Portugal · Madeira (International Business Centre)
Portugal: 4 company types, its taxes, banking and business environment, and what it is known for.
Forming a company
Company types in Portugal · Madeira (International Business Centre)
The 4 forms a founder can choose here, each with its own figures. Open one for its sources.
What it is known for
Where Portugal is in the world’s top 10 on a measure anyone can check, the best rank first. Only the top is shown; a low rank is never stated.
Figures for Portugal as a whole.
- World’s1stWorld-leading exports Counters and speed indicatorsRevolution counters, production counters, taximeters, milometers, pedometers and the like; speed indicators and tachometers, other than those of heading 9014 or 9015; stroboscopesUS$1.5 bn · 15.2% of world exports of 177 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s3rdWorld-leading exports Medicines, bulk (not in doses)Medicaments (excluding goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of two or more constituents which have been mixed together for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, not put up in measured doses or in forms or packings for retail saleUS$1.6 bn · 9.4% of world exports of 156 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s3rdWorld-leading exports Radio receiversReception apparatus for radio-broadcasting, whether or not combined, in the same housing, with sound recording or reproducing apparatus or a clockUS$760 m · 7.7% of world exports of 173 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
A rank is among everything the source reports for that year, so it moves when the source adds or drops economies. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. Nothing here is a recommendation.
Doing business here
Business accounts
Providers whose own published list of countries names Portugal. A listing means a company formed here may apply, not that it will be accepted.
Not in our records No provider's country list has been read for Portugal.
Payments and payroll
Services for taking payments, paying people and moving money, as each states where a business based in Portugal may open an account.
StripeOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
WiseOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
DeelOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026- RevolutOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
AdyenOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
For individuals only here: PayPal.
Not available here: Square.
EU listings
Two lists a bank checks when it opens an account for a company or its owner.
- EU high-risk third countries (AML)
- Not listed
- EU non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes
- Not listedOfficial EUR-Lex, 52026XG01465, Annex I as of 2026-02-17
Official sites
The authorities’ own sites for Portugal · Madeira (International Business Centre): where to register, file and check.
Business registerConservatória do Registo Comercial e Cartório Notarial Privativo da Zona Franca da Madeira (IRN); licensing by S.D.M. for the Regional Government of Madeirairn.justica.gov.pt
Tax authorityAutoridade Tributária e Aduaneira (AT)info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
Trade agreementspolicy.trade.ec.europa.eupolicy.trade.ec.europa.eu
Blocs and agreements
The trade arrangements Portugal belongs to, as each arrangement’s own texts state them: since when, and what each covers. What a membership means for a business is for you to judge.
Portugal · Madeira (International Business Centre)’s own position
- Customs territory
- EU (Union customs territory, as part of Portugal)
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the territory of the Portuguese Republic,
- VAT territory
- EU VAT territory (Portugal); Madeira applies its own regional VAT rates under the Portuguese VAT Code
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mean the territory of each Member State of the Community to which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applicable, in accordance with Article 299 of that Treaty, with the exception of any territory referred to in Article 6 of this Directive;
- European Union: internal market and customs union
- Inside
Treaties apply to Madeira under TFEU art. 355(1) in accordance with art. 349; Madeira is within the Union customs territory as part of the Portuguese Republic.
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The provisions of the Treaties shall apply to Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, Saint-Martin, the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands in accordance with Article 349.
- European Union: VAT territory
- Inside
Madeira is not among the territories excluded by Directive 2006/112/EC art. 6, and the Portuguese VAT Code (art. 1(2)(b),(d)) treats it as national territory; the regional assembly sets reduced VAT rates for operations in Madeira.
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mean the territory of each Member State of the Community to which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applicable, in accordance with Article 299 of that Treaty, with the exception of any territory referred to in Article 6 of this Directive;
- Agreements in force
- The authority’s own list read 27 Oct 2026
Portugal as a whole
- European Union: internal market and customs union
- Single market · since 1986
Covers goods, services, establishment, capital, movement of people, a common external tariff.
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EU Member State since 1986, Euro area member since 1999, Schengen area member since 1995 and more about Portugal’s participation in the EU.
- European Union: VAT territory
- Inside it
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‘Community’ and ‘territory of the Community’ mean the territories of the Member States as defined in point (2);
- Euro area
- Monetary union · since 1999
Covers a common currency.
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EU Member State since 1986, Euro area member since 1999, Schengen area member since 1995 and more about Portugal’s participation in the EU.
- Schengen area
- Free movement area · since 1995
Covers movement of people.
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EU Member State since 1986, Euro area member since 1999, Schengen area member since 1995 and more about Portugal’s participation in the EU.
- European Economic Area
- Single market · since 1 January 1994
Covers goods, movement of people, services, establishment, capital.
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which now covers the EU and its 27 Member States, and three of the four EFTA members: Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Regional and customs arrangements only, 36 of them; bilateral trade agreements are not yet in our records.
Tax
Company tax
Tax, and what the company owes the registry each year.
