Managing a short-term rental comes with enough challenges—tax filings, sales invoices, and expense tracking shouldn’t be one of them. We take care of all your financial obligations, from accurate bookkeeping to timely tax submissions, so you can focus on providing an exceptional experience for your guests and growing your rental business stress-free.
Portuguese VAT declarations, sales invoices for your rental income, and correctly documenting your business expenses can be complicated - especially when you're managing properties remotely. We take care of everything so your vacation rental business runs smoothly without the stress.
Manage your AL remotely
Airbnb, Booking.com, VRBO tracked
Full English communication
Specialized accounting for vacation rental properties in Portugal
STR
Final pricing is based on the complexity and whether their expenses are consolidated by a property manager.
Starting from
99€
excl. VAT / month
Included:
Registering for Independent Activity
We'll select the appropriate CAE code to describe the work you'll be doing, and complete the registration process to activate your independent activity in Portugal.
Invoice Creation
To create a sales invoice for your customers you must use an invoicing program that is certified in Portugal. Depending on your situation we can either create a "Green Receipt" for you through the tax portal, or help you set up an invoicing program.
Social Security Declarations
Depending on your situation Social Security Declarations are required each quarter or each month. We prepare and submit this declaration to the Social Security office for you.
Reporting Monthly Income to the Tax Authority
Income must be declared to the Tax Authority within 5 days of the end of each month, which we do on your behalf.
VAT (IVA) Declarations
Depending on your situation VAT declarations are required each quarter or each month. We prepare and submit this declaration to the Tax Authority for you.
eFatura Review and Expense Categorization
Our team reviews your portal monthly to identify business, personal, and mixed-business expenses so that you pay the correct amount of tax, and no more.
Government Account Monitoring
We invest in an automated tool that monitors your Tax Authority and Social Security accounts to identify upcoming or unpaid debts that you may have. This service = peace of mind.
Charged Separately:
Personal IRS Declarations
In Portugal we must report worldwide income in your IRS tax declaration in most cases, even if that income won't be taxed in Portugal. Since the complexity varies greatly from person to person, we charge for IRS declarations separately.
Consulting and Analysis
Simple questions and support we provide without additional charges. Questions that require substantial additional time to address will be billed separately. Don't worry, we'll always notify you and get your permission before starting work that requires additional payment.
Managing Portuguese rental properties from abroad requires visibility and automation. Our specialized digital tools help you track income, document expenses, and catch tax issues before they become expensive problems
Don't let receipts pile up. Use our online tool to easily upload non-Portuguese invoices so they can be documented as business expenses. We can identify your Portuguese invoices online, but remember to store the paper copies just in case.
Questions about a tax declaration? Need clarification on an expense? Message our team directly through your portal. Your full conversation history is saved, and you'll get responses within one business day - in clear English.
Our exclusive system watches Portuguese Tax Authority and Social Security for you, identifying missing IMI payments, unpaid property taxes, or other obligations. Catch issues early before they turn into penalties or legal problems - especially important when you're managing properties remotely.
Need your NIF certificate for a client contract? Want to review last quarter's VAT submission? Log in to your portal and find everything organized in folders - tax declarations, financial summaries, registration documents, and more.
Connect your rental platform accounts directly to our system. We automatically import your booking income and platform fees, eliminating manual data entry and ensuring every euro of revenue is properly reported to Portuguese tax authorities. Combined with our expense tracking tools, this gives you a complete picture of your rental property's financial performance - from gross bookings through platform commissions to net profit after all operating costs. Essential information for optimizing pricing and maximizing returns on your Portuguese property investment.
Alojamento Local (AL) owners in Portugal have several compliance obligations spanning both tax and operations. On the tax side: you must declare monthly rental income via the Portal das Finanças, file periodic VAT returns under the current rules (see the VAT FAQ below), and submit an annual IRS return declaring all rental income. Social security obligations may also apply if short-term rental is your primary or significant income source.
On the operational side, you need an active AL license from your local council, a valid NIF, and — if you are a non-resident — a VAT representative in Portugal. We handle all of the tax and compliance obligations.
Yes — and this is one of the most significant recent changes for AL owners. Under rules that took effect in 2024–2025, short-term accommodation income is subject to 6% VAT in Portugal. If your annual STR revenue exceeds the exemption threshold (currently €15,000 per year), you are required to register for VAT, charge 6% to all guests on every booking, issue VAT-compliant invoices, and file periodic VAT returns.
