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Retiring in Portugal

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

How to retire to Portugal: the D7 visa or EU registration, how your pension is taxed, getting into the health service, and the steps in order.

The Portugal Brief 16 min read

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

  • You are retiring from outside the EU (for example the UK, US, Canada, or Brazil) and need a visa.
  • You are an EU, EEA, or Swiss citizen retiring here and want to know what to register.
  • You have a state, workplace, or private pension and want to know how Portugal taxes it.

Not for you if: you will keep working, remotely or for yourself. Read Visas and Residency in Portugal for the work routes.

Updated October 2026. Since 11 September 2026, AIMA, the immigration agency, must decide new residence permits within 90 days.

Retiring to Portugal means sorting out three things: your right to live here, your tax, and your healthcare. If you are not an EU citizen, you need the D7 visa, which asks for income of at least €920 a month in 2026. EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens just register at the town hall. Once you live here, Portugal taxes your pensions at normal income tax rates. The old flat 10% rate for foreign pensions is closed.

Allow six months to a year from first documents to residence card. This guide is the overview, with links to each detailed guide.

Before you move: three things to settle

1. Rent first, then decide where to live. Spend time in the places you are considering, in winter as well as summer. Renting first lets you change your mind cheaply.

2. Get tax advice before you move. You usually become tax resident in Portugal once you spend more than 183 days here in any 12-month period. You also become resident if you have a home here that you intend to keep as your usual home. From then on, Portugal taxes your income from anywhere in the world. The timing of your move, of any pension lump sum, and of selling a home abroad can change what you pay.

3. Gather your income evidence. Collect your pension award letters, recent bank statements, and investment statements. You will need them for the visa or for registration.

If you are not an EU citizen: the D7 visa

The D7 is the residence visa for people who live on their own income. Officially it is the visa for retired people and people living on their own income (reformados e pessoas que vivam de rendimentos próprios). It covers pensions, rent, dividends, interest, and royalties. You cannot use it to take a job here. The full process is in Getting the D7 Retirement and Passive Income Visa for Portugal.

The income you need

The minimum is tied to Portugal's minimum wage, which is €920 a month in 2026. The amounts are net of social security contributions, and you show them for at least 12 months.

Household memberSharePer monthPer year
You100%€920€11,040
A second adult, such as a spouse50%€460€5,520
Each child under 18, or adult child you support30%€276€3,312

A retired couple needs at least €1,380 a month. These are minimums. Consulates look at whether the income is stable and regular, so a higher income or savings make a stronger file.

You must also show that the income is available in Portugal. Most people open a Portuguese bank account first. See Opening a Bank Account in Portugal.

Documents for the consulate

  • The national visa application form, signed.
  • Two recent, identical passport photos.
  • A passport valid for at least three months beyond your planned stay, plus a copy of the photo page.
  • Proof of legal status, if you apply in a country where you are not a citizen.
  • Travel medical insurance covering medical care, emergencies, and repatriation. UK pensioners with an S1 form may not need it.
  • A criminal record certificate from your country of nationality, or from any country where you lived for more than a year, apostilled or legalised.
  • An official statement of your pension amount, and proof you will receive it or have income available in Portugal.
  • Usually, proof of accommodation and your Portuguese tax number (NIF).

Each consulate publishes its own checklist, and some ask for more. Check yours before you book.

Steps and timing

  1. Get a NIF. You do not need a tax representative to get a NIF. Later, once you own property or a car here or work here while living outside the EU and EEA, you must either appoint one or switch on free electronic notifications on the Portal das Finanças. See Getting a NIF (Tax Number) in Portugal and Appointing a Fiscal Representative in Portugal.
  2. Open a Portuguese bank account and move funds into it.
  3. Arrange somewhere to live, such as a lease.
  4. Apply at the Portuguese consulate for the country where you live. The visa fee is €110.
  5. Wait for the decision. By law the consulate has 60 days.
  6. Collect the visa. It is valid for four months and two entries.
  7. Travel to Portugal and attend your AIMA appointment within those four months. AIMA (Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo) issues the residence permit. The consulate books the appointment when it issues the visa.
  8. Pay the AIMA fees (currently €99.80 to assess and €85.80 to grant the permit) and give your fingerprints.
  9. Wait for your card. AIMA must decide within 90 days, extendable by 30 in exceptional cases.

Keeping your permit

Your first permit lasts two years. After that you renew it for three years at a time. AIMA can cancel a temporary permit if you are away, without good reason, for six months in a row or eight months in total during its validity.

After five years of legal residence you can apply for permanent residence. You need basic Portuguese (level A2). See Getting Permanent Residence in Portugal.

The Golden Visa

The Golden Visa (investment residence permit) needs only short stays each year. Property purchases no longer qualify, and the investment starts at €250,000. It suits few retirees. See Applying for the Portugal Golden Visa.

