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Portuguese property in a UK estate requires a Portuguese notary, a stamp duty assessment, and parallel UK probate. Portugal has no forced heirship for spouses, children retain a legítima, and spouses and children are exempt from Portuguese stamp duty on inheritances.
Portugal is popular with UK citizens — particularly the Algarve, Lisbon, and the Silver Coast. When a UK citizen dies owning Portuguese property, the estate requires parallel administration in the UK and Portugal. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 applies in Portugal, giving UK citizens the option to elect UK law to govern their Portuguese succession.
This guide covers the EU Succession Regulation election, the Portuguese stamp duty rules, the notary process, the legítima for children, and practical steps for executors.
Portugal applies Brussels IV, under which the habitual residence of the deceased at death determines the applicable succession law by default. A UK citizen habitually resident in the UK at death who has not made a Brussels IV election may find Portuguese private international law directing that Portuguese law (lex situs) applies to their Portuguese immovable property.
By including a formal election of UK law under Article 22 of Brussels IV in their will, a UK citizen can direct that UK law governs their Portuguese property. This avoids the legítima applying to the Portuguese assets (subject to any Portuguese court override in specific circumstances).
For a full explanation of how Brussels IV works, see our guide on the EU Succession Regulation.
Portugal's Civil Code (Código Civil) provides for a legítima — a reserved share for certain close relatives. Following reforms in 2012:
A Brussels IV election of UK law can potentially exclude the legítima from applying to Portuguese assets, though Portuguese courts retain the ability to apply corrective mechanisms in some cases.
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Portugal charges stamp duty (imposto do selo) on inheritances at a rate of 10% on the taxable value. However, there is a full exemption for:
This means that in most family situations — where a UK citizen leaves Portuguese property to a spouse or children — no Portuguese stamp duty applies. Siblings, nieces, nephews, and other relatives do pay at 10%.
The Portuguese tax return (Modelo 1 do IS) must be submitted to the Portuguese tax authority (AT) within 3 months of death if the deceased was Portuguese resident, or 6 months if non-resident. The Portuguese solicitor or notary can advise.
A Portuguese cartório notarial is required to transfer Portuguese property. The process includes:
You will need certified translations of the UK death certificate and the UK will. See our guide on obtaining an apostille for a foreign death certificate for the authentication process.
All heirs will need a Portuguese NIF (Número de Identificação Fiscal — tax identification number). UK citizens can obtain a NIF at a Portuguese consulate or through a Portuguese tax representative.
A UK-domiciled deceased's Portuguese property forms part of the worldwide estate subject to UK IHT. The property is valued at its market value in GBP at the date of death.
There is no specific UK–Portugal estate tax double taxation treaty, though some credit may be available for Portuguese stamp duty paid under the general HMRC rules on foreign taxes. Specialist advice is needed.
See our UK IHT guide for current rates. For the question of whether a UK will covers the Portuguese property, see overseas property in a UK will.
For the complete UK administration, see our estate administration checklist, complete UK probate guide, and our guide on what documents you need for probate. For cross-border estate planning, see our guide on multiple wills in different jurisdictions.
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