- Corporate income tax
- 29.5%
- Distributions
- Not in our records
- Audit
- Statutory audit (a revisor oficial de contas) is required only where, in two consecutive years, two of three limits are exceeded: balance sheet EUR 1,500,000, net sales and other income EUR 3,000,000, 50 employees (art. 262(2) CSC); a conselho fiscal may be created by the contract.Official The registry or ministry page as of 2026-10-14
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As sociedades que não tiverem conselho fiscal devem designar um revisor oficial de contas para proceder à revisão legal desde que, durante dois anos consecutivos, sejam ultrapassados dois dos três seguintes limites
- Small-company relief
- Not in our records
- Annual obligations
- Not in our records
- Annual registry fee
- EUR 1,800Official The registry or ministry page as of 2026-10-14
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Service-oriented companies will be subject to an application fee of €1,000 and to an annual fee of €1,800
VAT
The tax on what the company sells in Portugal, and when it must register, as the tax authority states it.
- Standard rate
- 23%Official European Commission, Taxes in Europe Database situation on 2026-01-01
- Other rates
- 13% Supplies listed in Annex II to the VAT Code, including restaurant and catering services and certain foodstuffs
- 6% Supplies listed in Annex I to the VAT Code, including basic foodstuffs, water, medicines, books and periodicals, passenger transport and accommodation
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b) Para as importações, transmissões de bens e prestações de serviços constantes da lista II anexa a este diploma, a taxa de 13%;
- Registration threshold
- EUR 15,000
annual turnover in Portugal (volume de negócios) under the special exemption scheme; previous calendar year
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Beneficiam da isenção do imposto os sujeitos passivos com sede ou domicílio em território nacional que, não praticando operações de exportação ou atividades conexas, não tenham atingido, no ano civil anterior, um volume de negócios anual em território nacional superior a 15 000 €.
- Voluntary registration
- Yes
A business eligible for the exemption may waive it and opt to charge VAT, by declaration, and must then stay in the chosen regime for at least five years.
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Os sujeitos passivos suscetíveis de beneficiar da isenção do imposto nos termos do n.º 1 do artigo 53.º podem a ela renunciar e optar pela aplicação do imposto às suas operações tributáveis
- A foreign company
- Registers from its first taxable supply; needs a local tax representative
The €15,000 exemption belongs to businesses with their seat or domicile in Portugal; a business without one registers and charges VAT on taxable operations in Portugal from the first such operation. A non-resident without a fixed establishment in Portugal and without seat or establishment in another EU state must appoint a Portuguese VAT representative; one established in another EU state may appoint a representative but is not obliged to.
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Beneficiam da isenção do imposto os sujeitos passivos com sede ou domicílio em território nacional que, não praticando operações de exportação ou atividades conexas, não tenham atingido, no ano civil anterior, um volume de negócios anual em território nacional superior a 15 000 €.
- Returns filed
- Quarterly
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b) Até ao dia 20 do 2.º mês seguinte ao trimestre do ano civil a que respeitam as operações, no caso de sujeitos passivos com um volume de negócios inferior a 650 000 € no ano civil anterior.
- Tax authority
- Registration page read 2026-10-22
Tax calendar
When the main returns and payments fall due in Portugal, tax year ano fiscal 2025 (tax year 2025, declared 2026), as the tax authority states it.
- Corporate tax return
- 31 May · each year
PT: a declaração é enviada, anualmente, por transmissão eletrónica de dados, até ao último dia do mês de maio, independentemente de esse dia ser útil ou não útil. EN: a company whose tax period matches the calendar year files the Modelo 22 return by the last day of May — 31 May — regardless of whether that day is a working day; a company with a special tax period files by the last day of the fifth month after the period end. The rule takes 31 May. For 2026 the AT calendar showed the Modelo 22 deadline as 30 June 2026; the statutory rule remains the last day of May.
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A declaração é enviada, anualmente, por transmissão eletrónica de dados, até ao último dia do mês de maio
- Corporate tax, final payment
- 31 May · each year
PT: o IRC é autoliquidado, pelo que o imposto a pagar é entregue até ao termo do prazo para a entrega da declaração modelo 22, ou seja, até ao último dia do mês de maio (31 de maio). EN: corporate income tax is self-assessed, so the balance is paid by the deadline for the Modelo 22 return, the last day of May (31 May), after crediting the retentions at source and the payments on account. The rule takes 31 May.
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A declaração é enviada, anualmente, por transmissão eletrónica de dados, até ao último dia do mês de maio
- Corporate tax, instalments
- 31 July · each quarter
PT: as entidades devem proceder ao pagamento do imposto em três pagamentos por conta, com vencimento em julho, setembro e 15 de dezembro do próprio ano a que respeita o lucro tributável. EN: a company pays income tax in three payments on account, due in July (by the last day of July), in September (by the last day of September) and on 15 December; each is broadly a third of 80% or 95% of the previous year's tax. The record takes the first payment, the last day of July; the frequency field is 'quarterly' because the schema offers no three-instalment value. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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em três pagamentos por conta, com vencimento em julho, setembro e 15 de dezembro do próprio ano a que respeita o lucro tributável
- Personal income-tax return
- 30 June · each year
PT: declaração anual de rendimentos - de 1 de abril a 30 de junho. EN: an individual files the annual return (Modelo 3) between 1 April and 30 June of the year following the tax year. The rule takes the closing date, 30 June. A taxpayer covered by the automatic return (IRS Automático) who does not confirm it has it treated as filed at the end of the period. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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Declaração anual de rendimentos - de 1 de abril a 30 de junho
- Personal income tax, final payment
- 31 August · each year
PT: reembolso ou pagamento - até 31 de agosto; este prazo está previsto para as declarações entregues dentro do prazo. EN: an individual pays the balance of income tax by 31 August of the year of the return, where the assessment was made within the ordinary time and the return was filed within the deadline, after crediting the tax withheld at source and the payments on account. Where the assessment is later, the tax is paid by 31 December. The rule takes 31 August.
