Latest news and stories about fiscal policy in Portugal for expats and residents.
The Tax and Customs Authority (Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira or AT) has evaluated 31 of the approximately 540 existing tax benefits in Portugal. Director-General Helena Borges stated that the agency is currently assessing another ten incentives to determine their ongoing effectiveness.
France's recurring fiscal deficit challenges and economic pressures are intensifying calls for the European Central Bank to pause its cycle of interest rate hikes, echoing historical debates around Gallic exceptionalism within the European Union.
Mário Centeno warns that current fiscal policies and rising public spending mirror the pre-Troika era, arguing that the government's narrative of austerity avoidance is undermined by a record-high tax burden.
The tax burden on fuel (ISP) is higher for middle-income households than for the poorest, when measured as a percentage of income, because the latter group relies more on public transport, according to a study by the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation. The study 'Portugal Fiscal', authored by tax law professor Sérgio Vasques and economists Susana Peralta and José Pedro Sousa, provides a portrait of the Portuguese tax system in 2025. It finds that as a proportion of gross household income, ISP expenditure peaks among those in the 20th to 40th income percentiles. The researchers also note that while alcohol and tobacco taxes are regressive, fuel taxes affect middle-income earners more significantly due to their reliance on personal vehicles. Additionally, the study highlights that the ongoing electrification of vehicles is contributing to a substantial decline in tax revenue from automotive and fuel-related levies compared to 2004.
6h OE27 refers to the 2027 State Budget. The Parliament is set to vote on the general outline of the Government's budgetary proposal today.
Nuno Félix believes that creating tax benefits is an 'easy temptation' for responding to problems.
The 2027 State Budget bill is, therefore, a calibration budget. It fails to address the central issue—how to simplify a system that accumulates benefits, exceptions, and sectoral contributions?
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva stated that too many countries face excessive debt and urged central banks to prioritise price stability. Speaking at the 2026 IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok, Georgieva highlighted that wealthy nations are the primary offenders and warned that no economic growth can offset inflationary pressure without fiscal effort. The IMF also noted that artificial intelligence is contributing to short-term inflation and projected global public debt to reach 100% of GDP by 2030.
Analysts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned today that governments must accelerate fiscal consolidation to curb the rise in global public debt, advocating for tax reforms and criticising widespread fuel subsidies.
International Monetary Fund analysts warned on Wednesday that governments must accelerate fiscal consolidation to curb the rise of global public debt, advocating for tax reforms and criticizing broad fuel subsidies. During the release of the new Fiscal Monitor report, the IMF indicated that global public debt reached 94% of GDP in 2025 and is projected to hit 100% by 2029, driven primarily by the world's largest economies. Rodrigo Valdés, director of the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department, emphasised the urgent need for action, noting that fiscal risks are rising and that countries should begin adjustments before market confidence wanes.
The Irish proposal for the European budget up to 2034 is already facing criticism. Frugal countries are demanding more cuts and an agreement is far from guaranteed. Will Europe be able to reach a consensus?
This is the third proposal drafted by PSD/CDS-PP governments led by Prime Minister Luís Montenegro.
On the day the 2027 State Budget was presented, the topic was central to discussions among leaders of major Portuguese banks at the Money Conference 2026 in Cascais, with a consensus that the current fiscal path must be maintained. BPI CEO João Pedro Oliveira e Costa warned against undoing the progress made on fiscal discipline, while Santander's Isabel Guerreiro emphasised the importance of predictability, faster licensing, and PRR execution. Millennium BCP CEO Miguel Maya also advocated for balanced accounts, suggesting the budget should focus support on the most vulnerable groups, noting that broader structural reforms in housing and justice should occur outside the budget framework. Other points raised included the need to end the stigma surrounding banking profits and the Bank of Portugal Governor's concerns regarding financial risks posed by new technologies.
The submission will be made two days before the deadline.
Home Wealth and Tax Portugal cuts income tax rates in latest fiscal adjustment Portugal cuts income tax rates in latest fiscal adjustment Portugal's Council of Ministers signed off on a cut to personal income tax (IRS) on 17 September.
José Manuel Pureza states that the Prime Minister chooses not to demand greater fiscal solidarity from large economic groups.
There are fiscal anomalies that reveal more about a country's soul and the vision of its political power than entire economic treatises. The recent report by MP Mário Amorim Lopes, from the Liberal Initiative, touches precisely on the heart of one of these deep contradictions: in Portugal, a citizen who wins a prize in...
The tax authority identified 355 million euros in illegitimate financial gains from criminal inquiries concluded in 2025 and is investigating another 671 million euros in unpaid taxes, according to the latest report on anti-fraud efforts. The Tax and Customs Authority (AT) opened 5,184 criminal investigations last year, with the most common crime being fiscal breach of trust, accounting for over 85% of cases. The report highlights the increasing complexity of these investigations, which often involve cross-border fraud schemes and offshore entities.
Internationalisation is no longer the exception, but the rule. With it come fiscal and regulatory demands that span continents, sectors, and business models. The latest episode of Compliance Talks, an initiative by Sovos Saphety and ECO, featured Ricardo Xavier Correia, Partner of Tax Technology and Transformation at EY Portugal, and...
In addition to taxes, the State coercively collects debts from fees, financial contributions, fines, and other sanctions resulting from judicial decisions related to administrative offences.
A state that spends political energy and media capital pursuing the 0.28% of improper social support payments is not achieving fiscal justice. It is performing fiscal theatre.
The reduction has been a constant trend over the last seven years, particularly affecting verification and compliance actions.
Information reported by banks on transfers to tax havens led the Tax Authority (AT) to conclude 68 inspections last year, resulting in corrections of eight million euros in taxable income and 1.4 million euros in tax. Following the inspection procedures, out of 16 decided cases, eleven were in favour of the State.
Public administration tax expenditure reached 23,477.3 million euros in 2025, an increase of 2,551.2 million compared to the previous year, equivalent to a year-on-year rise of 12.2%. In relative terms, the weight of fiscal benefits increased again, rising from 7.2% to 7.7% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), consolidating the trajectory of...
The Liberal Initiative (IL) party states that Portugal remains among the most centralised nations within the OECD.
The 31 tax benefits already evaluated represent 77% of tax expenditure, and the 10 currently under assessment concern benefits whose expiry date is approaching, according to Helena Borges, Director-General of the Tax and Customs Authority.
The Portuguese central bank anticipates that the country will fail to meet the new European fiscal targets regarding net expenditure.
The European Fiscal Board (EFB), an independent advisory body to the European Commission, warned this Wednesday that the easing of European Union (EU) fiscal rules due to the energy crisis could lead to an “unjustified discretionary fiscal expansion,” criticising this flexibility. “The new flexibility for energy support measures under the national safeguard clause, proposed...
