Rechtliche Infos

You're getting closer to the final goal: formalising the deal to sell your house. At this stage, the first thing you need to do is get all the necessary documents in order, including deeds, energy certificates, building licences and any other relevant paperwork. 

By organising these papers, even before the deal is formalised and the promissory contract signed, you'll save time when the time comes to go ahead with the deal. 

This proactivity should come from you, regardless of whether or not you are being accompanied by a real estate agency. However, it is most likely that, while the publicity processes and visits to the property are taking place, the agency accompanying you will ask you to start gathering this essential documentation. 

But let's break it down. Do you have an interested party for your property? We'll tell you what to do from here!

Discuss the sale price of the house

You'll need to start negotiating as soon as someone expresses an interest in the house you're selling. From the outset, and if you've followed all the steps we've explained to you in previous articles, namely Valuing the property when selling: how and why, you should have already set a final value for the sale, however, and because many buyers like to haggle, this can be a changeable figure. 

Even so, you shouldn't lower or raise the price just because you have to. In negotiations, you should always set a reasonable minimum target that you can't go below, and negotiate according to this. 

Once you've agreed on the price, make sure you have all the documents we'll talk about below so that you can finally proceed with formalising the deal.

What documents you need to have in order to proceed with the sale

If you're not familiar with the bureaucracy associated with selling a house or know little about the property market and how these procedures work, all you need to know is that, in order to go ahead with the sale, you must have in your possession a series of important documents, required by law during the sale process, to formalise the sale: 

• Up-to-date permanent land certificate
• Caderneta predial urbana
• Licence to use
• Technical data sheet for the property
• Energy certificate
• Property description
• Building plans
• Deed of sale
• Citizen's card

We'll explain what each of these documents is about.

Updated permanent land certificate

You can obtain this document from the Land Registry Office, which basically allows you to consult the entire history of the property - with information about construction, inheritance or possible associated liens. 

Caderneta predial urbana

In this document, you'll have access to all the information about the property from a fiscal point of view, namely the owner of the property and its tax value, as well as its location and characteristics. This will be one of the most important documents for formalising the deal through the promissory contract of sale. 

Using the urban land registry you can calculate the Municipal Property Tax (IMI) and the Property Transfer Tax (IMT), so it's essential to keep it up to date. 

Licence to use

The purpose of this document is to prove that the property has been previously inspected and is in full compliance with the work carried out, projects approved by the competent authorities and the legal regulations in force, as well as to prove the suitability of the building or autonomous fraction for the intended purpose. 

Property technical sheet

This technical sheet will give you information on the technical and functional characteristics of an urban building for residential purposes, once the construction or reconstruction work has been completed. It can be requested from the National Civil Engineering Laboratory and the Directorate-General for the Consumer, and the requirement for obtaining it is that the buildings have been built or have undergone extension, construction or reconstruction work after 30 March 2004.

Energy Certificate

This is a document where you can find not only an assessment of the property's energy efficiency, on a scale from "very inefficient" (F) to "very efficient" (A+), but also information on the property's characteristics, such as insulation, types of ventilation, air conditioning and hot water production, and their effect on energy consumption. It also includes improvement measures that suggest ways to lower energy consumption and an indication of the tax benefits and types of financing available. 

Property description

You only need to present this document if there is a mortgage associated with the property, which is presented at the time of the public deed when the property is transferred, as it proves the cancellation of the mortgage associated with the house you are trading. It is a document issued by the bank. 

Property plans

These drawings of the property describe its constitution, in terms of rooms, available spaces and other elements that can help with the sale of the property, as they will give you a complete view of the house and its areas. You should have this document in your possession, as it may be requested by the bank from the property buyer when applying for a home loan, or by the buyer themselves when making their decision. 

Deed of sale

This document is mandatory in order to proceed with the sale of a property, as it verifies the conditions of the previous transaction. 

Once these documents have been gathered, you will move on to the crucial stage of the process of selling the house, which is formalising the deal. 

European Union nationals
Naturally, anyone with a European passport or EA/Swiss nationals can easily arrive in Portugal by showing their EU identity cards.
While European citizens can freely move to Portugal, those wishing to stay longer than three months must request a registration certificate. After five years of living in Portugal, European citizens can also obtain permanent residency..

Non-European citizens
The UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all have international agreements with Portugal, meaning nationals can enter and stay in Portugal for 90 days within a six-month period without needing a visa.
Non-EU/non-EEA/non-EFTA nationals wishing to stay longer than three months must apply for a long-term visa or Portuguese residency.

If your aim is to acquire long-term residency in Portugal as a non-EU citizen, you'll be pleased to know there are several Portugal visa programs on offer, which we detail below:

D7 ‘Passive Income’ Visa
The D7 Visa is a popular visa allowing non-EU citizens to get Portuguese residency provided they have enough funds to support themselves during their stay in Portugal.

This visa is aimed primarily at retirees, self-employed individuals, and those that have an income overseas. This could be from a pension, rental income, intellectual property or other financial investments etc. 

The two-year D7 Visa can then be renewed for a further three years, and can then be turned into a permanent residence permit and/or citizenship after five years.

This type of visa also allows the applicant to include his family members under the ‘family reunification’ programme, therefore enabling the entire family to obtain permanent residency or citizenship.

D8 ‘Digital Nomad’ Visa
The Digital Nomad Visa was launched in October 2022 and allows remote workers to live and work in Portugal for a set period of time.

With a Digital Nomad Visa, remote workers can apply for either a residency permit that can be extended for up to five years or a temporary stay visa that has a maximum validity of one year.

To qualify, you will need to make four times Portugal's minimum wage. 

Golden Visa
Portugal’s Golden Visa Residency Programme was launched in 2012, to offer investors from non-EU countries a fast-track route to a residency permit and eventual passport for Portugal. This permit extends to dependent children and parents, and allows the investor and family to enter and/or live in Portugal, and to travel freely within the majority of European countries (Schengen Area). 

As of October 2023, Golden Visa applications through real estate investment are no longer accepted. However there are still investment routes that qualify for residence permits under the Golden Visa regime:

1. Capital transfer of €500,000 to establish a new company in national territory, with the creation of min 5 permanent jobs
2. Capital transfer of €500,000 to acquire shares (in full or part) of an existing company in national territory, with the creation of 5 permanent jobs or the maintenance of at least 10 jobs
3. Capital transfer of €500,000 for the acquisition of shares in a non-real estate collective investment fund
4. Capital transfer of €500,000 for scientific/technological research programmesCapital transfer of €250,000 to support or invest in artisitic production or the maintenance of national cultural heritage.

There are also other more targeted visa options if you are undertaking employment or considering starting a business in Portugal – 

• D2 Entrepreneurship/Start-up Visa, for those seeking to establish their business in Portugal
• D3 Work visa for highly qualified employees, for those with specific skills that meet the requirements set out by the Portuguese government

NHR (Non-Habitual Residency)
Introduced in 2009 by the Portuguese government to attract ‘high value’ residents, NHR offers reduced tax rates and some exemptions for your first ten years in the country.

Whilst the NHR scheme is being phased out, a ‘transitory NHR tax regime’ has been approved which extends the NHR eligibility until 31 December 2024 for foreigners who can prove they were planning to move to Portugal in 2023.