&ZeroWidthSpace;Portugal where the company operates<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><strong>1&rpar; Standard rate <&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">In mainland Portugal&comma; the VAT rate is 23&percnt;&comma; in Madeira — 22&percnt;&comma; and in the Azores — 18&percnt;&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><strong>2&rpar; Intermediate rate <&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">For food&comma; drinks&comma; and certain services&comma; the rate is 13&percnt; on the continent&comma; 12&percnt; on Madeira&comma; and 9&percnt; on the Azores&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><strong>3&rpar; Reduced rate <&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Books&comma; newspapers&comma; medicines&comma; transportation&comma; meat&comma; fruits&comma; vegetables&comma; cereals&comma; and hotel accommodations are taxed at a rate of 6&percnt; on the mainland&comma; 5&percnt; on Madeira&comma; and 4&percnt; on the Azores&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>NHR — tax system in Portugal for foreigners<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">The Portuguese government considered it right to create special taxation in Portugal for expats&period; NHR is Portugal&&num;8217&semi;s tax regime&comma; which is relevant for foreign residents&comma; investors&comma; and prominent people&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the taxpayer is not a tax resident in Portugal but is entitled to live there&comma; they can apply for an NHR&period; After the application is approved&comma; the taxpayer receives some benefits&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>The income tax rate is 20&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>No need to pay taxes on inheritance&comma; wealth&comma; or gifts<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>No need to pay taxes on income received outside of Portugal<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>the special income tax regime for 10 years<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Foreigners who hold EU&sol;EEA citizenship or who have obtained a Portuguese Golden Visa can use the NHR to significantly reduce tax costs&period; The Portuguese government has been able to achieve double taxation agreements with 60 countries&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Portugal personal income tax<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Income tax is relevant for both tax residents of the country and non-residents&period; The difference is that the former pay tax on any income&comma; and the latter — only on the one that was received in the territory of Portugal&period; Married couples and civil partnerships are eligible to file a joint tax return&period; Taxable categories include&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Income from investments<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Income from self-employment<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Labor income<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Pension income<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Income from renting out property<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>Income from the sale of property<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">The amount of tax depends on the amount of income&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Up to 7&comma;116 euros &equals; 14&period;5&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>7&comma;117–10&comma;736 euros &equals; 23&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>10&comma;737–15&comma;216 euros &equals; 26&period;5&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>15&comma;217–19&comma;696 euros &equals; 28&period;5&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>19&comma;676–25&comma;076 euros &equals; 35&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>25&comma;076–36&comma;757 euros &equals; 37&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>36&comma;758–48&comma;033 euros &equals; 43&period;5&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>48&comma;034–75&comma;009 euros &equals; 45&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>75&comma;010 euros and more &equals; 48&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Portugal property tax in 2022<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If a taxpayer sells the property or any other type of asset&comma; the property tax must be paid at the following rates&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>28&percnt; for individuals<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>25&percnt; for companies<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>25&percnt; for non-residents<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">There are several exceptions&period; For example&comma; if a resident decides to sell their house and buy another property in Portugal or other EU countries&comma; there is no property tax to pay&period; A similar rule applies to cases where a resident sells property purchased before 1989&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the resident owns the property&comma; they must also pay the local IMI tax&period; The rate depends on the area&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>For an urban area &equals; from 0&period;3&percnt; to 0&period;45&percnt; of the property value<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>For rural areas &equals; 0&period;8&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the value of the property is less than 125&comma;000 euros&comma; the resident can apply for a property tax exemption within 3 years if the property is their place of residence&period; There are several other benefits for low-income residents&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the value of the property is more than 600&comma;000 euros&comma; the resident is required to pay AIMI wealth tax&period; The rate depends on the value of the property&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Up to 1&comma;000&comma;000 &equals; 0&period;7&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>From 1&comma;000&comma;000 to 2&comma;000&comma;000 &equals; 1&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>More than 2&comma;000&comma;000 &equals; 1&period;5&percnt;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Renting out real estate is also subject to taxation&period; The rental income rate is 15&percnt;&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2>Corporate tax for Portuguese business<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">The rate on taxable income&comma; according to corporate tax&comma; is 21&percnt;&period; However&comma; additional fees may apply depending on the location and also if the company&&num;8217&semi;s profit exceeds 1&period;5 million euros&period; Corporate tax returns must be filed within one month between April 16 and May 16&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the annual turnover of a small business is less than 200&comma;000 euros&comma; a simplified taxation regime comes into force when the turnover tax is paid&period; There is a reduced tax rate of 17&percnt; on the first €15&comma;000 of taxable income for small and medium-sized companies&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Inheritance tax in Portugal<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">If the inheritance goes to a direct family member&comma; you do not need to pay tax&period; This is the positive side of the tax system in Portugal&period; At the same time&comma; Portuguese assets require a 10&percnt; stamp duty if the children or spouse receive them as a result of a gift or inheritance&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Tax for expats in Portugal<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">At the moment&comma; the following rules apply for expanders&colon;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<ul style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&NewLine;<li>Self-employment income is taxed on contributions at a rate of 21&period;4&percnt; and must be reported every 4 months&colon; April&comma; July&comma; October&comma; and January&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>If the income exceeds 80&comma;000 euros&comma; the solidarity rate from 2&period;5&percnt; to 5&percnt; is activated&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>The tax rate on inheritance and gifts is 10&percnt;&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<li>When transferring property&comma; stamp duty is paid&period; It is 0&period;8&percnt;&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Filing a tax return<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">The Portuguese tax year is the same as the calendar year&period; The tax return for the past year should be filed in the spring of the following year&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">A qualified specialist from the company Immigrant Invest&comma; Victoria Atanasova&comma; believes that filing a tax return late can lead to unpleasant consequences&period; As a minimum&comma; the taxpayer will have to pay a fine&comma; the amount of which varies from 200 to 2&comma;500 euros&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Although the list of taxes that residents of Portugal must pay is quite large&comma; the system offers plenty of benefits and reduced rates to certain categories of taxpayers&period; Foreigners should definitely pay attention to the tax for expats in Portugal&comma; which also has its characteristics&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;

Hardik Patel

Hardik Patel is a Digital Marketing Consultant and professional Blogger. He has 16+ years experience in SEO, SMO, SEM, Online reputation management, Affiliated Marketing and Content Marketing.

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