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Key Tax Changes for Foreign Residents in Portugal: The 2022 Budget Explained
The 2022 State Budget proposal introduced revisions to IRS brackets and strengthened oversight of foreign bank accounts, though the budget was later rejected politically.
On 12 October 2021, Portugal published the proposed State Budget for 2022 in the Diário da República, introducing several tax measures relevant to expatriates and foreign property owners. Although the budget faced political challenges and was later rejected, the published text remains important for contextual understanding of Portugal’s fiscal direction.
The proposal introduced revisions to IRS (personal income tax) brackets, adjustments to deductions for dependents and clarification of reporting requirements for foreign-sourced income. It also strengthened tax authority oversight of foreign bank accounts under CRS (Common Reporting Standard) automatic exchange of information.
For foreign nationals living in Portugal—especially Americans, British, Brazilians and Canadians—the increased transparency obligations reflect Portugal’s tightening compliance environment. High-net-worth individuals, retirees and digital nomads must ensure that their foreign financial assets are correctly reported.
Even though the budget did not pass, many of these tax measures were reincorporated into later budgets. The 2022 proposal marked the beginning of a shift toward more robust tax compliance enforcement.
Official source: Diário da República, 2022 State Budget Proposal, 12 October 2021 (https://dre.pt)