Portugal
How to register a company in Portugal: tax, fees and annual filings, from official sources.
- Company type
- Private limited company by quotas (sociedade por quotas, Lda; single-member: sociedade unipessoal por quotas)
- Headline corporate tax
- 19%
- Registration fee
- Empresa Online: €220 with a pre-approved articles model, or €360 with articles drafted by the founders; urgent requests cost €440 or €720. Empresa na Hora (in person at a counter): €360. The fee includes the name admissibility check.
- Region
- European Union
A Portuguese Lda can be registered online for €220 with pre-approved articles and needs €1 of capital per partner. Corporate tax (IRC) is 19% in 2026, falling to 17% from 2028, with 15% on the first €50,000 for SMEs.
The figures below come from the registry, tax authority and statutes linked under Sources, as they stood on 30 September 2026. Fees and thresholds change, so check the linked official page before you file. This is general information, not tax or legal advice for your situation.
Questions
How much does it cost to register a company in Portugal?
Empresa Online: €220 with a pre-approved articles model, or €360 with articles drafted by the founders; urgent requests cost €440 or €720. Empresa na Hora (in person at a counter): €360. The fee includes the name admissibility check.
What is the corporate tax rate in Portugal?
The general IRC rate is 19% for tax periods starting in 2026, 18% in 2027 and 17% from 1 January 2028 (Lei 64/2025). SMEs and Small Mid Caps pay 15% on the first €50,000 of taxable profit from 2026, with the excess taxed at the general rate.
Can a non-resident set up a company in Portugal?
Empresa Online is open to holders of a Portuguese Cartão de Cidadão with an active digital signature or Chave Móvel Digital. Lawyers, notaries and solicitors with a professional digital certificate can also create a company online. At an Empresa na Hora counter all partners must be present or legally represented.
Annual deadlines for this and other jurisdictions are in the company filing deadlines calendar. Compare VAT registration limits across Europe in the VAT registration thresholds table.
- Corporate tax
- The general IRC rate is 19% for tax periods starting in 2026, 18% in 2027 and 17% from 1 January 2028 (Lei 64/2025). SMEs and Small Mid Caps pay 15% on the first €50,000 of taxable profit from 2026, with the excess taxed at the general rate.
- Minimum capital
- Capital is set freely by the partners, but each quota must be at least €1, so the minimum is €1 per partner. If the capital is not deposited at formation, partners may declare they will deposit it within 5 business days or by the end of the first financial year.
- Forming it from abroad
- Empresa Online is open to holders of a Portuguese Cartão de Cidadão with an active digital signature or Chave Móvel Digital. Lawyers, notaries and solicitors with a professional digital certificate can also create a company online. At an Empresa na Hora counter all partners must be present or legally represented.
- VAT, GST or sales tax
- Taxable persons established in Portugal whose domestic turnover in the previous calendar year did not exceed €15,000 can use the Article 53 exemption; exceeding the threshold by more than 25% (€18,750) during the year triggers the normal regime. The standard rate is 23% on the mainland, 22% in Madeira and 16% in the Azores.
- Annual filings
- IRC return (Modelo 22) is due by the last day of May, or the last day of the 5th month after a special tax period ends. The annual accounting and tax information declaration (IES) is due by 15 July. IRC payments on account are due in July, September and by 15 December. The RCBE beneficial-owner confirmation is due by 31 December each year.
- Audit
- An Lda without a supervisory board must appoint a statutory auditor (ROC) if it exceeds two of three limits for two consecutive years: balance sheet total, net sales and other income, and 50 employees (Commercial Companies Code, art. 262(2)).
- Beneficial owners
- The first RCBE (Registo Central do Beneficiário Efetivo) declaration is due within 30 days of registration, changes within 30 days, and a confirmation by 31 December each year. The official guide says some of this information is made publicly available.
- Also know
- The IRC rate falls in steps: 19% for 2026, 18% for 2027, 17% from 2028. The Article 53 VAT exemption applies only to taxable persons with their seat or domicile in Portugal. Empresa Online authentication uses Portuguese e-ID; lawyers, notaries and solicitors with a professional digital certificate can also create a company online.
- Company registry
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (IRN) – Registo Comercial
- Registry website
- registo.justica.gov.pt
- Tax authority page
- info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
- Last reviewed
- Sources
Source Link Justiça.gov.pt – Custos (Empresa Online) https://justica.gov.pt/Como-criar-uma-empresa-online/Quanto-custa gov.pt – Criar uma empresa online https://www2.gov.pt/pt/servicos/criar-uma-empresa-online gov.pt – Criar uma empresa na hora https://www2.gov.pt/pt/servicos/criar-uma-empresa-na-hora Justiça.gov.pt – Capital social https://justica.gov.pt/Como-criar-uma-empresa-online/Capital-social AT – Informação vinculativa 29609 (IRC rates, Lei 64/2025) https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_fiscal/informacoes_vinculativas/rendimento/circ/Documents/PIV_29609.pdf AT – CIVA artigo 53.º https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_fiscal/codigos_tributarios/civa_rep/Pages/artigo-53-o-do-civa.aspx gov.pt – IVA em Portugal https://www.gov.pt/guias/imposto-sobre-valor-acrescentado-iva-em-portugal gov.pt – IRC em Portugal https://www.gov.pt/guias/imposto-sobre-o-rendimento-das-pessoas-coletivas-irc-em-portugal AT – Instruções Modelo 22 (2026) https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/apoio_contribuinte/modelos_formularios/irc/Documents/M22-IRC.pdf Justiça.gov.pt – Quando registar um beneficiário efetivo https://justica.gov.pt/Servicos/Registo-de-Beneficiario-Efetivo/Quando-registar-um-beneficiario-efetivo Justiça.gov.pt – Guia do RCBE https://justica.gov.pt/Guias/guia-do-registo-central-do-beneficiario-efetivo-rcbe PGD Lisboa – CSC art. 262.º (original text) https://www.pgdlisboa.pt/leis/lei_busca_art_velho.php?artigonum=524A0262&n_versao=1&nid=524&so_miolo=