How much tax do I pay if I sell a property in Portugal as a non-resident?

Half the gain, at progressive rates. Since 1 January 2023, 50% of the capital gain enters the IRS base under article 43 of the tax code, and it is taxed at the general progressive rates, 12.5% to 48% in 2026, instead of the old flat 28% for non-residents, which Lei 24-D/2022 revoked. Your worldwide income is declared and counted only to determine which bracket applies to the Portuguese gain; it is not itself taxed in Portugal. The practical effect: the base is now the same as a resident’s, but a seller with a substantial foreign income is often pushed into higher brackets and can pay more than the old flat rate, not less. Verified 19 August 2026; confirm your own case with a licensed Portuguese tax adviser.

What is the 85-15 rule in Portugal?

It has nothing to do with property. The 85/15 rule is a pension rule: where a private pension or annuity payment mixes your own already-taxed contributions with investment growth and the two cannot be separated, Portugal treats 15% of each payment as taxable income and 85% as a tax-free return of your capital, generally where the pension was funded by your own taxed contributions. For a property sale the number you want is different: 50% of the gain enters the tax base. If you saw the 85/15 rule mentioned on a property page, it was a mix-up.

What can I deduct from a capital gain in Portugal?

Three categories, all under article 51 of the tax code and all needing invoices in the seller’s name. First, documented improvement works carried out in the 12 years before the sale. Second, the necessary costs of the original purchase, which in practice includes the IMT and stamp duty you paid when buying, plus notary and registry fees. Third, the necessary costs of the sale itself, in practice the estate agent’s commission, typically around 5% plus VAT at 23% and negotiable, and the mandatory energy certificate, provided the same cost was not already deducted against rental income. The purchase price itself is first uplifted by an official inflation coefficient where you owned the property for more than 24 months. The statute defines these as categories of necessary expenses rather than a closed list, so keep every document and let your accountant classify the edge cases.

Is any tax withheld when a non-resident sells in Portugal?

No. Unlike Spain, where the buyer must withhold 3% of the price when the seller is a non-resident, Portugal has no withholding of any kind on property sale proceeds; capital gains are simply not in the withholding article of the tax code. You receive the full price at completion and the tax is assessed only after you file the following spring, which in practice means the bill lands months after the money arrived. Set the tax aside at completion; spending it is the classic mistake.

Can I avoid the tax by reinvesting in a new home?

For non-residents this is now genuinely contested, and you should not rely on a simple yes. The statute lets a seller exclude the gain on their own permanent home if the proceeds are reinvested in another permanent home in Portugal, the EU or the EEA, within 24 months before or 36 months after the sale, with the sold home evidenced as their permanent residence through their tax domicile in the 12 months before the transfer. But in a binding information published in March 2026, PIV_29065, the Portuguese tax authority took the position that a non-resident cannot use the relief at all, because a non-resident does not have a permanent own residence in Portugal. That position is administrative rather than settled law, arbitration case law has read the test more generously, and there is a live EU-law argument against it, so the honest answer is: if you have already emigrated, assume the relief is closed to you and take professional advice before you sign anything that depends on it.

When do I file and pay after selling?

You report the sale on Anexo G of the Modelo 3 return, filed exclusively online between 1 April and 30 June of the year after the sale, and the deadline does not roll forward if 30 June falls on a weekend. A double-tax treaty almost never removes the Portuguese filing obligation, because treaties give the country where the property sits the first right to tax it, and that is Portugal; the treaty works in your home country instead, relieving the double tax there. After the change described above you also declare your worldwide income in the return, for rate-setting only. The assessment and payment follow the filing, typically landing 10 to 20 months after completion.

I ran my property as an Alojamento Local. Does that change the tax when I sell?

