Selling Your House in Portugal 2026: The Escritura Pública, the Anexo G, the Mais-Valias Rules, and the Solicitador Process for Foreign Sellers

Selling a home in Portugal as a foreign resident — or as a non-resident owner who bought during the boom years — is not difficult, but it is paperwork-heavy, solicitador-heavy and, if you mistime the capital-gains planning, expensive. This guide walks through the process end-to-end: the documents a buyer's lawyer will demand before signing anything, the contrato promessa and its deposit rules, the escritura pública itself, the closing costs allocation, and the part most owners get wrong — the IRS mais-valias declaration and the reinvestment exemption. We also cover the April 2026 Tribunal Constitucional ruling on construction credit, the 2024–2026 case law on non-resident taxation, and the documents you should assemble now even if you are only “thinking about selling in 2027”.

The one-page summary

Portuguese residential sales run on a four-step ladder: documents (collected by the seller before any listing), CPCV (the contrato promessa de compra e venda, where a buyer pays a deposit and both sides commit), escritura pública (the notarised deed that transfers ownership), and Anexo G of the next year's IRS Modelo 3 declaration (where capital gains, exemptions and reinvestment are reported). Title costs and commissions are capped at the CPCV; tax is determined on the escritura value; and the IRS filing reconciles the two. Budget for a six-to-twelve-month timeline from “listing” to “signed escritura”, longer if the buyer needs a mortgage decision.

1. Documents you need before you list

A Portuguese sale cannot close without a complete documental file. The buyer's solicitador will audit it before releasing any deposit. The core list:

• Caderneta predial urbana — the Finanças tax record of the property. You pull it free from the Portal das Finanças, section “Património > Consultar Cadernetas”. It must be dated within the last few months at escritura.
• Certidão permanente do registo predial — the Conservatória do Registo Predial record showing the chain of ownership, any mortgages, usufructs, penhoras, and the precise description of the building, fraction and autonomous unit. Request a digital certificate online at predialonline.justica.gov.pt (€15 per certificate, valid six months). Any discrepancy between the matriz (Finanças) description and the predial (Conservatória) description has to be reconciled before escritura.
• Licença de utilização — the municipal occupancy licence. For buildings built before 1951 a certidão de isenção from the Câmara is acceptable. For buildings post-1951 it is mandatory and non-substitutable.
• Certificado energético — mandatory since 2013. Issued by an ADENE-certified technician, valid 10 years, must be presented in the advertising and at escritura. Rating A+ to F.
• Ficha técnica da habitação — for buildings with a licence post-30 March 2004. Summarises the construction specifications.
• Distrate ou declaração do banco — if the property has a mortgage, the bank must issue a distrate letter with the exact balance payable at escritura and authorisation to cancel the mortgage on transfer of funds. A good solicitador arranges distrate and escritura for the same day.
• Última prestação do IMI paga — IMI must be up-to-date. Outstanding IMI reverts onto the property as a legal privilege.
• Condomínio: declaração de dívida zero — the administrator's statement of zero condominium debt. Portuguese law says the buyer inherits the seller's condomínio debt up to two years back.

2. The CPCV — promessa de compra e venda

Once an offer is on the table, the buyer and seller usually sign a contrato promessa de compra e venda (CPCV). This is a private contract — not a deed — but it commits both sides. The buyer pays a sinal (deposit), typically 10%–20% of the price. If the buyer walks away without cause, they forfeit the sinal. If the seller walks away, they owe the buyer double the sinal back (sinal em dobro, Article 442 Código Civil).

Contents to negotiate carefully: (a) the escritura deadline (typically 60–90 days, longer for buyers on non-resident mortgages); (b) what happens if the buyer's mortgage is denied — usually a return of sinal without penalty; (c) who pays for which search; (d) the allocation of IMT and Imposto do Selo (both legally buyer-borne); (e) rights to final walk-through; (f) furniture and fixtures inventory if any; (g) a force-majeure clause. For higher-value transactions the CPCV can be notarised (documento autêntico) for added protection — especially against a buyer's insolvency.

