Note: These guidelines are intended only as a summary. Tax laws and regulations change frequently and sometimes unexpectedly. It is strongly recommended that you seek professional advice.

Anyone who buys a property (houses, garages, shops, among others) may have to pay the Municipal Tax on Onerous Transfers of Real Estate (IMT).

To request the IMT exemption, you must fill in IMT Model 1 on the Finance portal. You can consult the City Council of the area where you want to buy the property to find out if you may be entitled to the IMT exemption. The exemption from IMT, as well as Stamp Duty (IS), can also be granted in the case of the first purchase of a property for permanent residence by a person under 35 years old.

The payment of the IMT is made at the time of the deed of the property, unless the person who buys is exempt from payment.

The 2026 values on which the IMT is levied have been upgraded by 2% in the IMT tables for own and permanent housing and IMT Jovem e Habitação.

Whenever the acquirer is a non-resident, the rate will always be 7.5% on the acquisition of an urban building or an autonomous fraction of an urban building intended for housing, with no exemption or reduction applying. Portuguese emigrants are excluded, keeping their rates aligned with other residents. Also excluded from this single IMT rate on the purchase of housing are those who become resident for tax purposes in national territory within two years from the date of acquisition.

The IMT tables vary according to the purpose of the acquired housing. The IMT rates are lower if the property is destined to own and permanent housing, and higher if it is secondary housing or rent.

How to pay Municipal Transfer Tax
IMT - Imposto Imposto Municipal sobre Transmissões Onerosas de Imóveis is levied on the transfer for consideration of ownership rights or of partial ownership on real estate (immovable property).

The taxable person is the person who acquires the property. The payment of this tax must be done at any tax office before the purchase is completed as the document proving its payment is one of the documents required for the Deeds, unless there is an exemption (see below). Or it can be done online on the Finanças website after logging into your personal area:

Cidadãos > Os Seus Serviços > Entregar > Declarações > IMT > Declaração. You need to fill in a form called Modelo1 IMT.

If the transfer takes place abroad, the tax must be paid during the following month.

There is a youtube tutorial in Portuguese on the AT channel with instructions how to pay this together with your Imposto de Selo (Stamp Duty): View video on Youtube.

From 1:45 it is easier to follow, but we suggest you ask a lawyer, realtor, accountant or friend that speaks Portuguese to assist you with this.

Exemptions
Among the different exemptions of both an effective and personal nature provided for different purposes are the following:

Acquisitions made by the State, the Autonomous Regions, local authorities and associations and Federations of municipalities under public law, as well as any of their Services, establishments and bodies, even if personalized, including public institutes, which do not have a business character
Acquisition made by Real Estate Investment Funds 100% owned by the State, by the Autonomous Regions, local authorities and associations and Federations of municipalities under public law, as well as any of their Services, establishments and bodies, even if personalized, including public institutes, which do not have a business character
Acquisition by foreign Governments of property exclusively affected to the respective diplomatic or consular missions or designed to the domicile of the head of such mission or consul, as well as land for its construction, subject to reciprocity
Purchase of real estate property for resale under certain conditions, mainly done by individuals or Companies with resale activity
Acquisition of property by a legal person of public utility or of administrative public utility, a museum, library, school, teaching, educational, cultural, scientific, literary or artistic, charitable or social welfare institutions or associations, if designed to the direct and immediate achievement of their aims
Acquisitions made by Private social solidarity institutions and entities Legally equivalent, direct and to fulfill its statutory purposes.
Acquisitions made for religious purposes by legal persons Religious, as such registered under the law governing freedom of Religious.
The purchase of rustic buildings on the first purchase made by Young farmers who are candidates for subsidies according to the applicable legislatio.
The acquisitions of buildings already classified as buildings of National interest, of public interest or of municipal interest, in accordance Applicable legislation.
Acquisitions located in areas economically disadvantaged, when carried out by commercial or civil companies, to be used for the exercise in those regions in Agricultural or industrial activities considered essential to economic and social development of the region.
Acquisitions of urban buildings for urban rehabilitation under certain requirements provided that, within a period of three years from the date of purchase, the purchaser commences the respective works. The areas for rehabilitation are determined by each Town Hall.
Acquisition of urban property or an autonomous fraction thereof intended exclusively for housing purposes as main residency, provided that the amount on which the tax would be levied does not exceed 106 346 euros (132 933 euros for Madeira and Azores) – this does not apply to non-residents
Buildings with low asset value, intended for own permanent residence, for low-income taxpayers as long as the gross income total household value does not exceed 2.3 x 14 IAS.
IMT Jovem exemption: Young buyers (under 35) are exempt up to 330 539 euros. An IMT exemption (and Stamp Duty) for acquisitions up to 330 539 euros* or a partial exemption (with a rate of 8% levied and adjustment band of 26 443.12 euros) for acquisitions above 330 539 euros and up to 660 982 euros. Between 660 982.01 euros and 1 150 853 euros a flat rate of 6% and above 1 150 853 euros a flat rate of 7,5%, for young people up to the age of 35, who buy their first home. * For Madeira and the Azores this amount is 413 174 euros (with a rate of 8% levied and adjustment band of 33 053.92 euros for amounts from 413 174 euros until 826 228 euros). Between 826 228.01 euros and 1 438 566 euros, a flat rate of 6% and above 1 438 566 a flat rate of 7,5%
This exemption is granted on the first acquisition of a property intended exclusively for own and permanent residence, being a condition that the young buyers are not owners of any residential property on the date of transfer or at any time in the previous three years and that they are not considered dependents for IRS purposes.
Incentive for merging rural land plots (Article 98): Transfers of rural land that are needed to merge neighbouring or adjoining plots are exempt from IMT (property transfer tax) and stamp duty, regardless of how the land is used. To receive this exemption, the owners must apply before the sale or contract takes place and always before the tax would normally be charged.

