IFICI, the regime that replaced NHR
A flat 20% on qualifying Portuguese work income, and most foreign income exempt, for ten consecutive years. IFICI is a tax status, not a visa.
Qualifying Portuguese employment and self employment income is taxed at a flat 20% instead of progressive rates that reach well above that. Foreign dividends, interest, securities capital gains, rental income and royalties are exempt, unless they come from a blacklisted jurisdiction, where the rate is 35%. Pensions are excluded and taxed at normal progressive rates.
- 20%Flat rate on qualifying Portuguese employment and self employment income
- 10 yearsConsecutive, counted from the year you became tax resident
- 5 yearsYou must not have been a Portuguese tax resident in the five before
- 15 JanuaryRegistration deadline, in the year after you become resident
Three rules decide whether IFICI is worth anything to you
The regime is generous on foreign capital income and silent on pensions. Which of those describes your income is the whole question.
A flat 20%, if the activity qualifies.
The rate applies to employment and self employment income from an eligible activity. It is the activity and the employer that qualify, not the person, which is why the certifying authority differs by category.
Autoridade Tributária, IFICI FAQExempt, with one expensive exception.
Foreign employment income, dividends, interest, securities capital gains, rental income and royalties are exempt. Income paid by entities domiciled in a jurisdiction on the blacklist is taxed at 35%, which is worse than the ordinary position. Which foreign income is exempt.
Autoridade Tributária, IFICI FAQExcluded, and taxed at progressive rates.
Pension income sits outside the regime. This is the sharpest break from old NHR, and it is the reason IFICI suits people still earning and rarely suits people who have stopped.
Autoridade Tributária, IFICI FAQWho qualifies, and who signs it off
Seven categories of eligible activity, each certified by a different authority. The full eligibility rules. Registration itself goes to the tax authority through the Portal das Finanças.
- Teaching and scientific research
- Certified by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
- Qualified posts in entities holding investment benefits
- Certified by AICEP
- Highly qualified professions in R&D companies
- Recognised by the tax authority itself
- Highly qualified professions in exporting companies
- Recognised by the tax authority itself
- Qualified posts in activities of national economic relevance
- Certified by AICEP or IAPMEI
- Staff whose costs qualify as SIFIDE R&D expenditure
- Certified by the Agência Nacional de Inovação
- Posts in certified startups under Law 21/2023
- Certified by Startup Portugal. How the board seat route works
- The Azores and Madeira category
- Depends on a regional legislative decree, and none is in force yet
If you missed the 15 January deadline, you have not lost the regime
This is the single most common piece of misinformation in this market. Registering late means IFICI takes effect from the year you register, and you keep the remaining years of the ten year window rather than the full ten. The tax authority’s own worked example is someone who became resident in 2025 and registers in January 2029, who gets six years. Late is expensive. It is not fatal. The deadline, step by step.
Common questions
The ones we answer on almost every call, and the ones the market most often gets wrong.
Is IFICI the same thing as NHR 2.0?
Informally, yes. IFICI is the regime that replaced NHR for new arrivals. The nickname is convenient but misleading, because the two regimes treat pensions and eligibility very differently.
Do I qualify because of my salary or my job title?
Neither on its own. Eligibility runs through the activity and the entity, in one of the seven categories above, and each category has its own certifying authority. A high salary in a non-qualifying company does not qualify.
What happens if I stop the eligible activity?
The test is annual rather than once and for all. A year in which you do not meet it is a year you do not benefit, and you can resume in any remaining year of the window. Starting a new eligible activity within six months of ending the previous one counts as no break at all.
Are my foreign dividends really untaxed in Portugal?
Foreign dividends are exempt under the regime, unless they are paid by an entity domiciled in a blacklisted jurisdiction, in which case the rate is 35%. Your home country may still tax at source, which is a treaty question rather than an IFICI question.
Can I hold IFICI and a Golden Visa at the same time?
They are different instruments and do not exclude each other. The Golden Visa is a residency permit and does not require you to become a Portuguese tax resident; IFICI only matters once you are one.
Talk to us
We advise founders, investors and executives on both sides of this: the tax position and the residency route, together rather than separately.
Book a call with Fernando
Fifteen or thirty minutes, by Microsoft Teams. Fernando Ferreira, General Partner at Ventures.eu.
