Do you actually need one?
This is the first thing to settle, and the honest answer is that plenty of people don't. We would rather you read this than buy something you can do without.
Residents of the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein
Subscribing to electronic notifications or appointing a fiscal representative is always optional.
If that describes you, representation is a convenience you may choose, never an obligation.
Residents of third countries
Residents of third countries who have a tax relationship with the Tax Authority must either appoint a fiscal representative or subscribe to electronic notifications via the Portal das Finanças or the ViaCTT electronic mailbox.
A tax relationship exists where the person owns a vehicle registered in Portugal, owns property situated in Portugal, or in comparable situations.
So it is a choice between two valid routes, not a compulsory purchase. Subscribing to the electronic channel is free and may well be enough if you read Portuguese comfortably and check the portal regularly. Appointing us makes sense if you don't follow the portal, don't read Portuguese, or hold property with recurring obligations — the situations where a notice sits unread until it becomes a problem. There is one exception, covered further down: if you are self-employed and subject to VAT, the electronic channel does not replace a representative. The full legal background, including the 2022 change that created this choice, is in our guide to fiscal representation in Portugal, explained.
What you get for €199 a year
- ✓Annual fiscal representation — we are registered with the Tax Authority as your representative for the full year, and re-registered on each renewal.
- ✓Receipt and forwarding of official correspondence, in English — anything that arrives from Finanças reaches you with an explanation of what it is, not a scan you have to translate yourself.
- ✓Deadline monitoring — we track the dates attached to what arrives and tell you before they matter, rather than after.
- ✓Coordination with the certified accountant — where something needs a filing or a payment, we pass it to the independent Certified Accountant who does the regulated work.
- ✓A single written point of contact — one email thread, one person who knows your file. Everything from us is in writing, so you always have the record.
€199 a year, VAT included
One figure, published, with the renewal terms set out beside it rather than in a footnote.
Renewal years — fiscal representation only, at the same €199 per year.
Renewal and cancellation terms
This is a recurring annual service. In plain English, here is exactly what you are agreeing to:
- The fee is €199 per year, VAT included.
- It renews annually on the anniversary of the appointment.
- You are notified in writing before each renewal.
- The service continues only while you are a non-resident for Portuguese tax purposes.
- You may cancel at any time before renewal, in writing, with no penalty — email insurance@adlerrochefort.com and we will confirm in writing.
- Once you become tax resident in Portugal, please tell us and update your address on the Portal das Finanças. At that point representation is no longer required and the service ends.
- The first-year fee also covers the remote NIF application; renewal years cover representation only.
Settling in more broadly, rather than only sorting out representation? The Complete package is €499 for the first year, VAT included, then €199 per year. The first-year fee covers NIF, NISS, bank account assistance and priority processing, which are onboarding tasks carried out once, and renewal covers fiscal representation only. See the settle-in packages.
Adler & Rochefort acts as an intermediary and coordinator. NIF applications and fiscal representation are provided by an independent certified accountant, who is fully responsible for those services. We do not provide tax, accounting or legal advice.
Already have a representative? Transfer to us
You are not locked in. Plenty of people appoint whoever their lawyer or estate agent suggested at the time of purchase, then find they cannot get a straight answer in English when something arrives. Changing is routine, and the one thing that matters is that there is no gap in coverage while it happens.
- 1Tell us who your current representative is and when your arrangement runs to. If you are not sure, we can tell you what your record shows.
- 2We accept the appointment expressly and register the change with the Tax Authority, so the new appointment is valid from the moment the old one ends.
- 3We confirm in writing that the change is reflected in your tax record — the step most often skipped, and the one that causes trouble later.
- 4Your renewal date is then the anniversary of the new appointment, at €199 per year.
If you're self-employed or opening a company
Where a non-resident carries on self-employed activity subject to VAT, the fiscal representative must be a VAT-registered taxable person resident in Portugal. In these cases subscribing to electronic notifications does not waive the requirement to appoint one.
In practice that rules out both of the shortcuts people reach for: you cannot substitute the free electronic channel, and you cannot appoint a friend or family member who is not VAT-registered in their own right. If you are invoicing from Portugal as a non-resident, or heading towards incorporating a Portuguese company, it is worth handling representation and the structure together. Our Corporate package covers company formation from €1,200 + VAT, one-off, with ongoing accounting contracted and billed directly by the certified accountant.
