Moving to Portugal: a step-by-step guide for 2026

How to use this guide

Most relocation advice fails in one of two ways. It is a sales pitch dressed up as a guide, or a list of forty tasks with no sense of order. This page tries to be neither.

It follows the order in which things have to happen, because some steps unlock others. Work through the six steps, then read the sections on tax, housing and regions, which are decisions rather than paperwork. The checklist turns it all into a twelve-month plan.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

If you researched a move a year ago, some of what you read is now wrong. The changes that matter most:

• Family reunification is slower. Since Law 61/2025 took effect on 23 October 2025, most non-EU residents must hold a residence permit for two years before sponsoring family, or 15 months if you lived together for at least 18 months beforehand. Couples and families should apply together.
• Citizenship takes longer. Since 19 May 2026 most people need 10 years of legal residence, or 7 for EU and Portuguese-speaking countries, counted from the day your first residence permit is issued.
• Non-resident buyers pay more. Since 25 May 2026 non-residents pay a flat 7.5% transfer tax (IMT) on residential property.
• NHR is gone. Its successor, IFICI, suits far fewer people. More on that below.
• Thresholds rose. The minimum wage is €920 a month in 2026, and visa income rules are pegged to it.

The six steps, in order

1. Choose the right visa (or confirm you need none)

   EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no visa. If you stay beyond three months, register at your local câmara municipal for a registration certificate. Everyone else needs a national (D-type) visa from the Portuguese consulate in their country of residence before travelling. A tourist stay cannot be converted once you arrive.

   D7: passive income

   €920per month, main applicant, 2026

   For pensions, rents, dividends and similar income. Add 50% for a spouse and 30% per child, so a couple needs €1,380. Consulates also expect meaningful savings, often held in a Portuguese account.

   D8: digital nomad

   €3,680per month, averaged over 3 months

   For remote employees and freelancers whose clients or employer are outside Portugal. You also need savings of at least €11,040.

   Other routes include the D2 for entrepreneurs, the D3 for highly qualified jobs and student visas. The Golden Visa still exists but no longer accepts property purchases. Treat every income threshold as a legal floor, not a budget.

2. Get your NIF

   The número de identificação fiscal is your tax number, and nearly everything asks for it: the bank, the lease, the phone contract, the visa file. You can get one at a Finanças office or, from abroad, through a representative. Non-EU non-residents with a tax relationship in Portugal normally need a fiscal representative, though once you have Portal das Finanças access you may be able to switch to electronic notifications instead.

3. Open a Portuguese bank account

   Bring your NIF, passport, proof of address and proof of income. Several banks open accounts remotely, and many visa applicants need one before the consulate appointment to show funds. Expect questions about where your money comes from, and compare monthly fees.

4. Apply, arrive, and meet AIMA

   A D visa is normally valid for four months and exists to get you in the door. The residence permit itself comes from AIMA, usually at an appointment arranged during the visa process. AIMA has nine months to decide, extendable in complex cases. Keep every letter and receipt: since May 2026, the date your permit is issued starts your citizenship clock.

5. Register for healthcare

   With your residence permit and NIF, visit the health centre (centro de saúde) for your address and ask for a número de utente. Registration is free. It does not guarantee a family doctor: at the end of 2025, about 1.56 million people in Portugal had none. Many newcomers keep private insurance for that reason.

6. Settle into the yearly rhythm

   Spend more than 183 days here, or make Portugal your habitual home, and you become tax resident. Update your address with Finanças and expect to file an annual IRS return each spring. If you will work locally, get a social security number (NISS) too. For driving licences, check with IMT, the transport authority, which confusingly shares its initials with the property tax.

Tax: IFICI replaced NHR, and it helps fewer people

The old Non-Habitual Resident regime is closed to newcomers. Its replacement, IFICI, sometimes sold as "NHR 2.0", offers a flat 20% rate on qualifying Portuguese employment and self-employment income, and exempts most foreign income, for ten years.

The catch is who qualifies. You must not have been tax resident in Portugal in the previous five years, and you must work in a covered activity: research, higher education, certified startups and certain high-value or technical roles at eligible companies. You register through the Portal das Finanças, by 15 January of the year after you become resident.

Pensions are not covered. Most retirees on a D7 are taxed at Portugal's normal progressive rates, which reach 48% at the top, with the tax treaty between Portugal and your home country deciding who taxes what. Remote freelancers do not qualify automatically either. If anyone tells you your pension will be tax-free here, ask which law says so, then book a certified accountant (contabilista certificado) before you move, because the date you become resident matters.

Renting vs buying

Rent first, ideally for six to twelve months. You will learn which town suits you, how a house copes with a wet winter, and how far the supermarket really is. There is also a tax reason: non-residents now pay a flat 7.5% IMT on homes, refundable only in set cases, such as becoming tax resident within two years.

Expect landlords to ask for a deposit plus several months' rent in advance, or a Portuguese guarantor (fiador), especially if you have no local payslips. Insist on a written contract registered with Finanças; it doubles as proof of address for AIMA.

When you do buy, budget for IMT (progressive for residents, with primary homes below about €104,000 exempt), 0.8% stamp duty, notary and registry fees, an independent lawyer, and annual municipal property tax (IMI). Check the habitation licence, and for rural property, whether any building on the land is legally registered.

Choosing a region beyond Lisbon and the Algarve

Lisbon and the Algarve get most of the attention and most of the price pressure. The rest of the country is often where people find the life they came for.

Whichever region you favour, ask the same questions of any address:

• How far is the nearest hospital with an emergency department?
• Is fibre broadband available at this exact address?
• How is the house heated, and how damp does it get in January?
• Is the area at wildfire risk, and what does insurance cost?
• Could you manage daily life here in Portuguese?

Cost of living: plan with your numbers, not averages

Portugal is cheaper than much of Western Europe, but local wages are low and housing costs have climbed fast. Averages hide more than they reveal, so build your own budget around six lines: housing, utilities, transport, healthcare, tax and one-off setup costs.

Utilities often run higher than expected, because many older homes are poorly insulated. Outside the cities a car is usually essential. Setup costs such as deposits, advance rent, furniture and legal fees routinely surprise people. A sensible buffer is a year of living costs in savings on arrival.

Your 12-month checklist

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