If you are an EU, EEA, or Swiss citizen: register

You need no visa. If you stay more than three months, register at the town hall (Câmara Municipal) where you live, within 30 days after those first three months. You get an EU citizen registration certificate.

Bring your passport or ID card and a signed declaration that you have enough money and health cover. Bring proof of your pension in case the clerk asks. The fee is €18 in person or €15 online for adults. See Registering as an EU Citizen Resident in Portugal (CRUE).

Citizenship takes longer now

For applications made since 19 May 2026, you need seven years of legal residence if you are a citizen of an EU or Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) country. Everyone else needs ten. You must also pass a test of Portuguese language, culture, history, and national symbols. Applications made before that date follow the old rules.

For most retirees, permanent residence after five years gives the security they need. See Getting Portuguese Citizenship by Naturalisation.

How your pension is taxed

The basics

Once you are tax resident, Portugal taxes your worldwide income through personal income tax (IRS). State, workplace, and private pensions, Portuguese or foreign, are taxed as pension income. The tax year is the calendar year.

You file a return between 1 April and 30 June of the following year, on the Portal das Finanças. Foreign pensions go on the foreign income annex (Anexo J). See Declaring Foreign Income in Portugal.

The 2026 rates

Each pensioner first deducts a fixed allowance from gross pension income: €4,587.09 in 2026. The rest is taxed at these rates:

Taxable income (€)Rate on that slice
Up to 8,34212.5%
8,342 to 12,58715.7%
12,587 to 17,83821.2%
17,838 to 23,08924.1%
23,089 to 29,39731.1%
29,397 to 43,09034.9%
43,090 to 46,56643.1%
46,566 to 86,63444.6%
Over 86,63448%

An extra solidarity rate of 2.5% applies to taxable income between €80,000 and €250,000, and 5% above that.

Example. A single retiree with a foreign pension of €30,000 deducts €4,587.09, leaving €25,412.91. Tax is about €4,811, or 16% of the pension. Deductions for health and other expenses then reduce it.

Interest and dividends are taxed at a flat 28%, unless you choose to add them to your other income. Rent from abroad and gains have their own rules, covered in the foreign income guide.

NHR is closed, and IFICI does not cover pensions

The non-habitual resident regime (NHR) gave a flat rate on foreign pensions. It is closed to new arrivals. People already in it keep it until their ten years end.

Its replacement, IFICI, is for people working in research, innovation, and certain skilled jobs. It does not cover pensions, so it does not help a retiree. See Qualifying for the IFICI Tax Regime That Replaced NHR.

Tax treaties: which country taxes your pension

Portugal has tax treaties with most countries retirees come from. They decide which country may tax each kind of income. The usual pattern:

  • Private and workplace pensions are taxed only where you live, so in Portugal.
  • Government service pensions (civil service, armed forces, and similar) are usually taxed only by the paying country.

Where both countries may tax, Portugal gives you a credit for the foreign tax. See Avoiding Double Taxation in Portugal.

United Kingdom. A new UK and Portugal treaty was signed on 15 September 2025 and came into force on 29 December 2025. In Portugal it applies from 1 January 2026. In the UK it applies to income tax from 6 April 2026.

  • The UK State Pension, workplace pensions, and private pensions paid to a Portuguese resident are taxed only in Portugal.
  • Government service pensions are taxed only in the UK. The exception is if you are a Portuguese national and not a British national.
  • To stop UK tax being deducted, send HMRC form DT-Individual, with a Portuguese tax residence certificate from the Portal das Finanças.

The UK State Pension still goes up every year if you live in Portugal, because Portugal is in the EEA. It can be paid into a Portuguese bank account.

United States. Under the US and Portugal treaty, private pensions for past work are taxed where you live. US Social Security may also be taxed by the US. The US taxes its citizens wherever they live, so you will usually file in both countries and use each country's credit rules. Get advice from someone who knows both systems. A separate social security agreement lets you combine US and Portuguese work credits for a pension.

Other EU countries. Each country you worked in pays its own share of your state pension. If you live in Portugal, you usually make one claim through Segurança Social, which passes it to the other countries. Apply at least six months before you want the pension to start. See How Your Years Working Abroad Count toward a Pension in Portugal.

No treaty. If your country has no treaty with Portugal, you may be taxed twice. Take advice before you move.

A Portuguese state pension

If you worked in Portugal, you may also get a Portuguese pension. The normal pension age is 66 years and 9 months in 2026, and you need at least 15 years of contributions. Years worked in other EU countries and agreement countries can count towards the 15. See Applying for the State Old-Age Pension in Portugal.

Healthcare

Registering with the SNS

Any foreign national with legal residence can use the national health service (Serviço Nacional de Saúde, SNS). You register at the health centre (centro de saúde) for your area and get an SNS user number (número de utente).

Bring:

  • your passport or ID card;
  • your residence permit, or EU registration certificate;
  • your NIF;
  • proof of your address in Portugal.

