Inheritance and Wills in Portugal for Foreigners: Brussels IV, the Legítima, Imposto do Selo, and How to Draft a Portuguese Testamento in 2026

Few areas of Portuguese law catch foreign residents more off-guard than the rules around inheritance and wills. The default Portuguese regime is built around forced heirship — a legal doctrine common to Romance-law countries but unfamiliar to anyone arriving from the UK, the US, or other common-law jurisdictions, where freedom of testation is the norm. The country also operates without a true inheritance tax, but it does levy a 10% stamp duty on most non-family transfers; the family exemptions matter more than the rate.

This guide covers everything an expat needs to know in 2026 — including the Brussels IV election of national law, the recent TCAS ruling on capital gains for inherited homes sold before partition, and the government's pending two-year acceptance reform that would cut the deadline from ten years to two and let a single heir force the sale of a deadlocked property.

The Two Laws That Decide Your Estate

For a foreign national resident in Portugal, two legal systems can compete to govern your succession.

1. Portuguese law (default). Under EU Regulation 650/2012, known informally as the Brussels IV Regulation, the law of the deceased's habitual residence at the time of death applies by default. Habitual residence is interpreted as where the deceased had their centre of life — which, for a long-term resident with a Portuguese tax address, social-security registration, and a home in the country, is almost always Portugal.

2. The law of your nationality (election). Brussels IV allows you to elect in your will that the law of your country of nationality govern your succession instead. The choice must be expressed clearly and explicitly, normally by inserting a professio iuris clause into a Portuguese or foreign will. Multiple nationalities give you a choice between any of them.

This election is the single most important decision a foreigner can make about their Portuguese estate. Without it, the forced-heirship rules of the Código Civil apply — and they meaningfully reduce your freedom to distribute your assets.

The Legítima — Portugal's Forced-Heirship Rule

The legítima — defined in Article 2156 of the Código Civil as "the portion of the estate that the testator cannot dispose of, because it is legally destined for reserved heirs" — is the cornerstone of Portuguese succession law.

The reserved heirs (herdeiros legitimários) are, in this order:

• Spouse
• Descendants (children, grandchildren if a child has died)
• Ascendants (parents, then grandparents) — only relevant if there are no descendants

Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, cousins and friends are not reserved heirs. They inherit only if there is a will granting them a share, or by legal succession in the absence of closer relatives.

The split between legítima and quota disponível

The estate is conceptually divided in two:

• The legítima (the indisponible portion) — reserved by law for the heirs above.
• The quota disponível (the free portion) — the slice you can leave to anyone in your will.

The exact split depends on who survives:

• Spouse and descendants — legítima is two-thirds; the quota disponível is one-third.
• Spouse and ascendants (no descendants) — legítima is one-half.
• Spouse only — legítima is one-half.
• Descendants only, no spouse — legítima is one-half if a single child, two-thirds if two or more.
• Ascendants only, no spouse or descendants — legítima is one-half for parents, one-third for further ascendants.

The will, the gifts you made during life, and any beneficiary designations on insurance and pensions all have to fit inside the quota disponível. If you exceed it, the reserved heirs can sue to reduce the over-disposed share — the acção de redução das liberalidades inoficiosas.

Why the Brussels IV Election Matters So Much

For a UK, US, Canadian, Australian, Irish, or any other common-law national who would normally enjoy full freedom of testation, the Portuguese forced-heirship rules can be a shock. By electing your national law in a Portuguese will, you can:

• Disinherit a child or remote relative if your home jurisdiction allows it.
• Divide assets in proportions that would breach the legítima under Portuguese law.
• Structure your estate to integrate with trusts, foundations, or other vehicles unavailable in Portuguese law.

The election does not, however, escape Portuguese tax. Imposto do Selo on assets located in Portugal is owed regardless of which civil law governs the succession.

Imposto do Selo — The Tax That Replaced Inheritance Tax

Portugal abolished the historic imposto sobre as sucessões e doações in 2004. In its place, the Imposto do Selo (stamp duty) applies to gratuitous transfers — both inter vivos donations and transfers on death.

The headline rate is 10%. There is a critical exemption.

