All of us, in the scope of our professional and personal choices, seek, besides other aspects of personal nature, the most correct choices in the fiscal scope.
With the creation of the Non Habitual Residents Regime, Portugal has created conditions that, together with other factors such as security, climate, and quality of life, allow us to attract non-residents to our country.
In order to better understand this regime, here is a summary of it.
Main issues related to obtaining status:
I – Requirements to obtain the NHR
a) Register as a tax resident in Portugal in the year you change your residence here;
b) Not to have been considered a tax resident in Portugal in the five tax years prior to the one in which they become resident in Portugal;
c) Submit the application for registration under the Non Habitual Resident (NHR) regime by March 31 of the year following the one in which they become tax resident in Portugal.
II – Advantages of the regimen
a) Pensions are subject to a maximum tax rate of 10%;
b) Income from dependent and self-employment earned in the exercise of a high added value activity is subject to a 20% rate. These activities are identified in Ordinance 12/2010, of January 7 (as amended by Ordinance 230/2019, of June 23). Examples of these activities are: Doctors, IT Specialists, Directors, etc.
c) Foreign-source income may be exempt from taxation in Portugal if certain conditions are met. For example, dividends, interest and rental income from a foreign source are exempt from taxation in Portugal, provided they do not originate from tax havens with which Portugal has not entered into a Double Tax Treaty.
III – Duration of the regimen
The regime lasts for 10 fiscal years. Our fiscal year is from January 1 to December 31.
IV – Where to request the application
The request is requested electronically on the Finance Portal, by accessing it using your password.
V – Deadline for requesting enrollment in the NHR
The application for registration must be submitted by March 31 of the year following the one in which you became a tax resident in Portugal.
VI – Enrollment Application Decision
It takes between 1 and 2 business days for the application to be decided.
For more information see the Tax Authority’s information leaflet.