See Registering with the SNS in Portugal.

What you pay

SNS user charges (taxas moderadoras) now apply only in one case: going to a hospital emergency department without a referral. You pay nothing if the SNS 24 line or your health centre refers you, or if you are admitted to hospital. Call SNS 24 on 808 24 24 24 first. It answers 24 hours a day.

UK and EU state pensioners: the S1 form

If you get a UK State Pension, the UK pays for your state healthcare in Portugal. You need an S1 form.

  1. Apply for the S1 to NHS Overseas Healthcare Services. You can apply online up to 90 days before you move. You need an address in Portugal, which can be temporary.
  2. Register the S1 at a Segurança Social district centre in Portugal. Keep a copy.
  3. Register at your health centre, showing the S1 copy.

You then use the SNS on the same terms as other residents. Once registered, you can get a UK-issued EHIC or GHIC for visits to other European countries. A state pensioner from another EU country follows the same steps, with an S1 from that country.

For UK pensioners, an S1 can also replace the travel insurance needed for the D7 visa.

Private insurance

Many retirees also take private health insurance for faster access to specialists and private hospitals. Non-EU retirees without an S1 need private cover for the visa. Compare policies carefully. Check the age limits for new policies and how pre-existing conditions are treated. See Healthcare in Portugal.

Buying a home

If you buy before you are tax resident, you pay a flat 7.5% property transfer tax (IMT) on a home, instead of the normal rates. If you become tax resident within two years, you can claim the difference back. Apply to Finanças within six months of becoming resident.

Once you live in the home, you pay the yearly municipal property tax (IMI), usually 0.3% to 0.45% of its tax value. See Property Taxes in Portugal for Residents and Foreign Owners.

What it costs to live here

Housing is the biggest variable in a retirement budget. Rents vary widely between regions and between the coast and inland towns, so price the places you are considering before you commit.

Ask how a home is heated before you rent or buy, and check its energy certificate. Winters can feel cold indoors, especially in the North and inland.

For monthly budgets by city, see Cost of Living in Portugal.

Choosing where to live

Ask yourself what matters most, then visit:

  • Climate. The Algarve and the South have the mildest, driest winters. The North and the Minho are greener, cooler, and wetter.
  • Hospitals. Check how far you would be from a hospital with an emergency department, especially in rural areas and on the islands.
  • Getting around. Living without a car is easiest in Lisbon, Porto, and the larger cities.
  • Language. English is common in the cities and the Algarve, and much less so inland. Learning some Portuguese helps everywhere.
  • The islands. Madeira and the Azores have mild climates, but serious treatment can mean a flight to the mainland.

Common problems

Booking flights too early. Do not book a one-way flight until the visa is in your passport.

Missing the AIMA window. You must enter Portugal and attend AIMA within the visa's four months. If you cannot make your date, rebook through AIMA's online contact form before the visa expires.

Driving on a foreign licence too long. If you hold a UK licence and are resident, you can drive on it until it expires. Holders of other non-EU licences from countries in the road traffic conventions, such as the US and Canada, can drive on them for 90 days after becoming resident. Ask IMT to exchange the licence within those 90 days.

After that you cannot drive on it, and after two years you must take a practical driving test to exchange it. The exchange costs €30, or €27 online. See Exchanging Your Foreign Driving Licence in Portugal.

Leaving foreign tax running. Ask your pension payers abroad to stop withholding tax where the treaty allows. Portugal will not refund tax another country took above the treaty rate.

Cold houses. Ask about insulation and heating before you rent, not after the first winter.

Your retirement checklist

  1. Visit the places you are considering, in more than one season, and plan to rent first.
  2. Get cross-border tax advice on the timing of your move, any lump sums, and any property sale.
  3. Get your NIF.
  4. Open a Portuguese bank account.
  5. Non-EU: apply for the D7 visa at your consulate. EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens: go to step 7.
  6. UK and EU state pensioners: apply for your S1. Everyone else: arrange private health insurance.
  7. Arrive. Non-EU: attend AIMA. EU: register at the town hall within 30 days after your first three months.
  8. Register your S1 with Segurança Social, if you have one.
  9. Register at your health centre.
  10. Send your pension payers the forms that stop tax at source, where the treaty allows.
  11. Exchange your driving licence if you need to.
  12. File your first tax return between 1 April and 30 June of the year after you arrive.

Useful contacts

  • AIMA (immigration): aima.gov.pt
  • Visas and consulates: vistos.mne.gov.pt
  • Tax office (Finanças): portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
  • Social security (Segurança Social): seg-social.pt
  • SNS 24 health line: 808 24 24 24
  • NHS Overseas Healthcare Services (S1): nhsbsa.nhs.uk
  • IMT (driving licences): imt-ip.pt

This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or medical advice. Rules change often; 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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