It can change it a lot. Under article 10(19) of the tax code, in its May 2026 wording, if you sell within three years of transferring the property back from AL business use into your private ownership, the gain is taxed under business-income rules, which means the 50% exclusion does not apply and the whole gain is exposed. Improvement costs incurred while the property was allocated to the AL activity are also excluded from the deductible-works uplift. Moving the property in or out of AL use is not itself a taxable event; the three-year clock after leaving AL is what matters. If you are winding down an AL before a sale, the timing decision is worth real money and professional advice.

Tax guide · verified 19 August 2026

Selling property in Portugal as a non-resident

By Matan Gvili, Real Estate Advisor

Selling a Portuguese property as a non-resident got a different tax treatment in 2023 and most guides still mix the old and new rules. This guide states the regime as verified against the tax code, the tax authority’s own circular and the current coefficient portaria on 19 August 2026: how the gain is computed, what you can deduct, what the disputed reinvestment relief actually says, why nothing is withheld at completion, and when you file. Independent advisory, not tax advice.

Quick answer

A non-resident selling Portuguese property is taxed on 50% of the gain at progressive rates since 2023, with worldwide income counted only to set the bracket. Nothing is withheld at completion, the purchase price gets an inflation uplift, and documented works from the last 12 years are deductible. The tax bill arrives only after the next year’s filing. Verified 19 August 2026.

How the gain is computed, step by step

Step	What happens	Where it lives
1. Uplift the purchase price	The acquisition value is multiplied by an official inflation coefficient where you held the property more than 24 months. The table is set annually by government portaria.	CIRS art. 50
2. Deduct works and costs	Documented improvement works from the last 12 years, plus the necessary costs of both the purchase (IMT, stamp duty, notary, registry) and the sale (agent commission, energy certificate).	CIRS art. 51
3. Halve the gain	50% of the resulting gain enters the tax base. The other half is excluded.	CIRS art. 43(2)
4. Apply progressive rates	The taxable half is taxed at the general progressive scale (12.5% to 48% in 2026). Worldwide income is counted only to pick the bracket.	CIRS arts. 22(10), 68; Oficio Circulado 20255/2023
5. File and pay later	Nothing is withheld at completion. Anexo G is filed 1 April to 30 June the following year; the assessment follows.	CIRS arts. 60, 101

All five steps verified against the consolidated code and the tax authority's circular on 19 August 2026. The old flat 28% non-resident rate applies only to pre-2023 disposals.

Two facts competing guides get wrong right now

First: the inflation-coefficient table for 2026 disposals does not exist yet. The most recent portaria in force, Portaria 382/2025/1 of 11 November, applies to properties sold during 2025; the table for 2026 sales is historically published between September and November of the year. A seller completing in 2026 cannot compute their exact gain today, and any site already showing a 2026 coefficient table is showing the wrong one. Second: Portugal withholds nothing at completion. There is no equivalent of Spain's 3% retention, the seller receives the gross price, and the tax bill arrives 10 to 20 months later through the Modelo 3 assessment. Set the money aside on completion day.

Aligned with residents, but not the same bill

The 2023 change is usually described as putting non-residents on the same footing as residents, and on the base that is true: both are now taxed on 50% of the gain at the progressive scale, after the 2023 State Budget law revoked the separate flat 28% rate, a change the tax authority instructed its services on in Oficio Circulado 20255/2023. What the friendly framing hides is the bracket rule: your worldwide income, though not taxed in Portugal, is declared and counted to determine the rate that applies to the Portuguese gain. A seller with a strong foreign salary is routinely pushed into the upper brackets, and the new regime can cost more than the old flat rate did. Run the numbers both ways with an accountant before you assume the alignment helped you.

