Complete accounting support tailored for freelancers and contractors, covering everything from “recibos verdes” and invoicing to taxes, compliance, and ongoing guidance. Whether you're just starting out or already established, we handle the details so you can stay focused on your work with full confidence and peace of mind.
You moved to Portugal to live and work on your terms - not to become an expert in Portuguese tax law. We handle all the confusing recibos verdes paperwork, quarterly declarations, and Expense documentation so you can focus on your actual work.
Communicate entirely in English
Upload invoices from anywhere
Quick answers when you need them
Your price will depend on your situation. Freelancers and contractors typically fall within the range described below.
1 - 3 clients
Perfect for freelancers with 1-3 clients and minimal business expenses, such as online workers or consultants.
Starting from
99€
excl. VAT / month
3+ clients
Designed for independent professional who serve many customers, have a large volume of business expenses, and/or many foreign expense invoices.
Starting from
125€
excl. VAT / month
All plans include:
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 tax obligations shouldn't be complicated. Our digital platform makes it easy to submit expenses, track deadlines, and communicate with your accountant - from anywhere in the world
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.
Each month, your personalized task list shows what's needed from you. Check off items as you complete them, add comments if you have questions, and attach supporting documents right in the task. No confusion about deadlines or requirements.
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.
When it's easy to submit expenses as they happen, you don't forget about deductible costs. When you can see your outstanding tasks at a glance, you meet deadlines and avoid penalties. When you can message your accountant instantly, small questions don't become big problems. Our goal is to make your accounting as frictionless as possible to save you time, headaches, and an unnecessarily large tax bill. Our modern platform removes that friction so you can focus on your freelance work while we handle the compliance.
Independent activity — atividade independente — is the Portuguese equivalent of self-employment or freelancing. If you earn income from services you provide independently — consulting, design, IT, coaching, writing, short-term rentals, or many other professions — you are typically required to register as an independent worker with the Portuguese tax authority (AT).
Once registered, you declare your income monthly, issue official receipts (recibos verdes, or green receipts) for each payment received, and pay personal income tax (IRS) and social security contributions based on your earnings. It is the simplest and most common way for individuals — including expats living in Portugal — to legally earn money without setting up a formal company.
Registration is done through the Portal das Finanças — Portugal's online tax portal. You need an active NIF (tax identification number) and access to your portal account. During registration, you select the activity code (artigo 151 CIRS or CAE code) that best describes your work, declare your expected income, and choose your VAT regime.
Registration must happen before you start earning or having business expenses – any expenses incurred before your activity started won’t be accepted as a business expense. We handle the entire registration process for you as part of our independent activity onboarding: selecting the correct activity code, configuring your VAT status, and making sure everything is set up correctly from day one.
Self-employment tax in Portugal has two main components: IRS (personal income tax) and social security. Under the simplified regime — the default for most independent workers — only a portion of your gross income is usually taxable. The taxable coefficient varies by activity (the type of work that you’re doing). For most professional services the coefficient (taxable amount) is 75% of your income. For other activities such as operating a short term rental like a house listed on Airbnb, the coefficient is as low as 35%. IRS rates are then applied progressively, ranging from 14.5% up to 48% for high earners. Note that for incomes above around €25,500/year the Tax Authority may require documented expenses totalling at least 15% of total revenue in order to receive the full coefficient. This is a common “gotcha” that gets missed until an unexpected tax bill is received.
Social security is calculated separately at 21.4% on 70% of your average monthly income. A person can choose not to contribute to Social Security for the first 12 months of their activity, and this is very common especially with expats working in Portugal. Between IRS and Social Security, Portugal freelance tax obligations can add up quickly — and many freelancers are surprised by the size of their first-year bill.
Recibos verdes — literally "green receipts" — are Portugal's official digital invoices for independent workers. Every time you receive payment for services, you are legally required to issue a Portuguese certified invoice, and a recibo verde through the Portal das Finanças is free and commonly used. It records the income amount, any applicable withholding tax (if your client is a Portuguese company), and VAT if you are registered.
Many clients find this system confusing at first, especially if they are used to simply invoicing clients as they would in the UK, US, or elsewhere. The Portal das Finanças interface is in Portuguese, and the rules around withholding and VAT can vary by client type. We issue and manage your recibos verdes on your behalf, or help you set up a simple system to handle them yourself — whichever works better for your workflow.
This depends on a few factors, including your annual turnover. Independent workers with annual income below €15,000 can apply for VAT exemption under Article 53 of the CIVA — meaning you do not charge VAT to clients and do not file VAT returns. Once you exceed that threshold, VAT registration becomes mandatory, and you must charge the applicable rate (23% for most services) and file periodic returns.
