Moving to Portugal for several months is not just about comparing the price of a coffee in Lisbon with that in Lyon. The real exercise is to compile all the expense items, including those that are often overlooked, into a coherent table before signing anything. The budget for a long-term stay in Portugal now depends on fiscal and real estate parameters that have radically changed since 2024.
Post-NHR Portuguese Taxation: The Invisible Item That Increases the Budget
Competitors detail rent, food, and transportation. Few focus on what has disrupted calculations over the past two years: the end of the Non-Habitual Residents (NHR) regime.
As of January 1, 2024, the NHR is closed to new arrivals. Its replacement, the IFICI, no longer covers foreign pensions. A French retiree moving to Portugal today is taxed according to the progressive IRS scale, with rates ranging from about 12.5% to 48%.
For a long-term stay with passive income, this tax burden can represent several hundred euros more per month compared to projections made before 2024. Including this item right from the estimation phase avoids unpleasant surprises at the first Portuguese tax declaration. A tool like the ResidenciaNova budget on Echange Immo allows for modeling this type of scenario in advance, with up-to-date fiscal parameters.
Property Tax for Non-Residents: Decree-Law 97/2026
Are you considering buying a property rather than renting during your stay? Decree-Law 97/2026, published on May 20, 2026, introduced a fixed IMT tax of 7.5% for non-resident taxpayers. This surcharge replaces the old progressive scale and can nearly double the cost of the IMT on a property valued between 400,000 and 500,000 euros compared to what a resident would pay.
A partial refund remains possible if the buyer becomes a tax resident within two years. In practice, this means that buying property during a long-term stay without transferring tax residency now costs significantly more than before. This parameter must be included in any serious estimation.
Renting or Buying: The Decision Changes Depending on Duration
For a stay of six to twelve months, renting is generally simpler and less exposed to transaction costs. Beyond two years, buying with a transfer of tax residency becomes competitive again, provided the IMT surcharge is recouped.
The duration of the stay determines the appropriate accommodation mode, not the other way around. Asking this question first helps structure the rest of the budget.
Expense Items to Estimate Before Departure
A long-term stay budget in Portugal is not limited to rent and groceries. Here are the items that ResidenciaNova allows you to integrate into an overall calculation:
- Housing and ongoing charges: rent, electricity, water, internet. Rents vary significantly between Lisbon (the most expensive area) and secondary cities like Braga or Coimbra, where a viable monthly budget starts much lower.
- Local and national taxation: IRS on income, IMI (annual property tax if purchased), IMT surcharge for non-residents. These items are often underestimated in general simulators.
- Health and insurance: the Portuguese public system (SNS) is accessible, but dental and optical care remain poorly covered. A private health supplement represents a monthly cost not to be forgotten.
- Transportation and trips to France: local transport is among the cheapest in Western Europe, but round trips by plane to France weigh on the annual budget.
- Food: local products remain significantly cheaper than in France, which partially offsets other rising costs.
Why “Typical” Budgets Found Online Are Misleading
Most monthly budget grids published online aggregate national averages. The problem is that Portugal has considerable cost disparities from one area to another. A viable budget in Évora has nothing to do with a budget in Cascais.
ResidenciaNova allows you to set the target city, type of accommodation, and tax profile. A personalized calculation is far better than a national average.
Long-Term Stay in Portugal: The Most Common Calculation Errors
Three errors recur in the majority of estimates made without a dedicated tool:
The first is forgetting local inflation. Portugal has experienced a price acceleration in recent years, and rents in tight areas have sometimes caught up with those of average French cities. Estimating your budget based on data from two or three years ago skews the entire projection.
The second error is ignoring remote management fees. If you maintain a property in France, the costs of property management, insurance, and French taxation continue to accrue. The budget for the Portuguese stay also includes what you continue to pay in France.
The third is underestimating banking and exchange fees. Even within the eurozone, some transfers between French and Portuguese accounts incur fees, and managing two administrative lives has a cost in time and money.
A Calculation Framework Rather Than a Magic Number
No article can provide a universal monthly amount valid for all profiles. What matters is having a calculation framework that incorporates the right parameters: city, duration, tax status, accommodation mode, declared income.
ResidenciaNova offers exactly this framework. Rather than relying on a round figure found on a forum, building your own projection item by item remains the only reliable method for a multi-month stay. The right budget is the one you calculated yourself, not the one someone gave you.
