How to buy property in Portugal as a foreigner: step by step, with 2026 taxes

Updated: 1 November 2026 · RE/MAX Extra

A property purchase in Portugal works the same way for locals and foreigners: tax number, checks on the property, promissory contract with a deposit, payment of taxes, then completion and registration of ownership. Here is each step in order, with 2026 rates and links to official sources.

Step 1. Get a NIF tax number

The NIF (Número de Identificação Fiscal) is a nine-digit taxpayer number. According to Portugal's Tax Authority (AT), you need it not just for tax but also for contracts, opening a bank account and other everyday transactions. The number stays the same even if you later become a tax resident. How to apply, which documents are required and how to open an account are covered separately: “NIF and a bank account in Portugal for foreigners”.

There are two ways to apply:

• Online, through a representative. The application goes through the e-balcão online service desk on the Portal das Finanças, submitted by a legal representative with power of attorney. Attach a copy of your passport and a document showing your address abroad if the passport doesn't show it.
• In person, by appointment, at any tax office (Serviço de Finanças) or Loja do Cidadão (citizen service centre). Bring a valid passport and proof of your address abroad.

If a citizen of a non-EU country applies in person, their passport must contain an entry visa, unless the country has visa-free entry to the Schengen area or the passport holds a visa from any EU country.

Do you need a tax representative?

You don't have to appoint a tax representative when you get your NIF. The obligation arises later, once you have a tax relationship with Portugal, and owning property in the country creates one. From that point a non-resident from outside the EU and EEA has 15 days to do one of two things:

• appoint a tax representative in Portugal;
• sign up for electronic notifications, on the Portal das Finanças or through the ViaCTT electronic mailbox.

Residents of the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, as well as Andorran citizens living in Andorra, don't have to do either. The representative can be a person or company with an address in Portugal; a foreigner can act only with a valid residence permit and tax resident status.

Step 2. Check the property before signing

Before paying anything, make sure the seller really is the owner, the property has no mortgages or seizures against it, and its actual condition matches the paperwork. For a sale, the state service Casa Pronta asks for the parties' identity documents and tax numbers, the energy certificate, the home's technical file (if there is one) and the use permit (licença de utilização) or a notarial deed stating that one exists or that the property is exempt. This applies to buildings put up after 7 August 1951, and to older ones if they were later rebuilt.

Document requirements for sales changed in 2024, so it's best to confirm the exact set for your property with a lawyer or notary before signing.

Step 3. Promissory contract and deposit

The parties usually start by signing a promissory contract of sale (contrato-promessa de compra e venda, CPCV). It sets out the price, how payment will be made, the deadline for completion and the deposit (sinal), whose size is up to the parties themselves.

What happens if the deal falls through is set out in Article 442 of the Portuguese Civil Code: if the buyer pulls out, the seller keeps the deposit; if the seller defaults, the buyer can claim double the deposit. So the promissory contract is no formality. Have a lawyer read it before you sign.

Step 4. Taxes on purchase

The buyer pays two taxes. IMT is assessed before the sale; you can pay it on the day of assessment or within the next 30 days, but the notary won't complete the sale without proof of payment (Articles 22, 36 and 49 of the IMT Code). For a full breakdown with examples, including the taxes an owner pays each year, see “Property taxes in Portugal”.

IMT: property transfer tax

IMT is charged on the higher of two amounts: the contract price or the property's tax value (valor patrimonial tributário). The rate depends on two things: whether the buyer is a Portuguese tax resident and whether the home will be their main residence.

Rate for non-resident buyers: 7.5%

In 2026, paragraph 10 was added to Article 17 of the IMT Code (Decree-Law No. 97/2026 of 20 May): when a non-resident buys a home, the IMT rate is always 7.5% on the full amount, with no reliefs or exemptions. The law names three exceptions:

• the buyer is recognised as a Portuguese tax resident under Article 16 of the IRS Code;
• the buyer becomes a Portuguese tax resident within two years of the purchase;
• within six months of the purchase, the home is let as a residence at a rent no higher than the limit set by this decree, and stays let for at least 36 months during the first five years.