As a general rule, IMT must be paid on the settlement day or on the 1st following business day.

If payment is not made within this period, the documents will remain without effect and in order to carry out the deed of purchase, you must carry out new settlements and then make the respective payment.

Tax Base
The transfer tax ("IMT”) is levied on the value for which the property in question is transferred. Such value shall be determined in accordance with the following rules:

Normally, the value on which the tax is based is the purchase value, unless the “Valor Patrimonial” which the value registered at the fiscal office at the date of tax assessment is higher.
Whenever a valuation is carried out, the value resulting thereof shall be taken into account and shall prevail unless its price is higher.
There are some special rules concerning, in particular, property acquired by the Government and its local authorities, by way of forced or administrative auction, or expropriated for public utility purposes.

Rates
The general rate is 5% on the transfer of land (prédio rústico) without building permission. Plots of land with licence to build as well as garages and commercial properties are taxed at a flat rate of 6.5%.

Buildings (urban or rural) or other acquisitions, of which the purchaser is resident in a country, territory or region subject to a clearly more favourable tax regime: 10%.

To pay this tax you should bring the Identification of both buyers and sellers, Fiscal numbers of all parts as well as “caderneta predial” or any document with the registration number of the property.

Below the rates for 2026:

RATES IN PORTUGAL MAINLAND – PERMANENT HOME
Amount liable to transfer tax in €	Marginal rate	Adjustment band in Euros
Up to 106 346	0%	0
> 106 346 - 145 470	2%	2 126.92
> 145 470 - 198 347	5%	6 491.02
> 198 347 - 330 539	7%	10 457.96
> 330 539 - 660 982	8%	13 763.35
> 660 982 - 1 150 853	Flat rate of 6%
> 1 150 853	Flat rate of 7.5%

RATES IN PORTUGAL MAINLAND – SECOND HOME
Amount liable to transfer tax in €	Marginal rate	Adjustment band in Euros
Up to 106 346	1%	0
> 106 346 - 145 470	2%	1 063.46
> 145 470 - 198 347	5%	5 427.56
> 198 347 - 330 539	7%	9 394.50
> 330 539 - 633 931	8%	12 699.89
> 633 931 - 1 150 853	Flat rate of 6%
> 1 150 853	Flat rate of 7.5%

To find out how much you have to pay if you are purchasing a property this year and according to the tables above, the purchase price is multiplied by the marginal rate and the adjustment band is deducted from the result.

To simplify this explanation, we have taken as an example a property to be purchased as a permanent residence for €250,000.00 by 1 person over 35 years old.

As you can see the purchase price of €250,000.00 falls on the 4th bracket, therefore the purchase price is multiplied by 7% (the marginal rate) from the result you deduct the amount in the same line.

(250 000 € X 7%) – 10 457.96€ = 7 042.04€

In this case the IMT to pay would be 7 042.04€

There will be also Stamp duty of 0,80% on the purchase price or tax value (whichever is the highest) to be paid on the purchase.

250,000€ X 0.80% = 2 000€

Total to pay: 9 042.04€

Azores and Madeira
When located in the Autonomous Regions of the Azores and Madeira, you may benefit from reduced rates. Below are the rates for the autonomous regions of Madeira and Azores for 2026.

Both regions follow the same bracket logic as the mainland, but the thresholds and parcelas a abater are slightly different due to regional fiscal autonomy.

Information on extraordinary IMI and IMT exemptions for the islands should be consulted in each municipality.

RATES IN MADEIRA AND AZORES – PERMANENT RESIDENCE
Amount liable to transfer tax in €	Marginal rate	Adjustment band in Euros
Up to 130 933	-	0
> 130 933 - 181 838	2%	2 658.66
> 181 838 - 247 934	5%	8 113.80
> 247 934 – 413 174	7%	13 072.48
> 413 174 – 826 228	8%	17 204.22
> 826,228 – 1 438 566	Flat rate of 6%
> 1 438 566	Flat rate of 7.5%

RATES IN MADEIRA AND AZORES – SECOND HOME
Amount liable to transfer tax in €	Marginal rate	Adjustment band in Euros
Up to 132 933	1%	0
> 132 933 – 181 838	2%	1 329.33
> 181 838 – 247 934	5%	6 784.47
> 247 934 – 413 174	7%	11 743.15
> 413 174 – 792 414	8%	15 874.89
> 792 414 – 1 438 566	Flat rate of 6%
> 1 438 566	Flat rate of 7.5%

If the purchaser is a legal person resident in a country, territory or region subject to a clearly more favourable tax regime (Tax haven black-listed + 1 revoked), the IMI, IMT and Stamp Duty rates will have an increased rate. Please ask your tax advisor.

T05E - IMT

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