If you work primarily with clients outside Portugal, different VAT rules may apply — in many cases, services to non-Portuguese businesses are outside the scope of Portuguese VAT. We assess your situation at onboarding and advise you on the correct VAT position, then handle all filings if registration is required.
Independent workers in Portugal are responsible for their own social security contributions. The rate is 21.4% of your contribution base, which is calculated as 70% of your average monthly income over a rolling reference period – this calculation makes the effective rate around 15% of your income. There is a minimum contribution floor based on the national minimum wage, and a cap at the top.
Importantly, social security contributions are due quarterly — in January, April, July, and October, and you can elect not to contribute to for the first 12 months of activity. Many freelancers are surprised by the cumulative size of these payments, especially when combined with IRS provisional instalments, so be sure to plan ahead.
Under the simplified regime, it is possible to identify a portion of your living expenses, kilometers driven, and other expenses as business expenses, helping to reach the necessary 15% documented expenses required for higher earners.
If you switch to the organized accounting regime (contabilidade organizada), you can make similar deductions but they require appropriate documentation, for example a rental contract for your home office.
There is no single right answer — it depends on your income level, business goals, expenses, and risk appetite. Independent activity is simpler and cheaper to run, but depending on your situation an LDA may be more tax-efficient. An LDA also provides limited liability protection and can be necessary for certain clients, contracts, or funding structures.
The downside: an LDA requires more administration, higher accounting fees, and more legal formality. We consult on this decision regularly and help clients make the switch at the right time — not too early, not too late.
Having both employment income (trabalhador dependente) and independent activity income in the same tax year means both streams are declared together in your annual IRS return and taxed on the combined total — which can push you into a higher bracket. Your employer handles withholding on your salary; your clients may also apply withholding on your freelance income if they are Portuguese companies (at 23%, reduced to 11.5% from 2025 for lower-income earners).
Yes — managing everything on your behalf is the point, but you’ll also still need to communicate with us so we can fully support you. We know that most of our clients came to Portugal to live their lives, not to spend them navigating the Portal das Finanças or translating letters from the AT. Our independent activity service is designed to be fully managed: we register your activity, create your green receipts, handle VAT filings (if applicable), submit your social security declarations, and can file your annual IRS return for a separate fee.
We’ll ask specific questions so that we can ensure that you pay the correct amount of tax, and not more. We also monitor your government accounts proactively for any issues, so nothing catches you by surprise.
A straightforward freelancer tax calculation in Portugal works like this: take your annual gross income, apply the taxable coefficient for your activity (75% for most professional services as an example), then apply the progressive IRS rate to the taxable portion. Add social security on top — 21.4% on 70% of your gross — and you have a reasonable estimate of your total annual tax and contributions liability.
Example: if you earn €60,000 gross providing consulting services (Article 151), your taxable income is €45,000. IRS on €45,000 falls across multiple brackets — roughly €8,000–€12,000 depending on your deductions and personal allowances. Social security adds approximately €8,989 (21.4% × 70% × €60,000). Total combined obligation: roughly €17,000–€21,000 before deductions. Please note that this is intended to give you an estimate; the right numbers depend heavily on your specific situation, available deductions, etc.
The original NHR regime (for those holding pre-2024 status) and the newer IFICI programme (NHR 2.0) can significantly reduce the tax burden on qualifying professional income — but the interaction with freelance activity is nuanced. Under the original NHR, certain professional services income earned from foreign sources was exempt from Portuguese IRS entirely; other income qualified for a flat 20% rate. Under IFICI, qualifying professionals in eligible categories pay a flat 20% rate on Portuguese-source income rather than the standard progressive rates. In both situations, it’s important to remember that only High Value Added Activities (HVAA) are eligible for the reduced tax rate; this often gets missed or overlooked, causing frustration when the tax bill comes.
What qualifies, and how your income is classified, depends on your specific professional activity code and income source. Not all freelance income qualifies for preferential treatment, and some common freelancer situations (particularly domestic client income) may not benefit as expected.
The key deadlines to know: monthly income declarations are typically due by the 5th of the following month via the Portal das Finanças; quarterly social security payments are due in January, April, July, and October; VAT returns (if applicable) are due monthly or quarterly; and the annual IRS return must be filed between April 1 and June 30, covering the prior year's income.
If you have provisional IRS instalment payments (pagamentos por conta), those are typically due in July, September, and December.
Book a consultation with our expat accounting team — we'll explain exactly what applies to your situation.
