Investing Taxes in Portugal (2026):
CGT, NHR, and what matters for ETF investors
By Francesco Cipolli — Updated October 2026 — tax rules checked against the official texts listed in the source table
Portugal taxes the positive balance between capital gains and capital losses on securities at a 28% autonomous rate, and residents can opt to aggregate that balance with their other income and use the progressive rates instead. Since Lei n.º 31/2024, part of the gain on listed securities and open-ended fund units is excluded from tax once the position has been held for more than two years. Each rule below is linked to the official text in the source table.
Some of the links on this site are affiliate links, meaning we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you if you sign up through them. This does not affect our reviews or recommendations — we only feature products we genuinely believe are useful for investors. This site provides educational content only, not personalized investment advice. Investments can lose value and past performance does not guarantee future results. You are responsible for your own financial decisions and for confirming the tax and legal rules that apply in your country.
Portugal at a glance
- A holding-period reduction excludes part of the gain on listed securities and open-ended fund units held more than two years.
- Residents can opt to aggregate gains and use the progressive scale, which starts at 12.50%.
- Crypto-assets held for 365 days or more: gains and losses are both excluded from tax, subject to the residence condition in art. 10, n.º 24.
- Capital losses can be carried forward for five years when you opt for, or are required to use, aggregation.
- Short-term gains on securities (held under 365 days) must be aggregated once taxable income, including those gains, reaches the top bracket of €86,634.
- A 35% rate applies to income linked to jurisdictions on Portugal’s list of clearly more favourable tax regimes.
- Leaving Portugal counts as a disposal of crypto-assets for tax purposes.
- New arrivals can no longer register for NHR; its rules continue only for people covered by the transitional provision.
When you become a Portuguese tax resident
Under CIRS art. 16, residence is tested for each year of income.
- More than 183 days: you are resident if you stay in Portugal more than 183 days, consecutive or not, in any 12-month period starting or ending in the year concerned.
- Habitual residence: with a shorter stay, you are also resident if, on any day of that period, you have accommodation in conditions suggesting an intention to keep and occupy it as your habitual residence.
- Day count: any day, complete or partial, that includes an overnight stay in Portugal counts as a day of presence.
- Start date: you become resident from the first day of your stay, unless you were resident on any day of the previous year.
- Worldwide income: residents must declare in Portugal all income obtained in Portugal and abroad.
- Foreign income form: foreign-source income goes on Anexo J of the Modelo 3 return.
- Leaving: residence ends from your last day of presence in Portugal, with exceptions set out in the same article.
The 28% rate, the holding-period reduction and the aggregation option
Under CIRS art. 72, the positive balance between gains and losses on securities, fund units and crypto-assets is taxed at a 28% autonomous rate.
| Income | Rate | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Positive balance of gains and losses on securities and fund units | 28% | art. 72, n.º 1(c) |
| Capital income not withheld in Portugal | 28% | art. 72, n.º 1(d) |
| Gains on crypto-assets held under 365 days | 28% | art. 72, n.º 1(c) |
| Capital income from, and gains on securities issued by, entities in listed jurisdictions | 35% | art. 72, n.º 18 |
Lei n.º 31/2024 rewrote art. 43, n.º 5.
For securities admitted to trading and units in open-ended collective investment undertakings, of contractual or corporate form, the balance of gains and losses from their disposal, whether positive or negative, is counted only in part once the assets have been held for more than two years.
The reduction does not apply to income covered by art. 72, n.º 18(b) and (c).
| Holding period | Share excluded | Share counted |
|---|---|---|
| More than 2 years and less than 5 years | 10% | 90% |
| 5 years or more and less than 8 years | 20% | 80% |
| 8 years or more | 30% | 70% |
Illustrative example: a €10,000 net gain on fund units held for 6 years. Of that, 20% is excluded, so €8,000 is counted. At the 28% autonomous rate the tax is €2,240, against €2,800 without the reduction.
Residents can opt to aggregate (englobamento) these gains with their other income, which then falls under the general rates in art. 68.
| Taxable income | Normal rate |
|---|---|
| Up to €8,342 | 12.50% |
| €8,342 to €12,587 | 15.70% |
| €12,587 to €17,838 | 21.20% |
| €17,838 to €23,089 | 24.10% |
| €23,089 to €29,397 | 31.10% |
| €29,397 to €43,090 | 34.90% |
| €43,090 to €46,566 | 43.10% |
| €46,566 to €86,634 | 44.60% |
| Above €86,634 | 48.00% |
On that scale the normal rate reaches 24.10% in the band ending at €23,089 and 31.10% in the next band, against the flat 28%.
Above €80,000 of taxable income (rendimento coletável), art. 68-A adds a solidarity rate of 2.5% up to €250,000 and 5% above €250,000.