Family exemption

Transfers (by inheritance or donation) to spouse, civil partner (união de facto recognised), descendants and ascendants are exempt from Imposto do Selo. That is the doctrine that makes Portugal one of the most favourable inheritance regimes in Europe for nuclear-family planning.

Note three nuances:

• The união de facto exemption only applies if the partnership is properly registered at the local Junta de Freguesia (see our marriage and união de facto guide).
• Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, cousins, and friends pay the full 10% on the value of any Portuguese-situated assets they receive.
• The exemption applies to the heirs, not the assets — an exempt heir who inherits cash, securities, real estate, vehicles, or business shares pays nothing.

What is taxed in Portugal

Imposto do Selo is owed on assets located in Portugal. That includes:

• Real estate situated in Portugal.
• Bank accounts and securities held with Portuguese institutions.
• Vehicles registered in Portugal.
• Shares in Portuguese companies.

Assets held abroad by a deceased Portuguese resident are not subject to Imposto do Selo, although they may be taxable in the country where they are located. UK estates, for example, can still be liable for UK inheritance tax even if the deceased was resident in Portugal.

Filing and payment

The Modelo 1 do Imposto do Selo — the inheritance/donation declaration — must be filed with the Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira (AT) within three months of the death (or six if the deceased died abroad). Tax, when due, is payable in up to ten instalments.

Capital Gains on Inherited Homes — The TCAS Ruling

One trap that has tripped up multiple foreign families: when an inherited property is sold before the partition of the estate, the Tribunal Central Administrativo Sul ruled in April 2026 that the capital gain is attributable in full to the seller — not the share that would have gone to them after partition.

The ruling, which broke with a June 2025 Supremo precedent, means heirs who agree to a quick sale to liquidate an inheritance can face an unexpected IRS capital-gains bill. The safer path is to complete the formal partition first — even if it takes longer — so that each heir's tax base is calculated against their actual share. See our coverage of the inheritance reform bill for the broader context.

Drafting a Portuguese Testamento

Portuguese law recognises three forms of will:

• Testamento público — drawn up by a notary, signed in front of witnesses, registered with the Conservatória and stored at the notary. The most common form for foreigners. Cost: roughly €200–€350, depending on complexity.
• Testamento cerrado — written privately (usually with legal help), then sealed and presented to a notary for formal acceptance. Less common; useful for confidentiality.
• Testamento internacional — under the 1973 Washington Convention, valid across signatory states. Useful for residents who own assets in multiple jurisdictions.

What to include

A solid Portuguese will for a foreigner usually contains:

• A Brussels IV election of national law, in clear and explicit terms.
• An identification of all heirs with full names, dates of birth, and NIFs where available.
• A list of dispositions from the quota disponível.
• Designation of an executor (cabeça-de-casal) — commonly the surviving spouse, an adult child, or a trusted lawyer.
• Clauses on unborn children, stepchildren and the union de facto partner, where relevant.
• Coordination instructions if you also hold a foreign will.

Coordinating a Portuguese will with a foreign will

The cleanest practice is to have a single will that covers your worldwide estate, written in your country of nationality, with a Brussels IV election of national law. The Portuguese authorities will accept it (translated and apostilled) on death.

If you prefer separate wills — one for Portuguese assets, one for non-Portuguese assets — make absolutely sure neither revokes the other. The standard "I revoke all previous wills" clause in many DIY templates can erase a perfectly valid foreign will and leave the foreign estate intestate. A Portuguese notary or solicitor familiar with cross-border estates will draft the revocation clause to apply only to prior Portuguese wills.

What Happens When Someone Dies — The Process

The Portuguese inheritance process unfolds in five stages:

1. Death registration

The death is registered with the Conservatória do Registo Civil within 48 hours, generating the assento de óbito.

2. Habilitação de herdeiros

This is the formal declaration of who the heirs are. It is done by escritura pública at a notary or by habilitação simplificada at the Balcão das Heranças. The cost is around €85–€150.

3. Imposto do Selo declaration

Modelo 1 is filed with AT within three months. Even if the family exemption applies, the declaration is mandatory.