Frequently asked questions
Not always, and this is widely misunderstood. Residents of third countries who have a tax relationship with the Tax Authority must either appoint a fiscal representative or subscribe to electronic notifications via the Portal das Finanças or the ViaCTT electronic mailbox. For residents of the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, subscribing to electronic notifications or appointing a fiscal representative is always optional. A tax relationship exists where the person owns a vehicle registered in Portugal, owns property situated in Portugal, or in comparable situations.
In most cases yes. Decreto-Lei n.º 44/2022, of 8 July, amended article 19 of the Lei Geral Tributária to waive the obligation to appoint a fiscal representative whenever the taxpayer subscribes to any channel of dematerialised notification. Subscription is done at: Portal das Finanças > A minha Área > Notificações e Citações > Gerir canais. The exception is self-employed activity subject to VAT, where subscribing does not waive the requirement to appoint a representative.
At the moment a NIF is first issued to a non-resident, appointing a fiscal representative is not mandatory. It becomes mandatory within 15 days if the person establishes a tax relationship in Portugal — for example buying a property here or registering a vehicle.
Failure to appoint a fiscal representative when required, or appointment without the representative's express acceptance, is punishable by a fine of €75 to €7,500. In those circumstances the non-resident is also impaired in exercising rights before the Tax Authority, including the rights of complaint, hierarchical appeal and judicial challenge.
A fiscal representative must be an individual or entity domiciled in Portugal. A foreign national may act as fiscal representative provided they hold a valid residence permit at the date of acceptance and are registered as resident with the Tax Authority. The appointment also needs the representative's express acceptance to be valid.
Yes — see Transfer to us above. We accept the appointment, register the change with the Tax Authority and confirm in writing that your record reflects it, so there is no gap in coverage.
Yes. Where a non-resident carries on self-employed activity subject to VAT, the fiscal representative must be a VAT-registered taxable person resident in Portugal, and subscribing to electronic notifications does not waive the requirement to appoint one.
Yes, and in the first year it is included in the €199. If you already hold a NIF, the first year simply covers representation. For social security registration, bank account assistance and the rest of a settle-in, see our NIF and settle-in services.
It renews. Fiscal representation is a recurring annual service, because the representative stays your registered contact for as long as the obligation lasts. The fee is €199 per year, VAT included, and it renews on the anniversary of the appointment for as long as you remain a non-resident for Portuguese tax purposes. We notify you in writing before each renewal.
Email insurance@adlerrochefort.com at any time before renewal. There is no penalty and no notice period beyond that. We confirm the cancellation in writing, and the appointment ends at the end of the year you have paid for.
The service ends, because representation is no longer required. Please tell us once you become tax resident and update your address on the Portal das Finanças — that address update is the step people forget, and if the record still shows a foreign address the requirement can appear to persist. We will not renew a client we know has become resident.
The remote NIF application. The first-year fee covers your NIF plus fiscal representation; renewal years cover representation only, at the same €199. Nothing else changes between the first year and later years.
Send us your details
Fill this in and we will reply in writing — in plain English — telling you whether you need representation at all, and if you do, what happens next. Everything from us is written, so you keep the record. No obligation.
Thank you
Your details have been received. We'll reply in writing shortly with a straight answer on whether you need representation and what happens next.
Important information
Adler & Rochefort is the commercial brand of Ownizo, Unipessoal, Lda., a registered insurance mediator (ASF reg. no. 425591790/3). The relocation and company services on this page are ancillary concierge services. The technical work — including NIF applications, fiscal representation, company incorporation and accounting — is carried out by an independent Certified Accountant (Contabilista Certificado) registered with the Ordem dos Contabilistas Certificados. Full legal and professional responsibility for those services rests with that third-party provider.
Adler & Rochefort collects and forwards your information and coordinates the process only; it does not provide tax, accounting or legal advice and does not perform any acts reserved to certified professionals. For company clients, ongoing monthly accounting is contracted and billed directly by the certified accountant, and you are free to choose or change your accountant at any time.
Your data is processed in accordance with the GDPR — see our Privacy Policy. Purchasing any service on this page is never a condition of obtaining insurance from us, and vice versa. Our services are subject to our Terms & Conditions.
Ready to put it in place?
€199 per year, VAT included, with the first year covering your NIF as well. Send us your details and we will reply in writing — including if the answer is that you don't need us.
Need the wider picture? Read fiscal representation explained, or see our NIF, settle-in and company formation services and health insurance for expats.