How to sell your Portuguese property while living abroad (2026 guide)

What are the steps to sell from abroad?

The process is the same as for a resident. What changes is how you sign and how you receive tax letters. The table shows the order most sales follow.

Step	What happens	Who does it	Can you do it from abroad?
1. Documents	Gather the land registry certificate, tax record, energy certificate, habitation licence and, for flats, the condominium declaration	You, your lawyer or the agent	Yes, mostly online
2. Price and agent	Get valuations, choose an agent, agree commission	You	Yes
3. CMI contract	Sign the contrato de mediação imobiliária (the listing contract)	You and the agency	Yes, by post or digital signature if the agency accepts it
4. Marketing	Photos, listing, viewings	Agent	Yes
5. Offer	Negotiate price, deposit, dates, what stays in the house	You, through the agent	Yes
6. CPCV and deposit	Sign the CPCV (promissory contract); buyer pays the sinal (deposit)	You and the buyer, usually with lawyers	Yes, with a power of attorney or certified signature
7. Deed	Sign the escritura (the deed) or authenticated private document; receive the balance; agent paid	Notary, lawyer, solicitor or Casa Pronta desk	Yes, through your attorney
8. After the sale	Cancel utilities, settle IMI, move the money, file the tax return the next spring	You or your representative	Yes

Which documents do you need before listing?

Document	What it is	Where it comes from	Cost and validity
Certidão permanente	Land registry certificate: owner, description, mortgages, attachments	Predial Online	€15 online, valid 6 months
Caderneta predial	Tax record: tax value, area, article number	Portal das Finanças	Free online
Energy certificate	Mandatory to advertise and to sell	An ADENE-registered assessor	ADENE fee €28–€65 plus VAT, plus the assessor’s fee; valid 10 years
Licença or autorização de utilização	Habitation licence	Your municipality (câmara)	Not needed for buildings constructed before 7 August 1951
Condominium declaration	Statement of charges and debts on a flat	The building administrator, within 10 days of your request	Civil Code article 1424-A
ID and NIF	Passport and Portuguese tax number	You	–

Since 1 January 2024, Decree-Law 10/2024 removed the duty to show the habitation licence and the ficha técnica da habitação (the building’s technical file) at the deed. That did not make the licence irrelevant. Buyers’ banks still ask for it. And from 1 October 2026, under Decree-Law 108/2026 (start date moved by Decree-Law 155-B/2026), every deed must state whether the property’s urban planning title was shown, whether the seller says it exists but did not show it, or whether there is none. If the deed says nothing, either party can ask a court to annul the sale. Expect buyers and their lawyers to ask about the licence early.

Can you do everything remotely?

Almost everything. The one act that needs a signature in front of an official is the deed, and sometimes the CPCV: the signatures on a CPCV for a building must be certified in person under article 410(3) of the Civil Code. You have three ways to deal with this.

Option	How it works	Practical notes
Power of attorney (procuração) signed abroad	You sign before a local notary; the document gets an apostille	The standard route. The attorney is often your lawyer or solicitor in Portugal
Power of attorney at a Portuguese consulate	The consulate prepares and certifies it	No apostille needed; appointments can be slow
Travel for the deed	You sign in person	Only one trip, but dates can slip at short notice

The apostille. Portugal and the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and the US all belong to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention. A power of attorney signed before a notary in any of them needs an apostille from that country’s authority. In the UK that is the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Ask your Portuguese lawyer to draft the text first, in Portuguese or bilingual. A power of attorney that is too vague, or that does not name the property and the powers to sell, receive the price and sign the CPCV, can be refused on the day.

Video deeds. Decree-Law 126/2021 allowed deeds by videoconference through a Ministry of Justice platform from April 2022, as a temporary two-year regime. We could not confirm whether it is still available in 2026. Ask your notary or lawyer before relying on it.

Do you need a NIF, a fiscal representative or e-notifications?

You need a NIF. You almost certainly have one from the purchase. Check that Portal das Finanças has your current foreign address.

Whether you need a fiscal representative depends on where you live:

Where you live	Fiscal representative?
EU or EEA country	Optional
Outside the EU/EEA (UK, US, Canada and others)	Required, unless you sign up to electronic notifications (e-notificações or the ViaCTT electronic mailbox) on Portal das Finanças

The Portal das Finanças guidance says non-EU residents must act within 15 days of registering a foreign address. Failing to comply can bring a fine of €75 to €7,500. Most non-EU sellers now choose e-notifications. You then read tax letters online, including any question about your capital gains return. If you do this, check the inbox. A missed notification counts as delivered.