The reinvestment relief: what the law says, and what the tax authority says

The statute reads generously: a seller can exclude the gain on their own permanent home if they reinvest the proceeds in another permanent home in Portugal, the EU or the EEA, in the window from 24 months before to 36 months after the sale, with the sold home evidenced as their permanent residence through their tax domicile in the 12 months before the transfer. In March 2026 the tax authority published a binding information, PIV_29065, taking the position that a non-resident cannot use the relief at all: in its reading, someone who lives abroad has no permanent own residence in Portugal to sell. That position binds the tax authority only in the case that was asked, arbitration decisions have applied the permanent-residence test more generously, and there is a live argument that a residence-based denial repeats the discrimination the EU court has already struck down twice on the rate side. Practical guidance until this settles: if you emigrated years ago, plan on the basis that the relief is closed to you; if you are selling around the time of a move, the timing of your tax domicile matters enormously and is worth an adviser's letter before the deed.

The base is aligned, the bracket is personal, and the one relief everyone hopes for is exactly where the tax authority is digging in.

The selling costs, and what they do to the gain

Selling has three costs worth planning: the agent's commission, typically around 5% plus VAT at 23%, market practice rather than law and genuinely negotiable; the energy certificate, which is legally required before the property can even be advertised, with its number quoted in the listing and the deed; and your lawyer, optional on the sell side but usual for foreign sellers. The consolation is that the commission and the certificate are deductible against the gain, as necessary costs of the disposal, alongside the purchase-side taxes and fees you paid years ago and any documented improvement works from the last 12 years. The discipline that makes this work is invoices: in the seller's name, tied to the property, kept. A renovation paid in cash a decade ago deducts nothing.

If the property was an Alojamento Local: the three-year trap

One rule connects this page to every owner who ran a short let. Under article 10(19) of the tax code, in its current wording from Decreto-Lei 97/2026, selling within three years of moving the property back from AL business use into private ownership taxes the gain under business-income rules, without the 50% exclusion. The whole gain is exposed, and improvement costs incurred during the AL years are excluded from the deductible-works uplift on top. Moving in or out of AL use is not itself taxed; the clock after leaving is what matters. Our Alojamento Local guide covers the operating side.

Putting it together

Price the exit before you commit to it: half the gain at your bracket, computed after the uplift and the deductions, with nothing withheld and the bill arriving the following year. What the property earned while you held it is in the rental income tax guide and the Rental Yield Index, and what it cost to hold is in the Annual Cost of Owning data page. Portugal Property Invest is an independent advisory and referrer, not a tax adviser; we connect sellers to licensed Portuguese accountants and lawyers, and every figure here should be confirmed for your own case before you act. Verified 19 August 2026; the reinvestment-relief position is under active dispute and this page will be updated as it moves.

Sources

Oficio Circulado n.º 20255/2023, Autoridade Tributária - the AT's own instruction on non-resident property gains after the 2023 alignment. portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
CIRS arts. 43.º, 50.º, 51.º, 60.º (50% inclusion; coefficient; deductible categories; filing window) and Lei n.º 24-D/2022 (revocation of the flat non-resident rate) - consolidated code, verified 19 August 2026. portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
Portaria n.º 382/2025/1, de 11 de novembro - the coefficient table in force, applying to 2025 disposals; the 2026 table is not yet published. portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
Informação Vinculativa PIV_29065 (March 2026) - the AT position on reinvestment relief for non-residents, as reported by ECO (24 March 2026) and idealista/news (26 March 2026). eco.sapo.pt
CIRS art. 10.º n.º 19 (redação DL 97/2026) - the three-year Category B rule after AL use.
PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries, Portugal - corroborating secondary source. taxsummaries.pwc.com

