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Using Casa Pronta to Buy or Sell a Home in Portugal

Researched and written with AI tools from official sources. How we make our guides

Sign the sale, pay the taxes, and register a home at one registry counter in Portugal: the €375 and €700 Casa Pronta fees, what to bring, and how to book.

The Portugal Brief 7 min read

Using Casa Pronta to Buy or Sell a Home in Portugal

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

  • You are buying or selling a home in Portugal and want a simple, fixed-price way to sign the deed.
  • You are taking out or moving a mortgage, gifting a property, or splitting a building into flats.
  • You live in Portugal or are buying from abroad, from the EU or outside it.

Not for you if: you want the whole buying process, the checks, and the taxes. Read Buying Property in Portugal as a Foreigner instead.

Casa Pronta is a one-stop counter at Portuguese land registry offices. In one appointment, the registry prepares the sale document, collects the property transfer tax (IMT) and stamp duty, and registers the home in the buyer's name. You do not need a notary. A sale with one registration costs €375. A purchase with a mortgage, which needs more than one registration, costs €700. Each extra property adds €50. Taxes are paid on top. You book through the justice ministry's online booking service.

What Casa Pronta covers

Anyone can use Casa Pronta. It handles these acts:

  • buying and selling (compra e venda);
  • a purchase with a bank loan and mortgage;
  • a loan or mortgage on a home you already own;
  • moving your mortgage to another bank (sub-rogação);
  • handing over a property to settle a debt (dação em pagamento);
  • gifts (doação) and swaps (permuta);
  • splitting a building into separate flats (propriedade horizontal);
  • dividing a jointly owned property;
  • a purchase with financial leasing.

It works for urban, rural, and mixed property. Since 2009 any Casa Pronta counter can handle a property anywhere in Portugal. You can buy a house in Bragança at a counter in Porto.

The registry uses standard contract templates. If your deal has unusual terms, the counter may not be able to use a template. A notary or lawyer can then prepare the deed instead. See Using a Notary and Certifying Documents in Portugal.

What it costs

ActFee
A deal with one registration, such as a cash sale€375
A deal with more than one registration, such as a sale with a mortgage€700
Each extra property€50

The fee covers the document and the registration. On top, the buyer pays:

  • IMT, the property transfer tax, from 0% to 8% on a home you will live in, or a flat 7.5% if you have never been tax resident in Portugal;
  • stamp duty of 0.8% on the purchase;
  • stamp duty on a mortgage of 0.6% for a loan of five years or more, or 0.5% for one to five years.

IMT and stamp duty are charged on the price or the tax value (VPT), whichever is higher. See Buying Property in Portugal as a Foreigner for the rates and examples. If you are 35 or under, see Claiming the Under-35 IMT and Stamp Duty Exemption.

Notaries set their own prices for deeds, and lawyers and solicitors set their own fees. Ask for written quotes if you want to compare.

Before you book: the preference notice

Some public bodies, such as the State, town halls, and the heritage authority, have a legal right to buy certain properties before anyone else. Instead of asking each one, the seller can post a single notice online on the Casa Pronta website. It costs €15.

The public bodies then have 10 working days to say they want to use their right, or less if the law gives them a shorter time. If they say nothing in time, their right ends. You can check the notice's status online, and the registry checks it on the day.

This notice covers public bodies only. Private holders of a preference right, such as a tenant or a co-owner, must be told in the usual way. See Understanding the Right of First Refusal.

What to bring

The justice ministry lists:

  • ID and tax numbers for every seller, buyer, and other party;
  • the ficha técnica da habitação, if the home has one;
  • proof of the use licence, or that none is needed, for buildings from after 7 August 1951, or older ones changed since;
  • the energy certificate.

Bring also:

The registry checks the tax record, the registry record, and many other details directly in public databases where it can.

Your NIF. Every party needs a Portuguese tax number. See Getting a NIF (Tax Number) in Portugal.

Foreign documents. A document in a foreign language must be translated as the law requires. The exception is a document in English, French, or Spanish, if the registry officer knows that language. See Getting a Certified Translation in Portugal. If you do not speak Portuguese well, ask when you book whether you need an interpreter.

What must be true for Casa Pronta to work

  • The property is described at the land registry.
  • There is no doubt about what the property is. Small differences between the registry and the tax record, such as a street name, can be fixed on the spot.
  • The seller is the registered owner, with a final (not provisional) registration.
  • There is no doubt about who owns it.

If something is missing, the registry can refuse. You can then choose a new appointment and keep what was already done.

How to book

You book through the justice ministry's appointment service (SIGA), online or on the sigaApp mobile app. Choose a Casa Pronta service and a registry office. The ministry publishes no official waiting time, so book early.

What happens on the day

The law says the registry must start and finish the procedure on the same day, in one appointment. In order, the registry:

  1. checks everyone's identity and their right to sign;
  2. records the request in the registry's daily log;
  3. prepares the documents from the template you chose, then reads and explains them (you can ask to skip the reading);
  4. works out the IMT and other taxes and makes sure they are paid before signing;
  5. collects its fee;
  6. collects the signatures;
  7. registers the purchase and any mortgage at once.

The planning title. Since August 2026, the sale document must record one of three things. The use licence or other planning title was shown, the seller says there is one, or the seller says there is none. See Checking a Property's Habitation Licence.

Extra requests. If you ask, the registry can also:

  • change your tax address to the new home;
  • apply for the IMI exemption for a permanent home;
  • register or update the property with the tax office.

What you leave with. You receive, free of charge, a certified copy of the documents, a land registry certificate code for the property, and receipts for what you paid. See Getting a Property Registry Certificate (Certidão Permanente).

The keys are a private matter between buyer and seller. Agree in the promissory contract when they will be handed over. See Signing a Promissory Contract (CPCV) to Buy a Home.

Casa Pronta, a notary, or a lawyer?

There are three ways to sign a property deal:

  • Casa Pronta, at a registry office, at a fixed fee.
  • A public deed (escritura) at a notary.
  • An authenticated private document (DPA), prepared by a lawyer, solicitor, notary, registry office, or chamber of commerce.

All three have the same effect. Casa Pronta does not give legal advice. The registry officer prepares and explains the document but does not act for you. Hire your own lawyer or solicitor to check the property and the contract before the day. See What a Solicitador Does in Portugal.

Tips

  • Clear problems first. An unregistered extension, an unsettled inheritance, or a mismatch between records can stop the appointment.
  • Post the preference notice early. Allow at least 10 working days before the appointment.
  • Line up the bank. For a mortgage, agree the date with your bank, and ask how it will sign the loan documents on the day.
  • Selling? See Selling Your House in Portugal for the tax on any gain.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Use your own lawyer or solicitor for a purchase, and check the official source before you act.

Sources

This guide is written from official sources and, where relevant, organisations' own websites.

Last verified October 2026. Rules and fees change; check the official source before acting.

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