EU citizen - NIF and Residency

Last activity 22 September 2023 by JJ K80

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HI4512Member22 September 2023 07:21:34

Hi,

Me, my partner and 2 young children are Irish citizens.

We are looking to move to Portugal on October 15th 2023.

We just had a few questions:

Should we apply for NIF before arriving in Portugal - using one of teh online services / repersentives ?

Should we request the password before arriving when applying for NIF (I read it takes 4 weeks to arrive)?

We want to register for Tax Residency in Portugal as soon as possible when we arrive.

What is the quickest way to become tax resident?

We are not sure where in Portugal we want to live and we were hoping to spend a few months in different areas.

But from what I have read - we need CRUE to become tax residents (updating our NIF address) and we can't get CRUE without having a 12 month lease. Is that correct?

If that is the case - we would need to get a 12 month lease as soon as we arrive in Portugal - which is a pity as we are not sure where we want to live.

Is there any way of getting CRUE without a 12 month lease?

Thanks again

JohnnyPTPortugal Expert22 September 2023 08:02:04

4394

Hi Aidan545, Welcome.

The information you've read is very much aimed at those who apply for a visa, i.e. non-EU citizens...

While in Portugal, you can apply for a NIF in person at an AT Finanças office, free of charge. But as you are not yet resident, you must have a tax representative, for example a solicitor.

You are a tax resident if you stay in the country for 6 months +1 day. If you want tax benefits, you can see if non-habitual resident status applies to you, for example if you have a value-added job.

There is some confusion about the CRUE. As an EU citizen, you can stay in an airBnb, for example, while you're looking for a place. When you find a house, and after 3 months in the country, you can apply for the CRUE at the town hall where you live.

The 12-month lease is a requirement for non-EU citizens, which is not your case.

Best Regards

JJ K80Member22 September 2023 14:21:34

@aidan545 Lots of Irish people (and pubs) here in Cascais btw. Some of them started off at the Algarve but couldn't really build up a good social circle so they ended up heading north. On the topic of NIF requests, while it is true that it can be done for free here, I preferred to get it done beforehand and that went well. Having a NIF is needed for quite a couple of things here. I'd recommend you stay at Airbnbs to see where you feel at home. The Porto region is really nice, but a bit colder in winter. Cascais has a lot of expat groups and international schools. Lisbon is nice if you like big city life (not my thing). Ericeira is also popular these days. The country is big and every corner has its beauty.

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