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Getting an Energy Certificate (Certificado Energético)

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

When you need an energy certificate to sell or let a home in Portugal, who issues it, what it costs, how long it lasts, and the fines for skipping it.

The Portugal Brief 8 min read

Getting an Energy Certificate (Certificado Energético)

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

  • You own a home in Portugal and are about to sell or let it, whether or not you live here.
  • You are buying or renting and want to read the rating before you sign anything.
  • You are finishing a new build or a major renovation that needs a certificate.

Not for you if: you want the deed, tax, or contract side of a sale or tenancy. Read Using Casa Pronta to Buy or Sell a Home in Portugal, Selling Your House in Portugal, or Renting a Home in Portugal instead.

The energy certificate (certificado energético) is an official document that rates how energy efficient a home is, from A+ (very efficient) to F (very inefficient). You need one before you advertise, sell, or let a home in Portugal. Only a qualified expert registered in the national system can issue it, after visiting the property. You pay a fixed registration fee of €28 to €65 plus VAT for a home, plus the expert's own fee, which is not regulated. The certificate is valid for ten years.

When you need a certificate

The law requires a valid certificate in these situations:

  • Selling a home, new or existing. The energy class must appear in every advert.
  • Letting a home on a new lease.
  • Handing over a property to settle a debt (dação em cumprimento), or transferring a business premises (trespasse) when the space itself changes hands.
  • Building a new home. A pre-certificate comes before building permission, and the final certificate when the building is finished.
  • Major renovations. The law defines these as works on the building's components costing more than 25% of the building's value. The value is worked out from the official average construction cost per square metre.
  • Applying for public funding or a tax benefit that requires a certificate.

When you hand it over. Before you sign a promissory contract or a lease, you must give the buyer or tenant a copy of the certificate, or its content in digital form. You hand over the original before the final contract or deed.

The advert rule. Every advert to sell or let a home must show the energy class from a valid certificate. That applies whether you list privately, through an agency, or on a property website. You cannot start advertising first and get the certificate later.

Large commercial buildings, and public buildings over 250 m² that the public visits often, must also hold a certificate and display it at the entrance.

When you do not need one

The law lists exceptions. The main ones for private owners are:

  • A gift or an inheritance. Transfers with no payment do not need a certificate. You will need one when you later sell or let the property.
  • Letting your own usual home for less than four months.
  • A new lease to the tenant who was already living there.
  • Buildings in ruins.
  • A detached single-family house with a usable floor area of 50 m² or less.
  • Some non-residential buildings: industrial, livestock, and agricultural buildings and workshops without heating or cooling for people, places of worship, car parks without climate control, and some warehouses.

An ordinary flat or house is not exempt. If you think an exemption applies, the building's official documents should show it. If they do not, ask a qualified expert for a written exemption statement before you rely on it.

Who issues it

You cannot produce the certificate yourself, and neither can your estate agent or your builder. Only a qualified expert (perito qualificado, often shortened to PQ) can issue one.

Certificates are issued under the Building Energy Certification System (Sistema de Certificação Energética dos Edifícios, or SCE). ADENE, the energy agency, manages the system. The Directorate-General for Energy and Geology (DGEG) supervises it. The expert visits the property, enters the data on the SCE portal, and registers the certificate there. A certificate that is not registered on the portal is not valid.

ADENE keeps a public search of qualified experts on the SCE portal (sce.pt). Use it to find and compare experts in your area, rather than relying only on whoever your agent suggests.

How to read the rating

Home certificates rate the property from A+ down to F. A+ is the most efficient and F the least.

The class compares the home's estimated energy use for heating, cooling, and hot water with a reference value. The reference is what a new building would need to meet. The lower the home's predicted use against that reference, the better the letter.

The certificate also lists the home's main components and how they perform. It ends with recommended improvements, such as insulation or better windows. Read those before you buy or rent. A lower class usually means higher heating bills in winter.

What it costs

The price has two parts.

