IFICI Portugal: eligibility, tax benefits and registration
In short
IFICI taxes qualifying Portuguese work income at 20% for ten years, for people not resident in Portugal in the previous five years who work in research, innovation, a qualified job or a certified start-up.
- Register by 15 January 2027 if you became resident in 2026; a late registration counts only from its own year.
- Foreign employment, business, investment and rental income and gains are exempt with progression; pensions are not.
What IFICI is
IFICI was created by the State Budget law of 29 December 2023, with registration and verification rules published on 23 December 2024. It is a separate, narrower regime available from 2024, with its own work and residence conditions. NHR remains available only to protected existing or eligible transitional cases.
For NHR, the ordinary registration dates were 31 March 2024 for 2023 residents and 31 March 2025 for qualifying 2024 residents. A qualifying 2024 transitional resident can still make a late request; if approved, it takes effect from the request year for the remainder of the original period ending in 2033. Existing 10-year NHR registrations continue.
The seven statutory eligibility routes
The law provides seven distinct eligibility routes for IFICI. All require the individual residence and regime conditions.
| Route | Activity and entity conditions | Code or recognition check | Competent body |
|---|---|---|---|
| (a) Higher education, research and technology centres | University teaching or qualifying scientific research; also jobs directly involved in scientific research or innovation, or governing-body roles, in recognised technology and innovation centres | Establish the institution and actual activity; a CAE code alone does not decide this route | FCT |
| (b) Contractual productive-investment benefits | Qualified jobs or governing-body roles within the contractual investment-benefit framework | Match the job and approved investment project | AICEP |
| (c) Highly qualified professions | A profession in the IFICI list of highly qualified professions, meeting its qualification requirements, in a company benefiting from RFAI in the start year or previous five years, or a qualifying industrial/service exporter | For the exporter branch, an eligible main CAE code plus at least 50% export turnover in the start year or either of the previous two years | AT, with employer confirmation |
| (d) Activities recognised as relevant to the national economy | Qualified jobs or governing-body roles in entities within the AICEP/IAPMEI notices | Apply those notices’ profession, activity and entity conditions; this list differs from route (c) | AICEP or IAPMEI |
| (e) Eligible R&D personnel | Personnel costs eligible under the specified SIFIDE provision | Prove the eligible R&D work and costs; not every technology role qualifies | ANI |
| (f) Certified startups | Jobs directly involved in scientific research or innovation, or governing-body roles, in an entity certified under the startup-recognition rules | Confirm the entity’s startup certification and the individual’s actual role | Startup Portugal |
| (g) Autonomous regions | Jobs or other activities of tax residents in Madeira or the Azores | Apply the relevant regional legislation; the mainland CAE list is not an automatic regional test | Competent regional authority |
The sector list for route (c)’s exporter branch uses CAE Rev. 3: extraction 05 to 09; manufacturing 10 to 33; information and communication 58 to 63; natural-science R&D 721; higher education 85420; human health 86100 to 86904. Do not substitute a current registration code without checking the correspondence.
An independent contract is not interchangeable with a statutory job. AT accepts university teaching under a services contract when the other conditions are met, but explains that a “posto de trabalho” requires employment.
The benefit: 20% on Portuguese work income and an exemption for foreign income
IFICI delivers two benefits in parallel:
20% flat on qualifying Portuguese-source Cat A (employment) and Cat B (self-employment) income, for the qualifying activity only. Non-qualifying side activities stay on the standard CIRS regime.
Exemption from Portuguese tax on foreign-source income in Cat A, B, E, F, and G under IFICI. This is exemption with progression: the exempt income is included when determining the rate on other taxable income. The exemption does not depend on foreign tax having been paid; category, source and listed-jurisdiction rules still apply.
Pensions (Cat H) fall outside the exemption, which covers only Cat A, B, E, F and G. Income paid or made available by an entity in a listed jurisdiction is excluded from the IFICI exemption: the listed-jurisdiction rules tax it under provisions that set a 35% rate for capital income and certain gains. The AT's published guidance applies the 35% rate to income of any category paid by such an entity.