In the second and third cases the buyer first pays the 7.5%, then applies to the tax authority and is refunded the difference against the normal scale. The application must be made within six months of the date they became resident or signed the rental contract.

The rule is new. Before signing the promissory contract, check with a lawyer or tax adviser how the tax authority applies it to your case.

Scale for tax residents

Where the flat rate for non-residents doesn't apply, IMT is worked out on a progressive scale. There are two tables: one for a home that will be the buyer's main residence and one for other homes.

Rates up to and including 8% are marginal: each applies only to its own slice of the price. The “flat rate” in the top two bands, by contrast, applies to the whole amount. The table covers mainland Portugal, as worded in Law No. 73-A/2025.

Example for a tax resident. A home for €300,000 that won't be a main residence. The first €106,346 is taxed at 1%, €1,063.46; the next €39,124 at 2%, €782.48; the next €52,877 at 5%, €2,643.85; the remaining €101,653 at 7%, €7,115.71. Total IMT: €11,605.50.

Example for a non-resident. The same €300,000 home: 7.5% on the full amount, €22,500.

Other property has fixed rates: rural land 5%, other urban property (commercial, for example) 6.5%. If the buyer is a company with a tax address in a jurisdiction on Portugal's list of preferential tax territories, or is controlled by such a party, the rate is 10%. This rule does not apply to individuals.

Stamp duty

Stamp duty (Imposto do Selo) on a property purchase is 0.8% of the same base as IMT (item 1.1 of the General Stamp Duty Table). On €300,000 that comes to €2,400. If you buy with a mortgage, stamp duty is charged separately on the loan as well. How much a bank may lend and what costs a loan adds: see “Mortgages in Portugal for non-residents”.

Step 5. Completion and registration

The sale can be completed at a notary (the escritura, or deed of sale) or through Casa Pronta, a state service run by the Institute of Registries and Notaries. It lets you sign the sale contract and register ownership at a single counter. Any person or company can use it, by appointment at any Casa Pronta counter.

In the example of a €300,000 home with no mortgage, the mandatory payments on purchase are: for a non-resident, IMT €22,500 + stamp duty €2,400 + Casa Pronta €375 = €25,275; for a tax resident buying something other than a main home, €11,605.50 + €2,400 + €375 = €14,380.50. Lawyers' and translators' fees are extra.

After you buy: annual IMI

Owners pay a municipal property tax, IMI, every year. For urban property the municipality picks a rate between 0.3% and 0.45%; for rural land it is 0.8%. The tax is based on the property's tax value, not the purchase price. Rates by municipality, reliefs and the other annual costs of ownership, such as condominium fees and insurance, are covered in “The cost of owning property in Portugal”.

If you later sell the home for more than you paid, income tax (IRS) is due on the gain. How it is calculated for residents and non-residents is covered in “Capital gains tax on selling property in Portugal”.

Does buying property get you a residence permit?

No. Law No. 56/2023 of 6 October 2023 (the Mais Habitação programme) ended new applications for residence permits based on property investment. Renewal of permits already issued continues. Buying itself is still open to foreigners: the right to own property hasn't changed. What remains of the programme, how issued permits are renewed and which non-property investment routes exist today are covered in “Residence permits in Portugal and the golden visa”.

Where to start looking

You can browse current listings in the RE/MAX Extra catalogue: flats in Lisbon, houses in Cascais, flats in Porto, new developments across Portugal and, separately, affordable new studio and one-bedroom flats (T0 and T1) by city. How prices differ across districts and suburbs: see “Lisbon districts and surrounding areas”, “Cascais, Oeiras and the coast” and “Porto areas and suburbs”. If you'd rather live in the country for a while first and get to know it, there are flats to rent in Lisbon; what matters in a rental contract and what deposit is legal are covered in “Renting a home in Portugal”. Questions about a specific property? Get in touch.

This article is for information only and is not legal or tax advice. Rates and rules change — always check official sources and a professional before a transaction.