3. Escritura pública

The escritura pública is the notarised deed that transfers ownership. It can be signed at:

• A notário privado (private notary, often chosen by the buyer's side if they have a trusted one).
• A Casa Pronta balcão (simplified one-stop shop, cheapest option at €700).
• A Câmara de Comércio-authorised advocate or solicitador, where Portuguese law permits.

At the escritura:

• The buyer's bank wires the purchase price (or issues a cheque visado) and cancels its own mortgage if it carried one on the seller.
• The seller's bank presents the distrate, the outstanding mortgage is paid from the proceeds, and the Conservatória registers the cancellation.
• The notário reads the deed, both parties (or their proxies under procuração) sign, and the notário registers the transfer at the Conservatória do Registo Predial within 30 days.
• The buyer pays IMT (according to the price-bracket scale) and Imposto do Selo (0.8% of the price) before or at escritura. These are the buyer's statutory costs; any “sharing” negotiated privately in CPCV does not change the statutory liability.

4. Closing costs — who pays what

By default and by statute, the buyer pays: IMT (0%–7.5% sliding scale on residential property, with higher rates for non-habitação própria), Imposto do Selo on the deed (0.8% of the price), Imposto do Selo on any new mortgage (0.6%), notário and escritura registration costs (~€600–€900 depending on the chosen notário vs Casa Pronta), and their own solicitador.

The seller pays: the real-estate agent's commission (typically 5% + IVA at 23% = ~6.15% of the price), their own solicitador, the certidão permanente fee, the certificado energético (~€150–€350 depending on property type), and any distrate fees on their bank's mortgage. Mais-valias tax is declared and paid the following tax year, not at escritura.

5. Mais-valias — how the capital-gains tax works

Article 10 of the Código do IRS defines mais-valias on the sale of immovable property. The calculation, for residents, runs:

Gain = Sale price − (Adjusted purchase price + Adjusted charges + Improvements in last 12 years)

Where:

• The adjusted purchase price is the original cost, multiplied by the official inflation-coefficient table published annually by Ministério das Finanças, provided the property has been owned for at least 24 months.
• Adjusted charges include the IMT and Imposto do Selo paid on acquisition, notarial and registration costs, and the real-estate commission on the current sale.
• Improvements must be documented with invoices (NIF on invoice) and dated within the last 12 years before the sale.

For tax residents, 50% of the gain is added to the global IRS taxable income for the year, and taxed at the marginal progressive rate (13%–48% under the 2026 brackets, plus surtax and IRS solidário for high incomes). The other 50% is ignored (Article 43 CIRS). The net effective rate, therefore, depends on the year's total income, not on a flat rate.

6. The reinvestment exemption — Article 10 n.º 5 CIRS

If the property was the seller's permanent own home (habitação própria permanente), the gain can be exempt from IRS when the proceeds are reinvested, within a defined window, in another permanent own home in Portugal, the EU or the EEA. The mechanics:

• The seller must declare the intention to reinvest in Anexo G of the IRS Modelo 3 for the year of the sale.
• The reinvestment window is 24 months backwards from the sale or 36 months forwards from the sale.
• The reinvestment counts the amount net of any mortgage used to fund the new home. If you take out a new mortgage for €300,000 on a €500,000 replacement, only the €200,000 equity counts toward the reinvestment.
• Partial reinvestment yields proportional exemption: if you reinvest 80% of the proceeds, 80% of the gain is exempt.
• If the reinvestment is declared and then not completed, AT reassesses the year of the sale and charges interest.

Since the 2014 IRS reform, the reinvestment exemption also applies in a simpler form for taxpayers who use the sale proceeds to amortise the mortgage on their existing permanent own home (Article 11 of Law 82-E/2014). On 22 April 2026, the Tribunal Constitucional handed down Acórdão n.º 330/2026, extending that reading to amortisation of construction credit, not only acquisition credit, on the same permanent own home. Foreign residents who built a home in Portugal with a local construction loan — and who sold their previous Portuguese home to pay it down — now have Constitutional Court authority to claim the exemption, even if the Autoridade Tributária initially disagreed. Keep the bank's loan-purpose declaration and the amortisation schedule — they are the paper trail you will need.