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Reembolso ou pagamento – até 31 de agosto
- Personal income tax, instalments
- 20 July · each quarter
PT: a titularidade de rendimentos da categoria B determina a obrigatoriedade de efetuarem três pagamentos por conta do imposto devido a final, até ao dia 20 de cada um dos meses de julho, setembro e dezembro. EN: a self-employed individual makes three payments on account of the income tax due, by the 20th of July, the 20th of September and the 20th of December. The record takes the first payment, 20 July; the frequency field is 'quarterly' because the schema offers no three-instalment value. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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três pagamentos por conta do imposto devido a final, até ao dia 20 de cada um dos meses de julho, setembro e dezembro
- VAT return
- Day 20 of the following month · each month
PT: a declaração periódica deve ser enviada por transmissão eletrónica de dados até ao dia 20 do 2.º mês seguinte àquele a que respeitam as operações, no caso de sujeitos passivos com um volume de negócios igual ou superior a 650 000 €; até ao dia 20 do 2.º mês seguinte ao trimestre, no caso de volume de negócios inferior a 650 000 €. EN: the periodic VAT return is filed by the 20th day of the second month following the period — the second month after the month for taxpayers with turnover of €650,000 or more, and the second month after the quarter for taxpayers below that threshold. The record takes the monthly regime; the VAT itself is paid by the 25th of the same month. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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até ao dia 20 do 2.º mês seguinte àquele a que respeitam as operações, no caso de sujeitos passivos com um volume de negócios igual ou superior a 650 000 €
- Payroll withholding
- Day 20 of the following month · each month
PT: as quantias retidas nos termos dos artigos 99.º a 101.º devem ser entregues até ao dia 20 do mês seguinte àquele em que foram deduzidas. EN: an employer delivers the personal income tax withheld from salaries to the State by the 20th day of the month following the month in which it was deducted. The record takes the 20th. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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as quantias retidas nos termos dos artigos 99.º a 101.º devem ser entregues até ao dia 20 do mês seguinte àquele em que foram deduzidas
Running the company
Running a company here
Not in our records The authorities’ pages on running a company have not been read for Portugal yet.
Economy and trade
What it exports
Goods Portugal exported, by product, as a share of its goods exports each year. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. A share describes Portugal’s own trade; it does not compare places.
Figures for Portugal as a whole.
| Product (HS heading) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Value, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons (other than those of heading 8702), including station wagons and racing cars HS 8703 | 5.4% | 5.8% | 5.7% | US$4.9 bn |
| Parts and accessories of the motor vehicles of headings 8701 to 8705 HS 8708 | 3.6% | 4.3% | 4.3% | US$3.7 bn |
| Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, other than crude; preparations not elsewhere specified or included, containing by weight 70 % or more of petroleum oils or of oils obtained from bituminous minerals, these oils being the basic constituents of the preparations; waste oils HS 2710 | 4.3% | 3.0% | 3.6% | US$3.1 bn |
| Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of leather HS 6403 | 2.4% | 2.3% | 2.0% | US$1.7 bn |
| Medicaments (excluding goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, put up in measured doses (including those in the form of transdermal administration systems) or in forms or packings for retail sale HS 3004 | 1.6% | 1.8% | 2.0% | US$1.7 bn |
| New pneumatic tyres, of rubber HS 4011 | 1.7% | 1.8% | 1.9% | US$1.6 bn |
| Olive oil and its fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified HS 1509 | 1.1% | 1.4% | 1.8% | US$1.6 bn |
| Medicaments (excluding goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of two or more constituents which have been mixed together for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, not put up in measured doses or in forms or packings for retail sale HS 3003 | 1.3% | 1.5% | 1.8% | US$1.6 bn |
| Revolution counters, production counters, taximeters, milometers, pedometers and the like; speed indicators and tachometers, other than those of heading 9014 or 9015; stroboscopes HS 9029 | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.7% | US$1.5 bn |
| Insulated (including enamelled or anodised) wire, cable (including coaxial cable) and other insulated electric conductors, whether or not fitted with connectors; optical fibre cables, made up of individually sheathed fibres, whether or not assembled with electric conductors or fitted with connectors HS 8544 | 1.3% | 1.5% | 1.6% | US$1.4 bn |
Total goods exports, 2024: US$86.2 bn. The ten largest headings are shown.