Real Estate Information
Home Find a topic Links Guest Book
Welcome

Buying Property in Portugal


Portugal has long been a popular choice for people, particularly from the colder climates of Northern Europe, looking to purchase a holiday home or a retirement home. Traditionally they have done so using offshore companies, mainly to avoid estate taxes. Unfortunately Portugal, along with some other countries, has made this route considerably less attractive by the imposition of swingeing tax penalties on offshore companies. The magnitude of these penalties can be seen from the examples below,

Real Estate Transfer Tax

This tax is paid by the purchaser, at progressive rates of up to 6% (5% for rural property) on property used exclusively for residential purposes, on the higher of the registered value or the purchase price agreed between the parties. This is usually the purchase price.

For offshore companies this rate has been increased to 15%.

Municipal Property Tax

This is a tax, at a rate set annually, levied by the local authority and based on the registered value. The rates are different for urban and rural properties and the total is typically about 1.6%.

For offshore companies the rate has been increased to 5%

Tax on a Deemed Rental Income

Where a property is owned by an offshore company, it is treated as having produced a rental income, which is charged to income tax, of one-fifteenth of the registered value.

There are other taxes, which have to be taken into account and these are,

Income tax

Where a property is rented out, the rent is charged to income tax and on a sale 50% of the chargeable capital gain is subject to Portuguese income tax.

Stamp duty

There is a stamp duty of 0.8% on the transfer of real estate.

Donations tax

Gifts to a spouse, antecedent or descendant are tax- free but other donations attract a tax of 10%

A Solution

Fortunately there are territories, which are not on the Portuguese black list and by purchasing a property in Portugal through a properly structured corporate vehicle incorporated in one of these locations, it is possible to avoid the penalties on offshore companies. These arrangements may bring with them other benefits such as,

? The ability to sell the property in the future without the buyer having to pay Real Estate Transfer tax,

? Avoidance of Portuguese capital gains tax on re-sale,

? Avoidance of donations tax or inheritance tax

? Avoidance of the deemed benefit provisions in U.K. law.

As taxes and the manner in which they are applied change frequently specialist advice should always be taken before entering into any arrangements

The Chesterfield Group provides a full range of trustee, and corporate advisory, formation and management services and invites enquiries. More particulars can be found on our web-site http://www.chesterfield-management.com REF=CH2EZ


MORE RESOURCES:

Times Online

Hypo Real Estate changes its CEO
Xinhua, China - 7 hours ago
BERLIN, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Axel Wieandt Tuesday replaced Georg Funke to became the CEO of Hypo Real Estate (HRE) that has recently received huge fund from ...
CEO of embattled Hypo Real Estate to step down International Herald Tribune
Sneezing on the world Boston Globe
Solution found for Hypo Real Estate - BaFin chief Reuters
BusinessWeek - Telegraph.co.uk
all 1,123 news articles


BBC News

Continental, Douglas, Hypo Real Estate: German Equity Preview
Bloomberg - 1 hour ago
Hypo Real Estate Holding AG (HRX GY): The commercial property lender that needed a 50 billion-euro ($68 billion) bailout said Chief Executive Officer Georg ...
Video: Wall St.'s worst week in 7 years ReutersVideo
UPDATE 1-Hypo Real Estate names Wieandt as new CEO Reuters
Hypo Real Estate names new chief executive (2nd Roundup) Monsters and Critics.com
Bloomberg - Bloomberg
all 1,185 news articles


ING Clarion Global Real Estate Income Fund and ING Clarion Real ...
MarketWatch - 9 hours ago
... costs than the current default rates being paid on the ARPS," said Ritson Ferguson, Chief Investment Officer of ING Clarion Real Estate Securities. ...


Inland Real Estate Corporation Announces Date of Third Quarter ...
MarketWatch - 9 hours ago
Inland Real Estate Corporation is a self-administered and self-managed publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns interests in 146 neighborhood, ...
NorthStar Realty Finance Announces Third Quarter Earnings ... FOXBusiness
all 31 news articles


Washington Post

LRG Capital Real Estate Partners I Fund Purchases California ...
MarketWatch - 12 hours ago
LARKSPUR, CA, Oct 07, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- LRG Capital Real Estate Ventures, a subsidiary of LRG Capital Group, is pleased to announce that the ...
Value Added: Federal Capital's $230 Million Fund Washington Post
LRG Capital Real Estate Partners I Fund Purchases California ... PR-USA.net (press release)
all 9 news articles


Seligman LaSalle International Real Estate Fund, Inc. Adjourns ...
MarketWatch - 12 hours ago
Investments in real estate securities may be subject to specific risks, such as risks to general and local economic conditions, and risks related to ...


US Stocks Drop, Led by Banks, Real-Estate Investment Trusts
Bloomberg - 11 hours ago
Banks and real-estate companies then led the market lower as the S&P 500 Financials Index slumped below its lowest closing level since 1997 even after Fed ...


Mercury Multimedia Wins Platinum PR Award for Real Estate TV Show
MarketWatch - 13 hours ago
At one point in the fall, Virtually Open House scored a 6.0 Nielson rating, an unprecedented high for a local real estate television program. ...


Boston Globe

Real Estate Examiner
Examiner.com - 9 hours ago
Michele Lerner has been gathering expertise about real estate for the past two decades, writing for regional, national and international publications for ...
Bank of America announces rescue plan for Countrywide borrowers San Jose Mercury News
Mortgage relief by Countrywide is a small step in solving national ... Medill Reports
Accord aims to save homes Sacramento Bee
San Francisco Chronicle
all 1,426 news articles


New York Times

International Real Estate For Sale in ... Belize
New York Times, United States - 5 hours ago
Belize’s real estate market has exploded over the past five years. On average, prices have risen about 55 percent during that time, according to Macarena ...

Real-Estate - Google News

Home | Guest Book |Site Map | Recommended Resources | Search

Powered By: TJTMEDIA

© 2006
Google