Under art. 55, n.º 1(d), a negative balance from these disposals can be carried forward to the next five years when you opt for, or are required to use, aggregation.
When you sell securities of the same kind carrying identical rights, the ones sold are those acquired first (art. 43, n.º 8(d)). If your securities sit with more than one institution, that rule is applied separately at each one (n.º 9). When securities are transferred between institutions, the sending institution must pass on the acquisition date and historical acquisition value where possible (n.º 10).
NHR is closed to new entrants; IFICI is a separate regime
Lei n.º 82/2023 revoked the NHR provisions of art. 16, n.os 8 to 12.
- People already registered as non-habitual residents keep it until their period runs out.
- People who met the residence conditions of art. 16 on 31 December 2023.
- People who became resident by 31 December 2024 and held one of the listed elements, such as a lease signed by 10 October 2023 or a residence visa procedure started by 31 December 2023.
- Family members of the people above.
- Under the former art. 16, the NHR period ran for 10 consecutive years from the year of registration as a resident.
- Registration had to be requested online by 31 March of the year after you became resident.
- A late registration applies from the year it is made, for the remaining part of the period only (art. 236, n.º 5).
- Covers people who become resident under art. 16, n.os 1 and 2, and were not resident in Portugal in any of the five previous years.
- Qualifying activities are listed, including higher-education teaching and scientific research, R&D staff, and jobs at certified startups.
- Income of categories A and B from those activities can be taxed at a special 20% rate for 10 consecutive years from the year of registration as a resident.
- People who benefit or have benefited from NHR cannot use IFICI.
Selling, redeeming and receiving income: which rule applies
Which rule applies depends on whether you sell units, redeem them or receive income from them.
| Event | How the CIRS classes it | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Selling units on the exchange | Disposal of securities (art. 10, n.º 1(b)) | 28% (art. 72, n.º 1(c)) |
| Redeeming units with the fund | Redemption of fund units (art. 10, n.º 1(b), point 5) | 28% (art. 72, n.º 1(c)) |
| Receiving interest or dividends abroad, not withheld in Portugal | Capital income, Anexo J quadro 8 | 28% (art. 72, n.º 1(d)) |
Accumulating vs distributing ETFs covers how the two share classes differ in practice.
Crypto-assets: the 365-day line and the exit rule
Disposals of crypto-assets that are not securities are capital gains under art. 10, n.º 1(k).
Gains and losses on crypto-assets held for 365 days or more are excluded (art. 10, n.º 22). Below 365 days, the net gain falls in the art. 72, n.º 1(c) balance taxed at 28%.
Under art. 10, n.º 24, n.os 19 and 20 do not apply when you, or whoever pays you, are not resident in an EU or EEA state or in a state with a tax treaty or an agreement providing for exchange of tax information. Those were the numbers of the 365-day exclusion and the crypto-for-crypto rule until Decreto-Lei n.º 97/2026 renumbered them as n.os 22 and 23.
When the exclusion does not apply and you receive crypto-assets in exchange, there is no tax at that point, and the crypto-assets received take the acquisition value of those given (n.º 23).
Crypto tax tools reviewed on QuantRoutine: Divly (review) and Koinly (review).
Anexo J: declaring foreign income
Residents must declare all their income in Portugal, whether obtained in Portugal or abroad, on the Modelo 3 return. Foreign-source income goes on Anexo J.
| What | Where in Anexo J |
|---|---|
| Capital income, such as interest and dividends | Quadro 8 |
| Capital gains (incrementos patrimoniais), such as sales of quotas or shares | Quadro 9 |
| Income relating to earlier years | Quadro 10 |
In each quadro you enter the gross income before foreign tax, and any tax paid in the source country. Tax paid in the source country is taken into account as a credit for international double taxation in the final Portuguese assessment. The Modelo 3 filing period runs from 1 April to 30 June of the year after the income year.
IBKR states that an Annual Statement is available to all accounts.
DEGIRO’s helpdesk lists an annual statement for tax purposes among the reports available to clients.
Keep these statements together with the acquisition dates and costs you need for the first-in, first-out and holding-period rules above.
Portugal vs Spain on investment income
Spain’s savings base is taxed under a state scale and an autonomous scale. Added together, the rates start at 19% on the first €6,000 and reach 30% above €300,000.
Portugal applies a single 28% autonomous rate to the positive balance instead, with the option to aggregate. Read the Spain investing taxes guide →
Open a broker account for your ETF portfolio
XTB serves Portugal through XTB S.A.’s Portuguese branch, registered with the CMVM under no. 341. Trade Republic Bank GmbH is licensed as a CRR credit institution supervised by BaFin and operates as one legal entity across its markets, with a branch in Portugal. Investing involves risk of loss.