7. Non-residents — the 2024–2026 case law

For years the Código do IRS taxed non-residents at a flat 28% on 100% of the gain, while residents enjoyed the 50% inclusion rule. The Court of Justice of the European Union called this discriminatory in Hollmann (2007) and again in follow-up cases. Portuguese administrative tribunals have since applied the 50% inclusion to non-resident EU sellers. The 2024 Tribunal Central Administrativo Sul ruling on inherited property extended the 50% treatment to heirs, and the 2026 Tribunal Constitucional ruling on Article 11 now reaches construction credit. The net effect: non-resident sellers inside the EU/EEA should apply the 50% inclusion rule via Anexo G, not the flat 28%, and assert it on audit.

Brexit complicates the UK case: UK-resident sellers since 1 January 2021 are non-EU, non-EEA. The 50% rule reached them historically through CJEU doctrine on the free movement of capital, and Portuguese tribunals have been sympathetic, but individual cases still vary. Take tax advice before signing.

Non-residents in third countries (US, Canada, Australia, Brazil, non-EU CPLP): the 28% flat rate on 100% of the gain is the default position, with any relief running through the applicable double-tax treaty.

8. The Anexo G declaration

Mais-valias from an immovable-property sale in year N are declared in Anexo G of the IRS Modelo 3 filed in year N+1, between April 1 and June 30. Key fields:

• Quadro 4 — immovable property gains: sale price, sale date, purchase price, purchase date, charges, improvements, and the NIF of the buyer.
• Quadro 5 — reinvestment exemption declaration: amount intended for reinvestment, amount already reinvested in prior 24 months, amount reinvested in current year, and pending amount for next 36 months.
• Quadro 5A — amortisation of permanent-own-home mortgage (Article 11 of Law 82-E/2014), which after April 2026 should include construction-credit amortisation.
• Quadro 11 — non-resident alienation of property (where relevant).

Portugal's IRS system pre-fills Anexo G with the escritura data that the notário transmits. Cross-check the pre-filled figures against your own records before submitting.

9. Imposto do Selo at escritura

Imposto do Selo at 0.8% of the price is a buyer cost by statute, but it is relevant for sellers too because it sits inside the escritura and is deducted from the price if the buyer defaults on payment and forfeits its sinal — negotiate clearly in the CPCV whether the sinal absorbs or excludes IS. In the case of gifts or inheritance transferring a property instead of a sale, Imposto do Selo at 10% applies, with exemptions for spouses, descendants and ascendants.

10. IMI pro-rata and the anniversary rule

IMI (municipal property tax) is assessed on the owner as of 31 December each year. If you sell on, say, 15 July, you have already paid the full year's IMI in two or three instalments (May, August, November); the buyer inherits no statutory IMI obligation for that year. It is customary — not mandatory — for the parties to pro-rate the IMI at escritura; this should be written into the CPCV if both agree. AIMI (the wealth supplement on high-value property portfolios) is not pro-rated.

11. Special cases

Inherited property. If the property came in through inheritance, the “purchase price” for mais-valias purposes is the value used in the Imposto do Selo inheritance declaration (stamped by Finanças). The TCAS 2024 ruling on inherited capital gains — extending the 50% inclusion rule to heir-sellers — is now applied by most tribunals; for non-residents, assert it explicitly in Anexo G.

Property acquired before 1989. Sales of residential property acquired before 1 January 1989 are entirely exempt from mais-valias under transitional rules. Keep the original escritura or caderneta.

Bens comuns (matrimonial community property). Under the regime of comunhão de bens or comunhão de adquiridos, both spouses are joint sellers; both must sign CPCV and escritura, and both declare half the gain in their respective Anexos G. Foreign-law spouses should assert their matrimonial regime at the notário to avoid procedural delays.

Property held in a Portuguese company. The sale is corporate: IRC and potentially Imposto do Selo 7.5% on real-estate transfers instead of IMT. A tax advisor should model the transaction before any offer is accepted.

