Portugal
Lisbon · Southern Europe
An EU and Schengen member on the Atlantic coast with a mild climate, comparatively low costs for Western Europe, and two explicit long-stay routes for people whose income comes from outside the country. Health cover and housing are the two areas applicants most often underestimate.
- European Union
- Schengen Area
- Eurozone
- Capital
- Lisbon
- Currency
- EUR €
- Language
- Portuguese
- Population
- 10.6M
- Long-stay routes
- 5
- Route to permanent residence
- Yes
- Unemployment
- 6.4%
- Drives on the
- Right
Euro
2024 estimate
Soonest, 5 years
2025, indicative
+351
Entry and short stays
What your passport allows before any long-stay permission is involved.
Reading your passport selection…
Can I live here?
Every long-stay route this country publishes, checked against what you tell us. The checking happens in your browser.
About you
Stored in this browser only. Never sent anywhere.
Before tax, in the currency you earn.
Reading your answers…
Nothing here is an approval, and nothing here is advice. Only the authority deciding your application can tell you the answer, and it will weigh things this tool does not model.
Long-stay routes
Stored as structured records, so the same data drives the checks above, the comparison view and the checklists.
D8 remote work residence visa
Remote workA residence route for people who earn their income from employers or clients outside Portugal. It is a genuine residence permit, not a long tourist stay: it makes you tax resident, and it counts towards permanent residence and, in time, citizenship.
- Income needed
- €3,680 a month
- Leads to settlement
- After 5 years
D7 passive income residence visa
Retirement and passive incomeThe long-standing route for people living on a pension, rental income, dividends or other regular passive income. The income bar is far lower than the D8, but the income has to be genuinely passive and reliably documented.
- Income needed
- €920 a month
- Leads to settlement
- After 5 years
EU, EEA and Swiss free movement
Freedom of movementCitizens of the EU, EEA and Switzerland do not need a visa or a residence permit. Staying beyond three months means registering with the local council and meeting the conditions in the free movement directive.
- Income needed
- Not stated
- Leads to settlement
- After 5 years
For people accepted onto a course at a recognised Portuguese institution. Holders may work part-time, and time spent studying counts towards permanent residence, though at a reduced rate in some assessments.
- Income needed
- €920 a month
- Leads to settlement
- After 5 years
Family reunification
FamilyLets a legal resident bring a spouse or partner, dependent children and, in defined circumstances, dependent parents. Rules in this area were tightened in 2025, so timing and qualifying periods need checking carefully.
- Income needed
- Not stated
- Leads to settlement
- After 5 years
Cost of living
An estimate you can shape. It is not survey data and it is not a quote.
| Category | Monthly range |
|---|---|
| Housing | €700 – €1,300 |
| Food | €250 – €420 |
| Utilities | €90 – €170 |
| Internet | €30 – €50 |
| Transport | €40 – €110 |
| Healthcare | €50 – €140 |
| Everything else | €180 – €400 |
| Total | €1,340 – €2,590 |
| Suggested monthly buffer | €3,108 |
Modelled from a baseline for one adult and scaled, not sampled from households. Figures are shown as ranges because that is the honest shape of the data.
Worth knowing. A modelled estimate, not a survey. Country-wide figures conceal a large gap between Lisbon and the interior — use the city pages where they exist.
Housing
There is no general restriction on foreign nationals buying property, and no residence requirement to do so. Buying property does not by itself grant any right to live in Portugal.
What landlords usually ask for
- Portuguese tax number (NIF)
- Proof of income, often two to three times the rent
- A Portuguese guarantor, or several months of rent paid in advance instead
- Portuguese bank account for the standing order
Idealista (opens in a new tab)Imovirtual (opens in a new tab)Casa SAPO (opens in a new tab)
Worth knowing. Market conventions rather than legal requirements; they vary by landlord and city.
Healthcare
A national health service (SNS) funded from general taxation, alongside a substantial private sector that most residents on long-stay permits use for anything non-urgent because of public waiting times.
- If you live there
- Legal residents can register at a local health centre and receive an SNS user number, giving access at subsidised cost.
- If you are visiting
- Emergency care is provided to anyone. EU, EEA and Swiss visitors are covered by the European Health Insurance Card; everyone else should hold travel or private medical insurance.
Tax
- Tax residency threshold
- 183 days
- Taxes worldwide income
- Yes, for residents
- Income tax range
- 13% – 48%
- VAT or sales tax
- 23%
You are generally tax resident if you spend more than 183 days in Portugal in any twelve-month period, or if you keep a home there in circumstances implying it is your habitual residence.
Remote workers. A D8 holder living in Portugal is tax resident there. Whether your home country also taxes you depends on its own rules and on any double taxation treaty — US citizens in particular remain subject to US filing obligations regardless of residence.
Social insurance. Employees and the self-employed contribute to Segurança Social. Self-employed contributions are assessed on relevant income and there is generally an exemption in the first year of activity.
Capital gains. Gains on securities are generally taxed at a flat rate, with an option to be taxed at progressive rates. Property gains are treated differently, with relief where a main home is reinvested.
Special regimes
Incentivised tax status for scientific research and innovation (IFICI)
The regime that replaced the former non-habitual resident scheme for new arrivals. It offers a reduced rate on qualifying employment and self-employment income for people in defined activities. Eligibility is narrower than the scheme it replaced.
Worth knowing. A general orientation only. Portuguese tax rules changed materially in 2024 and 2025, and individual outcomes depend on treaties and personal circumstances. Confirm with the Autoridade Tributária and a qualified adviser.
Work and the labour market
Conditions in the labour market, which is a different claim from how many jobs are open right now. This product does not pretend to know the second from static data.
- Unemployment
- 6.4%
- Youth unemployment
- 20%
- Average earnings
- €1,600 / mo
- Minimum wage
- €920 / mo
Worth knowing. Indicative figures for orientation. Labour statistics lag by one to two years and definitions differ between national and ILO measures — read the live series for current values.
Sectors
- Technology and shared servicesgrowingLisbon and Porto host a large number of international engineering and shared-service centres.
- Tourism and hospitalitystableA major employer, strongly seasonal and concentrated on the coast.
- Health and social caregrowingPersistent demand, with recognition of foreign qualifications the main barrier.
- Renewable energygrowingSignificant wind and solar capacity with continuing investment.
Cities
A country-wide average hides a lot. Where we have city data, use it instead.
Lisbon
The capital and the centre of the country’s international job market. Rents have risen faster than local wages for a decade, and it is materially more expensive than anywhere else in Portugal.
One adult, monthly: €1,900 – €2,900
Porto
The second city, on the Douro. Cheaper than Lisbon with a comparable international community and a growing technology sector, though the rental market has tightened sharply.
One adult, monthly: €1,600 – €2,400
Braga
A university city in the north with noticeably lower housing costs and a smaller international population.
One adult, monthly: €1,300 – €1,900
Sources
Every claim on this page traces to one of these. If something here matters to a decision you are making, read it there.
Authorities for Portugal
- AIMA — residence permits and in-country immigration procedures (opens in a new tab)AIMA — Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo · National immigration authority
- Portal dos Vistos — national visa categories and consular applications (opens in a new tab)Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros · Foreign ministry
- Lei n.º 23/2007 — entry, stay, exit and removal of foreign nationals (as amended) (opens in a new tab)Diário da República · Government department
- Retribuição mínima mensal garantida — the national minimum wage that several income thresholds are a multiple of (opens in a new tab)Diário da República · Government department