Frequently asked questions

How much tax do I pay if I sell a property in Portugal as a non-resident?: Half the gain, at progressive rates. Since 1 January 2023, 50% of the capital gain enters the IRS base under article 43 of the tax code, and it is taxed at the general progressive rates, 12.5% to 48% in 2026, instead of the old flat 28% for non-residents, which Lei 24-D/2022 revoked. Your worldwide income is declared and counted only to determine which bracket applies to the Portuguese gain; it is not itself taxed in Portugal. The practical effect: the base is now the same as a resident’s, but a seller with a substantial foreign income is often pushed into higher brackets and can pay more than the old flat rate, not less. Verified 19 August 2026; confirm your own case with a licensed Portuguese tax adviser.
What is the 85-15 rule in Portugal?: It has nothing to do with property. The 85/15 rule is a pension rule: where a private pension or annuity payment mixes your own already-taxed contributions with investment growth and the two cannot be separated, Portugal treats 15% of each payment as taxable income and 85% as a tax-free return of your capital, generally where the pension was funded by your own taxed contributions. For a property sale the number you want is different: 50% of the gain enters the tax base. If you saw the 85/15 rule mentioned on a property page, it was a mix-up.
What can I deduct from a capital gain in Portugal?: Three categories, all under article 51 of the tax code and all needing invoices in the seller’s name. First, documented improvement works carried out in the 12 years before the sale. Second, the necessary costs of the original purchase, which in practice includes the IMT and stamp duty you paid when buying, plus notary and registry fees. Third, the necessary costs of the sale itself, in practice the estate agent’s commission, typically around 5% plus VAT at 23% and negotiable, and the mandatory energy certificate, provided the same cost was not already deducted against rental income. The purchase price itself is first uplifted by an official inflation coefficient where you owned the property for more than 24 months. The statute defines these as categories of necessary expenses rather than a closed list, so keep every document and let your accountant classify the edge cases.
Is any tax withheld when a non-resident sells in Portugal?: No. Unlike Spain, where the buyer must withhold 3% of the price when the seller is a non-resident, Portugal has no withholding of any kind on property sale proceeds; capital gains are simply not in the withholding article of the tax code. You receive the full price at completion and the tax is assessed only after you file the following spring, which in practice means the bill lands months after the money arrived. Set the tax aside at completion; spending it is the classic mistake.
Can I avoid the tax by reinvesting in a new home?: For non-residents this is now genuinely contested, and you should not rely on a simple yes. The statute lets a seller exclude the gain on their own permanent home if the proceeds are reinvested in another permanent home in Portugal, the EU or the EEA, within 24 months before or 36 months after the sale, with the sold home evidenced as their permanent residence through their tax domicile in the 12 months before the transfer. But in a binding information published in March 2026, PIV_29065, the Portuguese tax authority took the position that a non-resident cannot use the relief at all, because a non-resident does not have a permanent own residence in Portugal. That position is administrative rather than settled law, arbitration case law has read the test more generously, and there is a live EU-law argument against it, so the honest answer is: if you have already emigrated, assume the relief is closed to you and take professional advice before you sign anything that depends on it.
When do I file and pay after selling?: You report the sale on Anexo G of the Modelo 3 return, filed exclusively online between 1 April and 30 June of the year after the sale, and the deadline does not roll forward if 30 June falls on a weekend. A double-tax treaty almost never removes the Portuguese filing obligation, because treaties give the country where the property sits the first right to tax it, and that is Portugal; the treaty works in your home country instead, relieving the double tax there. After the change described above you also declare your worldwide income in the return, for rate-setting only. The assessment and payment follow the filing, typically landing 10 to 20 months after completion.
I ran my property as an Alojamento Local. Does that change the tax when I sell?: It can change it a lot. Under article 10(19) of the tax code, in its May 2026 wording, if you sell within three years of transferring the property back from AL business use into your private ownership, the gain is taxed under business-income rules, which means the 50% exclusion does not apply and the whole gain is exposed. Improvement costs incurred while the property was allocated to the AL activity are also excluded from the deductible-works uplift. Moving the property in or out of AL use is not itself a taxable event; the three-year clock after leaving AL is what matters. If you are winding down an AL before a sale, the timing decision is worth real money and professional advice.

Weighing selling against letting?

Gross yields by municipality from official INE data, and the 2026 rental tax rules that changed the arithmetic.

Rental Yield Index Complete buyer guide