1. The registration fee. This is fixed by law and is the same whoever you use. For homes it depends on the number of bedrooms (the typology). VAT is added at the rate in force:

HomeFee before VATFee with 23% VAT (mainland)
T0 or T1€28.00€34.44
T2 or T3€40.50€49.82
T4 or T5€55.00€67.65
T6 or larger€65.00€79.95

For commercial and service buildings, the fee before VAT depends on usable floor area: €135 up to 250 m², €350 up to 500 m², €750 up to 5,000 m², and €950 above that.

A certificate issued from an earlier pre-certificate costs half. Updating a certificate during its life, without extending it, is free.

2. The expert's fee. This is not regulated. It depends on the size and complexity of the property. ADENE advises asking several experts in your area for quotes. Ask each one for an all-in price that includes the registration fee and VAT.

How to get one, step by step

  1. Find a qualified expert. Search the expert directory on the SCE portal and ask for written quotes.
  2. Gather your documents. The expert needs at least: - the urban property tax record (caderneta predial urbana), from the Portal das Finanças or a tax office; - the land registry certificate (certidão do registo predial), online or from a registry office.

If you have them, add the floor plans, the building's technical file (ficha técnica da habitação), the use licence, and the technical sheets for heating, hot water, and solar systems.3. Book the site visit. The visit is compulsory. Give the expert access to every room.4. Wait for registration. The expert enters the data on the SCE portal, works out the class, and registers the certificate. No official processing time is published. Ask the expert when you will have it.5. Use it. Put the class in every advert. Give buyers or tenants a copy before the promissory contract or lease, and the original before the deed or final contract.6. Keep it. Store the PDF and its registration number with your property papers.

How long it lasts

  • Homes, and pre-certificates for new builds: 10 years.
  • Large commercial and service buildings: 8 years. Their first certificate after building or a major renovation lasts 3 years.
  • Buildings sold or let as a shell (em tosco): 1 year, which ADENE can extend.

A newer certificate for the same property replaces the old one. If you replace the windows, add insulation, or install a heat pump, a new certificate is the way to show the better class before you sell or let.

How to check a certificate

Anyone can check that a certificate exists and is registered. Go to the certificate search on the SCE portal. Search by address, by land registry or tax record number, or by the certificate number.

Do this before you buy or rent. A certificate in an advert can be out of date, or belong to a different unit in the same building. If a seller or landlord cannot give you a number that checks out, ask why.

The fines for skipping it

Selling or letting without a certificate, or advertising without the energy class, is an administrative offence. The fines are:

  • Individuals: €250 to €3,740.
  • Companies: €2,500 to €44,890.

If the offence was negligent rather than deliberate, the limits are halved. Estate agencies must show the class in their adverts, and property websites must not publish adverts without it. Both can be fined as well as owners. That is why agencies will not normally list a home without a certificate.

What a better rating is worth

  • Running costs. The recommendations on the certificate are a ready-made improvement list.
  • Grants and tax benefits. ADENE says a certificate can open the door to financing and to tax benefits on property taxes. Grant schemes use the certificate to decide what work qualifies. Check the scheme's own rules before you start work.
  • Holiday lets. Some councils require at least class D for new holiday lets in certain areas. See Registering a Holiday Let (Alojamento Local) in Portugal.

What is changing

The EU revised its buildings energy directive in 2024. So far Portugal has brought in only one part of it, which limits public money for standalone fossil-fuel boilers. ADENE's list of laws in force shows no other change to the certificate rules. The A+ to F scale and the rules in this guide still apply. A certificate you get now stays valid for its full term.

What this means for you

  • Buying: read the class before you fall for a place. A low class means higher bills and a longer improvement list. Factor that into your offer.
  • Selling: get the certificate before the listing goes live, and put the class in the advert.
  • Letting: the same advert rule applies. One certificate covers several tenancies over ten years, unless you renovate.
  • Renting: ask for a copy before you sign, and check its number on the SCE portal.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees change; 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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