The costs of selling a property in Portugal in 2026

What does a seller pay?

Cost	Typical amount	Official or market figure?	When you pay
Estate agent commission	Commonly about 5% of the price, negotiable (roughly 3–6%)	Market range; no official tariff	At the deed, unless the contract says part is due at the CPCV
VAT on commission	23% of the commission on the mainland; Madeira and the Azores set lower regional rates	Official (VAT Code art. 18)	With the commission
Energy certificate	ADENE fee €28 (T0–T1), €40.50 (T2–T3), €55 (T4–T5), €65 (T6+) plus VAT, plus the assessor’s fee. Typical total about €150–350	ADENE fee official; total is a typical range	Before listing
Certidão permanente (land registry certificate)	€15 online (€20 at a desk), valid 6 months	Official	Before listing
Caderneta predial (tax record)	Free online	Official	Before listing
Habitation licence copy	Set by each municipality	Varies	If you cannot find yours
Condominium declaration (flats)	Set by the administrator, if anything	Varies	Before the deed
Lawyer or solicitor	No official tariff. Budget from about €1,000 plus VAT for a simple sale, more with a power of attorney, inheritance or licensing problems	Market range; get a written quote	Usually at the deed
Early mortgage repayment fee	Up to 0.5% of the amount repaid in a variable-rate period, up to 2% in a fixed-rate period	Legal cap (Decree-Law 74-A/2017, art. 23)	At redemption
Mortgage release (distrate)	Free from the bank	Official (since 2021)	At the deed
Cancelling the mortgage registration	€50 if filed within 30 days, €100 after	Official registry fee	Just after the deed
Fiscal representative	A service fee, if you appoint one; avoidable for most people	Market	Annual
IMI and condominium arrears	Whatever is owed	–	Before or at the deed
Capital gains tax	Depends on the gain and your worldwide income	Official	On the next year’s tax return

A note on the early repayment fee. From 2022 to 31 December 2025, banks could not charge it on variable-rate housing loans. That suspension was not renewed for 2026, so the caps above apply again. The fee is only due if your loan contract provides for it. Total early repayment also needs 10 working days’ notice to the bank. Ask for a redemption statement as soon as you accept an offer.

What does the seller not pay?

Cost	Who pays
IMT (property transfer tax), including the 7.5% flat rate for many non-resident buyers since 25 May 2026	Buyer
Stamp duty on the purchase (0.8%)	Buyer
Deed or authenticated document, and registration of the new owner	Normally the buyer, unless agreed otherwise
The buyer’s own lawyer, survey and mortgage costs	Buyer

The buyer’s higher IMT does not come out of your pocket directly. It does shrink the pool of foreign buyers, which matters when you set the price.

Is capital gains tax part of the cost?

Yes, but it is paid later and calculated separately. Non-residents are taxed on 50% of the gain at Portugal’s progressive rates (12.5% to 48% in 2026), with the rate set by reference to worldwide income. The old flat 28% rate for non-residents ended on 1 January 2023. Two things help. First, most selling costs reduce the gain: commission including VAT, the energy certificate and other necessary sale expenses, provided you have invoices with your NIF. Second, reliefs may apply. See capital gains tax for non-residents and run your figures in the selling calculator.

Worked examples: what do you actually receive?

The three examples use these assumptions. Your figures will differ.

• Commission 5% plus 23% VAT at €300,000 and €600,000. At €1.2 million, a negotiated 4% plus 23% VAT.
• Energy certificate €250, €300 and €350 in total (typical, not official).
• Lawyer €1,500, €2,000 and €3,000 plus 23% VAT (illustrative quotes, not official).
• €300,000 home: €80,000 variable-rate mortgage left, fee 0.5%.
• €1.2 million home: €300,000 fixed-rate mortgage left, fee 2%.
• €600,000 home: no mortgage, no arrears.
• No fiscal representative (e-notifications used or EU resident).