Do you need a Portuguese bank account?

A Portuguese account makes three things easier. First, buyers in Portugal often pay the balance by bank cheque (cheque bancário) or domestic transfer. The deed records each cheque number or the account used for the transfer (Notary Code article 47). Second, IMI (the annual municipal property tax), utilities and condominium fees are usually paid by Portuguese direct debit until the sale. Third, if you have a Portuguese mortgage, the bank will want to settle it from the proceeds at the deed.

Payment straight to a foreign account is possible if the buyer agrees and it is written into the CPCV. When you move money home, expect your bank to ask for a copy of the deed as evidence of where the funds came from.

How long does it take?

These are rough estimates for a straightforward sale, not official data. Time on the market varies most.

Stage	Typical duration
Documents and energy certificate	2–4 weeks
Power of attorney, including apostille	2–6 weeks (start this in parallel)
Marketing to accepted offer	Weeks to many months, depending on price and area
Offer to CPCV	1–4 weeks
CPCV to deed	Commonly 30–90 days, longer if the buyer needs a mortgage

The Portuguese market cooled in 2026: INE counted 40,142 home sales in the second quarter, 6.4% fewer than a year earlier, and 12.4% fewer in the Algarve. Prices were still 16.5% up year on year. Price realistically from the start.

What happens at the CPCV and deed?

At the CPCV the buyer pays a deposit, commonly 10–30% of the price. If the buyer walks away, they lose it. If you walk away, you usually have to repay double (Civil Code article 442). Do not sign a CPCV until you are sure you can deliver on the agreed date with every document in order.

At the deed the buyer pays the balance. Your mortgage, if any, is redeemed, and the agent’s commission is paid. Nothing is withheld for your tax. The buyer pays IMT (property transfer tax), stamp duty and the deed and registration costs. See the costs of selling for your side of the bill, and estate agent commission for what to sign.

What do you do after the sale?

1. Utilities. Give meter readings and close or transfer electricity, water, gas and internet contracts on the deed day.
2. IMI. IMI is owed by whoever owns the property on 31 December (IMI Code article 8). If you sell during 2026, you still pay the 2025 IMI bills that arrive in 2026. You do not pay the 2026 IMI. If you complete in early January 2027, you owe IMI for all of 2026.
3. Condominium. Settle the fees up to the deed. The buyer is responsible from the deed onwards.
4. Tax return. File the IRS return (Modelo 3 with Annex G) between 1 April and 30 June 2027 for a 2026 sale. As a non-resident you are taxed on 50% of the gain at the progressive rates, set by reference to your worldwide income. The old flat 28% rate for non-residents’ property gains ended on 1 January 2023; the capital gains guide explains how the tax now works. Estimate it with the selling calculator.
5. Home-country tax. Your country of residence may also tax the gain and give credit for Portuguese tax. UK residents: see UK residents selling.

What commonly blocks a sale?

Blocker	What it looks like	What to do
Registry and tax record disagree	Areas, room count or description differ between the certidão permanente and the caderneta	Have a lawyer or solicitor correct the record before the CPCV; it can take weeks
Missing habitation licence	No autorização de utilização for a post-1951 building	Get a copy from the câmara, or apply for one; from 1 October 2026 the deed must state the position
Unlicensed works	Pool, extension, annex or converted garage not on the licence	See selling with unlicensed works
IMI or other tax debts	Arrears, or a tax attachment (penhora) shown on the land registry certificate	Pay and get the registration cancelled before the deed
Condominium debts	The administrator’s declaration shows arrears	Pay them, or agree in writing that they are settled from the price; the buyer can waive the declaration only by taking on the debt
Inherited property not yet in your name	Registry still shows the deceased	Complete the habilitação de herdeiros (formal identification of heirs) and registration first; see inherited property
Mortgage	Charge on the registry	Ask the bank for a redemption statement early; the bank attends or sends its release (distrate) to the deed

Key points

• You can sell from abroad using an apostilled power of attorney or one made at a Portuguese consulate. Start it early.
• Non-EU residents need a fiscal representative or Portal das Finanças e-notifications. EU/EEA residents need neither.
• Order the land registry certificate, tax record and energy certificate before you list, and confirm the habitation licence. From 1 October 2026 every deed must state whether the property has an urban planning title.
• Nothing is withheld at the deed. You declare the gain on the next year’s return, taxed on 50% of the gain at progressive rates, not a flat 28%.
• Whoever owns the property on 31 December pays that year’s IMI, so completion dates around the new year matter.