Short-term rental (AL) registration. If the property has an Alojamento Local registration, it must be cancelled before or concurrent with the sale — otherwise the buyer inherits the registration along with any outstanding tax obligations. A “cessação de actividade AL” filing at Câmara and Finanças is part of the closing checklist.

Golden Visa / ARI properties. The ARI residence permit is tied to the investment, and selling the property within the statutory 5-year period can trigger loss of the permit. Check the investment-proof conditions with AIMA before signing CPCV.

12. Practical timeline

1. Week 0: Collect caderneta, certidão predial, licença de utilização, certificado energético, ficha técnica, distrate statement, condomínio zero-debt letter.
2. Weeks 1–4: Listing, showings, offer.
3. Week 4: CPCV signed, sinal received.
4. Weeks 4–10: Buyer's bank appraisal and mortgage decision; solicitador searches.
5. Week 10: Final documents exchange; escritura scheduled.
6. Week 11: Escritura signed, funds transferred, mortgage distrated, registration filed.
7. Year N+1, April–June: Anexo G filed in IRS Modelo 3.

13. Common mistakes

• Forgetting invoiced improvements. Without NIF-stamped invoices, AT will disallow all renovation and improvement spending. Find the invoices now.
• Missing the reinvestment declaration in Anexo G. The exemption is not automatic — you must declare the intention and complete the reinvestment inside the window. Reinvestment after the window expires does not apply retroactively.
• Using new-mortgage amounts as reinvestment. The exemption counts only equity reinvested, not the mortgage balance taken out to fund the new home.
• Signing CPCV before the bank distrate is negotiated. If the payoff amount is unclear and the CPCV locks the escritura date, you can be squeezed.
• Underestimating the agent commission. 5% + IVA is the default, and it is deductible as an acquisition charge only when it was paid on the current sale, not on an earlier one.
• Assuming Brexit does not affect the 50% inclusion. Take UK-seller advice — the case law is sympathetic but not uniform.
• Ignoring AL cancellation. The Alojamento Local registration is not automatically cancelled on sale; active AL obligations survive.

14. When to hire a Portuguese tax lawyer

For most straightforward residential sales, an experienced solicitador is enough. You should step up to a tax lawyer when: you are non-resident and asserting the 50% inclusion rule on audit; the property was inherited recently; you used a construction loan and are relying on the 2026 Tribunal Constitucional ruling; the property is held in a company; you are a UK seller post-Brexit; or the gain is large enough that a structuring decision before CPCV matters (for example, delaying the sale by six weeks to fall into a new IRS year with lower income).

15. Documents checklist you should collect now

• Original escritura de compra (and CPCV) from when you bought
• IMT and Imposto do Selo receipts from purchase
• All invoices for renovations, extensions, kitchens, structural repairs — NIF must appear on each invoice
• Mortgage contract and latest amortisation schedule
• Condomínio bylaws and zero-debt letters
• Licença de utilização, certificado energético, ficha técnica
• Any Alojamento Local registration documents
• Inheritance declaration if inherited
• Spouse documents if sold as bens comuns
• NIF and address-proof for each seller

Keep them in one folder. Even if you are not selling this year, the preparation work saves 20–40 days off any future transaction.

Sources: Código do IRS, Article 10 (mais-valias), Article 43 (inclusion rule), Article 51 (acquisition value); Lei n.º 82-E/2014, Article 11 (permanent-home mortgage amortisation exemption); Tribunal Constitucional, Acórdão n.º 330/2026 (22 April 2026); Tribunal Central Administrativo Sul, 2024 ruling on inherited-property capital gains; CJEU, Hollmann and follow-up cases on non-resident tax equality; Autoridade Tributária, Portal das Finanças guidance on Anexo G; Ministério das Finanças, annual IRS inflation-coefficient tables; Código Civil, Article 442 (sinal); Código do Notariado; Regulamento Emolumentar dos Registos e Notariado; Casa Pronta price schedule; ADENE guidance on certificados energéticos.

Related reading: Filing Your IRS in Portugal as a Foreign Resident, Taxes in Portugal Explained (2026), Buying Property in Portugal, Inheritance and Wills for Foreigners, IMI Property Tax Explained.