Next year, the special tax regime for "non-habitual" foreign residents, i.e. all those tax concessions that Portugal guarantees to foreigners, pensioners or professionals in professional fields considered of particular importance, who choose the country as their area of residence, will end. This was announced by the Prime Minister himself, the socialist António Costa, in an interview released yesterday evening, August 2, on the television channel CNN Portugal.
The law currently provides for a tax of 20% for qualified professionals and digital nomads, and 10% for pensioners. Until 2020, the latter enjoyed a total exemption from paying taxes, a tax regime that benefited many foreign nationals, not only Europeans, and the Portuguese emigrants themselves who received a pension from abroad. Of course, those who already enjoy these benefits can continue to do so for the duration provided for by law (10 years).
This ability to attract wealthy foreigners since 2009, the year in which the first version of the measure came into force, was considered one of the causes of the increase in real estate prices in large cities, which today causes more and more discontent. It is no coincidence that Costa, in the same interview, also announced a new freeze on the rent increase. For the current year the limit was set at 2%. Next year, the premier said, it should not be necessary to repeat the same measure, however the government is in discussions with tenants' and landlords' associations.
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