If you are a non-resident of Portugal with STR income, VAT registration may be required regardless of turnover level. The upside: you can recover VAT on eligible costs related to your rental property. The rules here can be tricky and depend on your residency status, home country, and income level. Getting this wrong can result in significant back-taxes and penalties.
We handle all tax and compliance obligations: registering you for independent activity (if not already done), monthly income declarations, VAT registration and returns where required, social security declarations, and your annual IRS filing. We also monitor your government accounts proactively for any alerts, notices, or correspondence from the AT.
What falls outside our scope: obtaining or renewing your AL license (this is done through your local council or the Balcão do Empreendedor portal and the RNAL national registry), AIMA immigration registrations or residency applications, and collecting the municipal tourist tax from guests (booking platforms typically collect this automatically). We will always be clear about what is and is not included in your plan — no surprises.
Serving non-resident property owners is a significant part of our STR practice. All of our services are delivered remotely — your location is not a barrier. We work with clients based in the UK, US, Ireland, and across Europe who own and operate short-term rental properties in Portugal.
On fiscal and VAT representation: if you are a non-EU/EEA resident with tax obligations in Portugal — including rental income from an AL property — Portuguese law requires you to appoint a VAT representative. Our partners can act in this capacity or facilitate the appointment as part of your onboarding. For EU/EEA residents, fiscal representation is not mandatory. We clarify this during onboarding based on your specific residency situation.
Short-term rental income in Portugal is generally classified as Category B income (business/professional income) under the IRS, because it requires active registration under the independent activity framework. Under the simplified regime, 35% of your gross STR revenue is taxable. The applicable IRS rate depends on your total income for the year, ranging from 14.5% to 48% progressively.
Non-residents are typically taxed at a flat 25% rate on Portuguese-source income.
In most cases, yes. Running an Alojamento Local in Portugal typically requires registration as an independent worker (atividade independente) with the AT, because the income is treated as business/professional activity under Category B. This is required even if your STR is your only income source and even if you use Airbnb or Booking.com as your booking platform. If it’s operating within an LDA, then independent activity is not necessary.
We handle this registration as part of STR onboarding: selecting the correct activity code, configuring your VAT position, and ensuring your tax setup is correct from the start. If you are already registered for independent activity for another reason, we review whether your current setup covers your STR activity correctly.
AIMA (Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo) is Portugal's immigration agency, responsible for residency applications and work authorisation for non-EU nationals. AIMA registrations are immigration matters — not tax or accounting — so this falls outside our scope.
Similarly, the physical AL license itself is issued by your local câmara municipal through the Balcão do Empreendedor, and registration of your property on the national RNAL registry is your own responsibility. What we do cover is everything on the tax and finance side once you are operational: income declarations, VAT, social security, and annual IRS filing. We will clearly map out what you need to handle separately so nothing falls through the cracks.
Under the simplified regime for Category B income, you’re not deducting expenses from your income, but rather documenting expenses so that you can receive your full coefficient (where you’re only paying tax on 35% of your revenue). This can be important to ensure that your taxes are as low as possible.
The municipal tourist tax (taxa turística) is a per-person, per-night charge in many Portuguese municipalities. Current rates include €4 per person per night in Lisbon and €3 in Porto; Lagos and other Algarve councils have their own rates and structures. This tax is typically collected by the booking platform (Airbnb, Booking.com) and remitted directly to the local council on your behalf — you do not usually need to collect or remit it yourself.
However, if you take direct bookings outside of platforms, you may need to collect and remit it manually. Some municipalities also require separate registration or reporting. This falls outside our standard accounting scope, but we can advise you on your specific municipality's requirements.
The original NHR regime (for those still holding pre-2024 status) and the newer IFICI/NHR 2.0 programme are primarily designed to benefit employment income and qualifying professional income for High Value Adding Activities (HVAA). Short-term rental income classified as Category B does not typically benefit from the flat NHR rate in the same way professional service income does — it is generally still taxed at standard progressive IRS rates for residents.
That said, the interaction between your NHR or IFICI status and your STR income can be complex depending on how your activity is structured.
Good record-keeping is essential for both routine compliance and any AT audit. You should maintain: all booking records (dates, guest names, revenue per stay), all expense invoices related to the property (maintenance, cleaning, repairs, platform fees, furnishings), evidence of your active AL license, and VAT invoices issued to guests if you are VAT registered. All records should be kept for a minimum of 10 years under Portuguese law.
Book a consultation with our expat accounting team — we'll explain exactly what applies to your situation.
