Lisbon, April 1, 2026 (Lusa) - The submission of the personal income tax (IRS) returns for 2025 earnings opened on Wednesday on the Finance Portal, affecting over 6 million households across Portugal.
The submission period lasts three months, running from 1 April to 30 June.
This timeframe applies to all income categories, including salaried employees, self-employed workers, those who carry out activities in both capacities, pensioners or those with additional income streams, such as rental properties.
This annual process allows the Tax and Customs Authority (AT) to calculate the final tax liability based on the total income earned between 1 January and 31 December of the previous year.
The tax administration will balance the accounts by weighing the amounts paid during 2025 through withholding taxes, which last year used three sets of withholding tables to account for mid-year tax cuts.
The final adjustment will result in one of three outcomes: a refund, an additional payment to the state, or no further tax owed or receivable.
The Secretary of State for Tax Affairs, Cláudia Reis Duarte, told Lusa that in 2025, more than 6 million tax returns were submitted via the Finance Portal during the standard filing period, comprising returns filed individually or by a household (two taxpayers).
Based on government forecasts, the speed of refunds depends on the submission method: taxpayers covered by the Automatic Tax should receive their refund within 2 weeks of submitting the Model 3 file, whereas those submitting their returns manually are expected to receive their refund within 3 to 3.5 weeks.
The Automatic Tax feature, which enables a faster submission process by simply confirming a fully completed provisional tax return submitted by the Tax Authority, will include young workers under the IRS Jovem scheme (taxpayers up to age 35).
According to her, 2 million automated declarations are estimated, of which 200,000 originate from IRS Jovem.
The government aimed to align monthly deductions more closely with the actual tax due, which does not mean refunds would be lower, she said, adding that the "ideal world" involved no tax to pay or receive, something she describes as difficult to achieve due to the complexity of individual variables.
The process is entirely digital, and paper submissions of the Model 3 form at tax offices are no longer permitted.
However, taxpayers without internet access can schedule an appointment at a local finance office to receive assistance from a tax official in completing their digital return.
PCT/MYAL // ADB.
Lusa
