Taxes
If you purchase property in Portugal and you are not a resident in Portugal, you are liable to pay some taxes.
Property Tax in Portugal
If you purchase property in Portugal and you are not a resident in Portugal, you are liable to pay some taxes. By definition you are considered to be not living in Portugal if you do not spend 183 days per year (Tax Calendar Year) or more living in Portugal or if your primary address is not there.
INDIVIDUAL TAXATION As a Non-Portuguese resident, you are liable to tax on your Portuguese sourced income and a married couple are taxed jointly. When you purchase a property in Portugal you be subject to the taxes described below:
Rental Tax
If you decide after you have purchased your property that you wish to rent it out, then you will be taxed on that rental income. Net rental income is taxed at a flat rate of 15%, which is withheld at the source.
The Taxable income, can be calculated as the gross rent minus any maintenance costs, related expenses for example insurance premiums and the municipal tax, and also any repair costs that may have arisen. You cannot deduct your interest costs which may have incurred when you bought the property.
Property Tax (Immovable Property Tax, IMI)
As an owner of property in Portugal you will have to pay property tax (Immovable Property Tax, IMI).
Each individual municipal has its own rate, and is decided by the municipal assembly. The person/Corporation that owns the property on the last day of the respective tax year is liable to pay the IMI Tax.
- The Tax rates range from 0.3% to 0.45%.
- Property in rural areas are be taxed at 0.8%, whereas property in more urban areas will fall in the stated range.
- Property that has been re-valued since 2004 will fall between 0.2 and 0.5%, and property valued before 2004 will be between 0.4 to 0.8%.
- Property owned through a corporation domiciled in "Black" listed jurisdictions (Tax havens - E.G British Virgin Islands, Isle of Man, Gibraltar) will pay a straight 7.5% Tax of the rateable value.
- Some property cases will be exempt from the property tax (IMI). Property which is to be used as a permanent home or to be rented out will be exempt from property tax (IMI) for a period of 3 years and will depend upon the patrimonial value of the property.
- Exemption applies for a three-year period, in case of urban properties with a Tax Registration Value up to € 125,000, held by individuals which obtained a taxable income in the year prior to the acquisition, of up to € 153,300.
Property Purchase Tax - IMT (Imposto Municipal sobre Transamissoes)
IMT is a property purchase tax which is calculated by the higher value of either the value of the deeds or on the rateable value. The rate is variable, and depends on the type of property and the value of the property.
Wealth Tax (AIMI)
First introduced back in 2017, the Adicional Imposto Municipal Sobre Imóveis (AIMI) is seen as Portugal's version of a wealth tax, which affects owners with a share in Portuguese property worth over €600,000. Regardless of residency status, rates applied are 0.4% on the total amount for properties held by companies, 0.7% for individuals and 1% for those owning property valued over €1 million.
There is some relief which comes via a €600,000 allowance per person, deducted from the value of all Portuguese properties.
The values below are based on the Patrimonial Values of the property
- Up to the value of €600,000 No AIMI is payable
- Between €600,000 and €1Million 0.7% on the value between €600,000 and €1 Million
- Valued above €1 Million 0.7% on €400,000 + 1 % on Value in excess of €1 Million
Those not eligible for the allowance pay AIMI on the full property value. However, for both IMI and AIMI, the tax authorities calculate property value using the Valor Patrimonial Tributário (VPT), bear in mind these values are usually lower than the actual market value.
| Taxpayer | Rate (%) |
|---|---|
| Individuals (1) and undivided inheritances | 0.7 |
| Corporations (2) | 0.4 |
| Urban properties owned by entities in tax havens | 7.5 |
(1) To the taxable amount of more than € 1,000,000, or the double for married or living in non-marital, will apply a marginal rate of 1% in case of individuals.
(2) In the case of urban properties owned by corporations, for the personal use of the shareholders, members of the board or of any administrative bodies, management or supervision, a rate of 0.7% shall be applied. To the portion of the taxable amount that exceeds € 1,000,000 a marginal rate of 1% is applied.
Stamp Duty
You are required to pay stamp duty on contracts, deeds, bank mortgages and loans, documents, and titles and are the responsibility of the buyer. The rate of Stamp duty varies according to the type of property and the value of the property. The rate according to the type of deed/operation is between 0.4% and 0.8%. Corporate property ownership transactions pay No Stamp Duty.
Capital Gains Tax
There is a Capital Gains tax in place in Portugal. When a Non-resident sells a Portuguese property they are taxed at the flat rate of 25%. If the money from a sale is re-invested then only 50% of the net taxable income will be subject to capital gains tax. To calculate the taxable gain, you take the selling price, minus the acquisition costs, any costs incurred during the transfer of ownership, and also any property improvement costs that have incurred within 5 years of the sale.
There are a couple of exceptions to Capital Gains Tax in Portugal:
- If you are a tax resident of Portugal (Domiciled in Portugal) and you are selling your primary resident in Portugal and you buy another residence in Portugal. Importantly this rule applies for sales that are within 3 years after, or 2 years before.
- If the property in question was first occupied before January 1989 in your name.
- If you decide to reinvest the monies made from the sale of your Portugal primary residence into another primary residence in the EU, you are then able to roll over the costs.
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Agency Fees are Tax deductable:
There are no agency fees paid by the buyer. In Portugal it is always the seller that pays the agency fees. As of July 2008 agency fees can be deducted as a sales expense from any capital gains realised from the sale of a property.
Inheritance Tax
As of 2004 there is No inheritance tax to be paid by ones immediate family, and a 0.8% stamp duty will be levied. To non-immediate family a 10% stamp duty will be applied... Read more
Fiscal Representation
It is a legal requirement for all non-resident individual or companies who have assets based in Portugal to appoint a fiscal representative. Non-resident taxpayers who earn taxable income in Portugal & the Algarve are required to appoint a fiscal representative who guarantee’s that the non-resident is compliant with Portugal’s tax obligations.
The fiscal representative is a go between the Individual/Company who have the assets and the tax department. The fiscal representative is then jointly (with Individual/Company) for any tax calculations related to all of the Individual/Companies Portugal’s tax obligations (E.g. Property, bank accounts, cars, and income – all tax bills).
The tax authority with only work with/via the Individuals/Companies fiscal representative regarding, rental income declarations, valuations, IMI tax bills, etc.