What IFICI is not
IFICI is not the same as NHR. NHR had a ten-year period and a different qualification process. Its treatment of foreign income, including pensions, depends on the income category, the applicable legacy rules and treaty conditions. IFICI is narrower: only specific activity-based roles qualify, and the Cat A/B activity has to fit one of the seven paths. IFICI is also not automatic on D7 visa, D8 visa, or any other immigration category.
Application mechanics
Submit the IFICI registration request and applicable supporting evidence through the Portal das Finanças. The competent body assesses the requirements for the activity and AT assesses the remaining legal requirements. The evidence depends on the eligibility route and can include employment contracts, employer declarations, qualifications or certifications, CAE evidence and Portuguese residence records.
As a rule, the registration request is due by 15 January of the year after the year in which Portuguese tax residence begins; a later registration takes effect only from the year in which it is made, for the remaining years of the ten-year period.
A change, or the loss of a requirement, must be reported by 15 January of the year after it occurs. The other competent bodies (FCT, AICEP, IAPMEI, ANI and Startup Portugal) report the requests and their verification of the activity requirements to AT by 15 February each year.
For route (c), AT makes the details to be confirmed available to the company where the work is done by the end of February, and the company confirms them in its Portal das Finanças area by 15 March. AT makes the status of each registration available by 31 March. For 2025 residents the deadline was 15 January 2026; a registration made later in 2026 takes effect from 2026.
The annual Modelo 3 and Anexo L are separate reporting obligations. They are not prerequisite documents for the January registration.
Frequently asked questions
What is IFICI?
IFICI is Portugal's tax incentive for scientific research and innovation, created in 2024. It applies a 20% rate for ten years to qualifying Portuguese employment and self-employment income. Qualifying foreign employment, self-employment, investment, rental income and capital gains can be exempt, except for income paid by entities in listed preferential-tax jurisdictions.
Did IFICI replace NHR?
For new arrivals, yes: NHR closed to new entrants after the 2024 transition, and IFICI is the incentive for qualifying activities.
Does IFICI cover pensions?
No. The IFICI exemption for foreign income does not cover pensions. A pension follows the ordinary Portuguese pension-tax rules and the applicable tax treaty.
How long does IFICI last?
IFICI has a fixed ten-year window beginning with the year you become Portuguese tax resident, subject to the IFICI eligibility and continuation rules. Late registration can apply only from the registration year for the years remaining in that original window; it does not start ten new years.
Who qualifies for IFICI?
Someone who was not tax resident in Portugal in any of the previous five years and earns employment or self-employment income from an activity in one of the seven routes set out above. Current or former NHR beneficiaries, anyone who has already used IFICI and anyone who opted for the Programa Regressar are excluded.
When is the IFICI application due?
The normal deadline is 15 January of the year after your Portuguese tax residence begins. If you become resident in 2026, that is 15 January 2027. Late registration applies only from the registration year, if the conditions are met; it does not restore missed years or start a new ten-year period. Registration and the annual IRS return are separate steps.
Can a D7 or D8 visa holder use IFICI?
Only if your employment or self-employment falls within one of the seven qualifying routes and you meet the other conditions. The visa does not establish eligibility.
Can I qualify if I work from Portugal for a company abroad?
Not on that basis alone. IFICI depends on the activity and, on most routes, on the employer meeting the IFICI eligibility conditions; remote work alone does not qualify.
Related guides
- Guide · Law as at
IFICI vs NHR: eligibility and tax differences
Compare IFICI eligibility and income treatment with existing and transitional NHR rights. Understand the differences before relying on a tax benefit. - Guide · Law as at
CAE codes in Portugal and IFICI
On IFICI's exporter route, the company's main CAE code must be in the IFICI exporter-route list. - Article · Law as at
IFICI in 2026: late registration and deadlines
IFICI is open to people who become tax resident in Portugal after five non-resident years and carry on an eligible activity.
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