4. Inheritance acceptance — pure or beneficiária

Heirs can accept purely and simply (becoming responsible for any debts of the estate up to the value inherited) or com benefício de inventário (limiting liability to the assets actually received). The current Civil Code allows up to ten years to accept; the government's pending bill cuts that to two.

5. Partition (partilha)

The actual division of assets among heirs. If amicable, by escritura de partilha at a notary. If contested, by judicial partition, which can take years. The pending reform would let a single heir force the sale of an undivided property and divide the proceeds, breaking deadlocks that today can lock a family home for decades.

The Acceptance and Partition Reform — Why It Matters

The reform sent to Parliament in April targets two well-known problems:

• The Portuguese Notarial Council estimates that 500,000 urban properties and 3.4 million rural properties are locked in heranças indivisas — estates accepted but never partitioned, often because one heir refuses to cooperate or cannot be located.
• The current ten-year acceptance window leaves estates in legal limbo for far longer than necessary, freezing properties and bank accounts.

If passed, the reform will:

• Cut the acceptance deadline from ten years to two.
• Allow a single heir to petition the court to force the sale of an undivided immovable property.
• Streamline the habilitação process at the Balcão das Heranças.

For foreigners with Portuguese property, the reform is unambiguously helpful — deadlocks that today require years of litigation will be resolvable through a court-ordered sale.

Property Regimes — The Other Variable

The matrimonial property regime your marriage runs on (see our marriage guide) determines which assets are part of your estate at all:

• Comunhão de adquiridos (default) — assets acquired during marriage are joint; pre-marital assets and inheritances/donations remain separate.
• Separação de bens — everything stays separate; only what you personally own enters your estate.
• Comunhão geral — everything is joint, including pre-marital assets.

For foreigners, the regime in your country of marriage usually carries forward unless you transferred to a Portuguese regime by escritura pública.

Practical Checklist for Foreigners

1. Write a Portuguese will with a Brussels IV election of your national law — or insert that election into your home-country will.
2. Register your união de facto at the Junta de Freguesia if you are unmarried but cohabiting — this unlocks the Imposto do Selo exemption.
3. Get a NIF for every potential heir who does not already have one. The AT cannot process a Modelo 1 without one.
4. Maintain an updated asset inventory — Portuguese bank accounts, property, securities, NIF, social-security number, tax address.
5. Keep your foreign will and Portuguese will coordinated — have both reviewed by a lawyer familiar with cross-border estates.
6. Update after life events — marriage, divorce, birth of a child, acquisition of new nationality.
7. Plan for the partition — if you own property with siblings or a co-owner, consider a pacto de preferência or a corporate vehicle that simplifies the eventual partition.

When to Get Professional Advice

For a single foreigner with no children, no property, and no heirs in Portugal, a basic Brussels IV election in your national will may be enough.

Get a Portuguese solicitador or advogado involved if any of the following apply:

• You own real estate in Portugal.
• You are in a blended family (children from a previous relationship).
• You are in a união de facto rather than a marriage.
• You hold significant cross-border assets, including trusts or foreign business interests.
• You want to disinherit or limit a Portuguese reserved heir.
• You hold or are about to inherit Portuguese rural property — the rules on agricultural and forestry succession have specific quirks.

A Brussels IV election added to a foreign will costs little and saves enormous trouble. A full Portuguese estate plan with a notarised testamento público, coordinated foreign will, and updated property regime is usually a one-off legal cost in the €500–€1,500 range — trivial relative to the value of even a modest Portuguese estate.

Bottom Line

Portugal is one of the most family-friendly inheritance jurisdictions in Europe — spouse and direct descendants pay no inheritance tax, the legal process is well-established, and the EU Brussels IV framework lets you elect your home-country law if the legítima rules do not fit your family. The pending acceptance-and-partition reform will close the worst remaining gap. The single biggest mistake foreigners make is leaving a forced-heirship problem to chance — and that problem is solvable in a single afternoon at a notary.

Sources: Código Civil Português (Articles 2024–2334); Lei n.º 41/2014 (Imposto do Selo); EU Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV); 1973 Washington Convention on the Form of an International Will; Diário da República consolidated legislation; Tribunal Central Administrativo Sul ruling (April 2026); government bill on reform of the inheritance acceptance regime (April 2026).