Official texts behind this page
Every tax-law statement on this page is taken from the official texts below; broker statements come from our verified fee files.
| Source | What it covers | Read on |
|---|---|---|
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 10 (capital gains) | Disposals of securities, fund redemptions and crypto-assets; crypto exclusion and exit rule | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 16 (residence) | Residence tests; revocation of the NHR provisions; transitional rule in Lei n.º 82/2023, art. 236 | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 16, wording in force until December 2023 | Former NHR period and registration deadline | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 43 (capital gains) | Holding-period reduction; first-in, first-out; transfers between institutions; exit value for crypto-assets | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 55 (losses) | Carry-forward of a negative balance | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 68 (general rates) | Progressive rate table | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 68-A (solidarity rate) | Additional solidarity rate | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: CIRS art. 72 (special rates) | Autonomous rate; aggregation option; mandatory aggregation; listed-jurisdiction rate | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: EBF art. 58-A (IFICI) | IFICI eligibility, rate, duration and NHR exclusion | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: Rendimentos no estrangeiro (Anexo J) | Worldwide declaration; Anexo J quadros; gross amounts; filing period | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Portal das Finanças: IRS, foreign income | Credit for tax paid in the source country | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Diário da República: Portaria n.º 292/2025/1 | Jurisdictions removed from the list of clearly more favourable tax regimes | 7 Oct 2026 |
| AEAT (Spain): Practical Guide to Income Tax 2025, state savings scale | State half of the Spanish savings-base scale | 6 Oct 2026 |
| AEAT (Spain): Practical Guide to Income Tax 2025, autonomous savings scale | Autonomous half of the Spanish savings-base scale | 6 Oct 2026 |
Go deeper
Frequently asked questions
What is the capital gains tax rate in Portugal for ETF investors?
Portugal taxes the positive balance between capital gains and capital losses on securities at a 28% autonomous rate (CIRS art. 72, n.º 1(c)). Residents can opt to aggregate it with other income instead (n.º 13). Under art. 43, n.º 5, the excluded share is 10% after more than 2 years, 20% from 5 years and 30% from 8 years.
When is aggregation mandatory in Portugal?
Under art. 72, n.º 14, the balance from disposals of securities held for less than 365 days must be aggregated when your taxable income, including that balance, is equal to or above the top bracket of the art. 68 table, which is €86,634. The balance is then taxed under the progressive scale, whose top normal rate is 48%.
How long can capital losses be carried forward in Portugal?
Under art. 55, n.º 1(d), a negative balance from these disposals can be carried forward to the next five years when you opt for, or are required to use, aggregation.
How do I become a tax resident in Portugal?
Under CIRS art. 16, you are resident if you stay in Portugal more than 183 days, consecutive or not, in any 12-month period starting or ending in the year concerned. With a shorter stay, you are also resident if, on any day of that period, you have accommodation in conditions suggesting an intention to keep and occupy it as your habitual residence.
What happened to the NHR regime in Portugal?
Lei n.º 82/2023 revoked the NHR provisions of art. 16, n.os 8 to 12. Its rules continue for people already registered and for those covered by the transitional provision in art. 236 of that law, such as people who became resident by 31 December 2024 with a lease signed by 10 October 2023. IFICI (EBF art. 58-A) taxes income of categories A and B from listed activities at 20% for 10 consecutive years, and is closed to people who benefit or have benefited from NHR.
How is crypto taxed in Portugal?
Gains and losses on crypto-assets held for 365 days or more are excluded (art. 10, n.º 22). Below 365 days, the net gain falls in the art. 72, n.º 1(c) balance taxed at 28%. Losing Portuguese residence counts as a disposal of crypto-assets (n.º 25).
Do I need to report foreign broker income in Portugal?
Residents must declare all their income in Portugal, whether obtained in Portugal or abroad, on the Modelo 3 return. Foreign-source income goes on Anexo J, with capital income in quadro 8 and capital gains in quadro 9. The Modelo 3 filing period runs from 1 April to 30 June of the year after the income year.
What is the 35% tax rate in Portugal?
A 35% rate applies to capital income owed by, and gains on securities issued by, non-resident entities domiciled in a jurisdiction on the list approved by ministerial order (CIRS art. 72, n.º 18). Portaria n.º 292/2025/1 removed Hong Kong, Liechtenstein and Uruguay from that list (Portaria n.º 150/2004).
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Some of the links on this site are affiliate links, meaning we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you if you sign up through them. This does not affect our reviews or recommendations — we only feature products we genuinely believe are useful for investors. This site provides educational content only, not personalized investment advice. Investments can lose value and past performance does not guarantee future results. You are responsible for your own financial decisions and for confirming the tax and legal rules that apply in your country.