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- Tax, Live in Portugal
The IRS Tax Return in Portugal: Who Must File, Deadlines, Automatic IRS and Exemptions
📝 The Return (Article 57)
Taxpayers must file an annual return with all income received in the previous year, using the Modelo 3 form and the annexes that apply:
- Annex A — employment and pension income (Portuguese)
- Annex B — self-employed income (simplified regime)
- Annex C — self-employed income (organised accounting)
- Annex E — capital income (when aggregated)
- Annex F — rental income
- Annex G / G1 — capital gains
- Annex H — tax benefits and deductions
- Annex J — foreign income
- Annex L — NHR and IFICI
Married couples and unmarried partners can file separately or jointly.
Residents who hold assets in tax havens must also report them in the return.
📅 The Deadline (Article 60)
- The return is filed online, between 1 April and 30 June of the following year
- It applies to all categories of income
- Filing late leads to fines, which are reduced if you regularise voluntarily
- You can file a replacement return (declaração de substituição) to correct errors — within the deadline without penalty, or later with a reduced fine
Where to file (Article 61): the IRS return is filed online on the Portal das Finanças. Other returns and documents can also be delivered at any tax office or sent by post to the tax office of your tax address.
After filing, the tax authority assesses the tax. Refunds are usually paid within weeks; if there’s tax to pay, the deadline is usually 31 August.
🤖 Automatic IRS (Article 58-A)
Many taxpayers don’t need to fill in anything: the tax authority prepares a provisional assessment based on the information it already has. It’s available for residents with, for example:
- Only employment and/or pension income earned in Portugal
- Simple situations covered by the system (in recent years extended to some self-employed under the simplified regime and to IRS Jovem)
You just confirm it. If you don’t confirm or file by 30 June, the provisional assessment generally becomes final. Not eligible: people with foreign income, rental income, capital gains, NHR or IFICI, among others.
✅ Who Doesn't Need to File? (Article 58)
You’re exempt from filing if, during the year, you only received:
- Income taxed at liberatory rates (final withholding), if you don’t want to aggregate it
- Employment and/or pension income up to €8,500, with no withholding (alone or with liberatory-rate income)
- Isolated acts up to 4 × IAS (€2,148.52 in 2026), alone or with liberatory-rate income
- CAP agricultural subsidies up to 4 × IAS (under conditions)
The exemption doesn’t apply if you:
- Opt for joint taxation
- Receive annuities that aren’t pensions
- Receive income in kind (such as a company car)
- Receive alimony above €4,104
- Hold assets in tax havens
Non-residents whose only Portuguese income was taxed at liberatory rates are also generally exempt from filing.
📌 First Year in Portugal
- If you became resident during the year, you’ll usually file two parts: as a non-resident (until the arrival date) and as a resident (from that date) — indicated in the return
- Your worldwide income from the residency date must be declared
- Check whether you can apply for IFICI, IRS Jovem or the ex-resident regime in this first return
💡 Practical Tips
- Check e-Fatura by the end of February.
- Confirm your household composition on the Portal das Finanças.
- Simulate separate and joint taxation before submitting.
- Foreign income? Gather certificates of foreign tax paid.
- Don’t leave it to the last week — the portal is busier in June.
🚀 Final Considerations
The IRS return is simpler than it looks for many taxpayers — some only need to confirm the automatic IRS, and others don’t have to file at all. But for anyone with foreign income, rents, capital gains or special regimes, a careful return is essential.
📢 Expert Advice: In your first year in Portugal, don’t rely on the automatic IRS. Make sure your residency date and foreign income are correctly declared.
Need help with your IRS return? Step Inside Portugal’s tax team can prepare and submit it for you — find out more about our tax services here. ✨
This article is for general information only and doesn’t constitute tax advice. Amounts as of 2026.
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