After you buy: the first 90 days as a foreign homeowner in Portugal

Frequently asked questions

What do I have to do first after buying a house in Portugal?

Update your address with the tax authority, because almost everything else keys off it. You have 60 days under article 19 of the Lei Geral Tributaria to notify Financas of a change of domicile, and the consequence of missing it is worse than the small fine: an unreported change is legally ineffective, meaning the tax authority keeps serving notices to your old address and they count as delivered. IMI bills, assessment notices and deadlines can all pass you by unseen. Do it on the Portal das Financas or at a Financas desk, then move to utilities and insurance.

How do I set up utilities after buying?

Electricity and water contracts transfer or open in your name using the deed and your NIF; electricity sits in a regulated market overseen by ERSE, where you can choose between the regulated tariff and market offers and switch suppliers freely, while water is municipal. Internet is contractual with the usual providers. Budget the timing rather than the cost: a vacant home with no active contracts can take days to reconnect, so start the transfers as soon as you complete. Our Annual Cost of Owning data page carries the typical yearly figures.

Do I need insurance from day one?

For an apartment, effectively yes. Fire insurance for fractions in a condominium building is compulsory under article 1429 of the Civil Code, and the obligation attaches when the fraction is yours. First check what the condominium already holds: where it carries a collective policy, the compulsory layer is typically inside your monthly charge, and buying a full policy blind can mean paying twice for fire cover. What most foreign owners actually want on top is a voluntary multirriscos policy for water damage, contents and liability. Our home insurance guide covers the premiums and the two drivers that move them.

Do I need a fiscal representative after buying?

If you are resident outside the EU and EEA and have Portuguese tax obligations, which an owner receiving IMI notices does, then yes, under article 19 of the Lei Geral Tributaria, unless you adhere to the tax authority’s electronic notification channels, a dispensation created by Decreto-Lei 44/2022. How that dispensation is applied to owners with ongoing obligations varies in practice, so confirm your case before going without. EU and EEA residents are exempt from the requirement. The full comparison, including what representation services actually cost against the free alternative, is in our fiscal representative guide.

When is IMI due after I buy?

IMI is billed annually in arrears, with the notices arriving around May: bills up to 100 euros are paid in one instalment in May, bills of 100 euros or more but under 500 split across May and November, and bills over 500 split across May, August and November, automatically. As the new owner you pay for the first full year you own the property on 31 December; pro-rating with the seller is a private contractual matter, not something Financas does. The rate is municipal, inside the statutory 0.3% to 0.45% band, and charged on the VPT rather than your purchase price.

Do I need to exchange my driving licence in Portugal?

It depends where the licence is from, and the answer verified against gov.pt differs from what many sites say. An EU or EEA licence needs no exchange at all: you drive on it in Portugal until it expires. A licence from a non-EU country party to the international road traffic conventions must be exchanged within two years of establishing residence, through the IMT, not the 90 days often quoted. A licence from a country outside the conventions is not valid in Portugal at all, and you would sit a driving test. This only applies to people who become resident; a non-resident owner visiting their holiday home drives on their home licence.

Can I bring my car to Portugal without paying import tax?

If you are transferring your residence to Portugal, one personal vehicle can come in exempt from ISV, the vehicle tax, under the transfer-of-residence regime in the ISV code, administered by customs at the tax authority. The two hard numbers, verified: the claim must be filed within 12 months of transferring your residence, and once granted the car cannot be sold, rented or lent for 12 months after it receives Portuguese plates. You must also show you lived at least 12 months in the country you are leaving. Further conditions attach to the owner and the vehicle, so check the full eligibility with AT customs before shipping anything.