	€300,000	€600,000	€1,200,000
Commission	5% = €15,000	5% = €30,000	4% = €48,000
VAT on commission (23%)	€3,450	€6,900	€11,040
Energy certificate	€250	€300	€350
Land registry certificate	€15	€15	€15
Lawyer incl. VAT	€1,500 + €345 = €1,845	€2,000 + €460 = €2,460	€3,000 + €690 = €3,690
Early repayment fee	0.5% × €80,000 = €400	–	2% × €300,000 = €6,000
Mortgage registration cancelled	€50	–	€50
Total selling costs	€21,010	€39,675	€69,145
Costs as % of price	7.0%	6.6%	5.8%
Price minus costs	€278,990	€560,325	€1,130,855
Mortgage repaid	−€80,000	–	−€300,000
Cash received at the deed	€198,990	€560,325	€830,855

The cash at the deed is not what you keep. Capital gains tax is assessed the following year, and your home country may tax the gain too. The commission, VAT, energy certificate and lawyer’s fee in these examples all count as sale expenses that reduce the taxable gain. Set money aside for the tax. The selling calculator shows the estimate for your own purchase price and dates.

Check the arithmetic on the €300,000 example: €15,000 + €3,450 + €250 + €15 + €1,845 + €400 + €50 = €21,010. Then €300,000 − €21,010 = €278,990, and €278,990 − €80,000 = €198,990.

How can you cut the costs?

Negotiate the commission. There is no legal rate. Lei 15/2013 only requires the contract to state the commission as a fixed sum or a percentage, and the VAT rate (article 16). Get two or three written proposals. Each percentage point on €600,000 is €6,000, or €7,380 with VAT. A fixed fee can beat a percentage on high-value homes. See estate agent commission.

Weigh exclusivity against price. Agencies often quote a lower rate for an exclusive contract. The trade-off is that you cannot use another agency during the term. Keep the term short, for example three to six months, and diary the notice date: standard contracts renew automatically unless you give notice. Under a simple exclusive contract you can still sell to a buyer you find yourself without owing commission. The Supreme Court confirmed this in April 2023. Check that your contract does not say otherwise.

Time the completion around 31 December. IMI is owed by whoever owns the property on 31 December (IMI Code article 8). Complete on 20 December 2026 and you pay no 2026 IMI. Complete on 5 January 2027 and you owe it for the whole of 2026. On a property with IMI of €1,200 a year, that date is worth €1,200 to you. Some buyers ask to share the year’s IMI; that is a negotiation point, not a legal rule.

Plan the mortgage. If your loan is in a fixed-rate period, the cap is 2%, four times the variable-rate cap. Ask your bank what fee your contract actually sets and whether your rate period changes soon. On €300,000 outstanding, the difference between 2% and 0.5% is €4,500.

Order documents yourself. The land registry certificate costs €15 online and the tax record is free. Some agencies charge for obtaining documents as an extra service; the contract must list any such services separately (Lei 15/2013 art. 16(2)(f)).

Avoid a fiscal representative if you can. EU/EEA residents do not need one. Non-EU residents can sign up to e-notifications on Portal das Finanças instead.

Keep every invoice with your NIF on it. Commission, VAT and certificate invoices reduce the taxable gain. Improvement works carried out in the last 12 years also count if you can document them.

Key points

• Expect selling costs of roughly 6–7% of the price before tax. Commission at about 5% plus 23% VAT is most of it.
• Official fees are small: €15 for the land registry certificate, €28–€65 plus VAT for the ADENE energy certificate registration, €50 to cancel a mortgage registration.
• Early repayment fees are capped at 0.5% (variable) or 2% (fixed) of the amount repaid. The variable-rate exemption ended on 31 December 2025.
• The buyer pays IMT, stamp duty and normally the deed and registration.
• Capital gains tax comes on the next year’s return. Most selling costs reduce the gain, so keep the invoices.