Stamp Duty: How to Report a Death to the Tax Authority

When someone dies leaving assets in Portugal, there is an obligation that runs from day one and that many families only discover when the bank refuses to release an account: the report of the death to the Portuguese Tax Authority (Autoridade Tributária, "Finanças") for Stamp Duty (Imposto do Selo) purposes. It is required even when the heirs are the spouse and children, who are exempt from the tax. This article explains what this report is, who files it, the deadline, which assets must be declared and how to proceed when some of the heirs live in Brazil.

What the Stamp Duty report is

In Portugal, estates are not subject to an inheritance tax by that name. Gratuitous transfers, including those resulting from death, are subject to Stamp Duty at a rate of 10% (item 1.2 of the General Table of the Stamp Duty Code), on assets deemed located in Portugal (Art. 4(3)).

For the Tax Authority to assess the tax, or record the exemption, the law requires an official form: Stamp Duty Form 1, called the "Report of Gratuitous Transfers" (Participação de Transmissões Gratuitas, Modelo 1 ISTG). The report identifies the deceased, the date and place of death, the heirs and legatees and their family relationships, and contains the list of assets transferred with their respective values (Art. 26(2)).

According to the Tax Authority leaflet on reporting a death, the report is mandatory when there is a transfer of assets located in Portuguese territory. If the deceased left no assets, there is no report to file.

Who files: the estate administrator (cabeça-de-casal)

The law requires the estate administrator and each beneficiary to report the transfer (Art. 26(1)). However, if the estate administrator identifies all the beneficiaries, they are released from filing their own report (Art. 26(4)). For this reason, in practice, it is the estate administrator who files Form 1.

The role of estate administrator falls, in this order (Art. 2080 of the Portuguese Civil Code):

1. to the surviving spouse, not judicially separated of persons and property, if he or she is an heir or has a half-share in the couple's property;
2. to the executor, unless the testator stated otherwise;
3. to relatives who are legal heirs, with preference for those of the closest degree;
4. to testamentary heirs.

Among heirs of the same degree, those who had lived with the deceased for at least one year take preference; all else being equal, the oldest. The report is signed by the interested parties, by their legal representatives or by attorneys-in-fact (Art. 27(1)).

Deadline: by the end of the 3rd month following the month of death

The report must be filed by the end of the 3rd month following the month in which the tax obligation arises (Art. 26(3)), which, in succession upon death, is the date the succession opens, that is, the date of death (Art. 5(p)). Example: for a death occurring on any day in September 2026, the deadline ends on December 31, 2026.

The deadline cannot be extended. The only exception is a postponement of up to 60 days, which the head of the local tax office may grant when a justified reason is alleged and proven (Art. 26(5)).

If the report is not filed, the head of the tax office who learns of the death by other means notifies the interested parties to file it within 10 to 30 days, failing which the assets will be deemed concealed, and may initiate the assessment ex officio (Art. 28(2) and (3)). The Institute of Registries and Notary (IRN) states that, when the proceeding at the Inheritance Desk (Balcão das Heranças) begins after the deadline, the service reports this to the Tax Authority so that fines can be applied.

Who is exempt and who pays 10%

Under Art. 6(1)(e) of the Stamp Duty Code, the following are exempt from item 1.2:

• the spouse or de facto partner;
• descendants (children, grandchildren);
• ascendants (parents, grandparents).

The Tax Authority leaflet confirms, for example, that transfers between grandparents and grandchildren are exempt. Siblings, nephews and nieces, cousins, other relatives and unrelated persons pay 10% on the value of the assets they receive. In Annex II of Form 1, each heir is identified by his or her Portuguese tax identification number (NIF) and marked as exempt or taxable.

The most important point: the exemption does not waive the report. No bank or other entity may authorize the withdrawal of inherited deposits, shares, securities or public debt certificates unless the tax is shown to have been paid or, where there is an exemption, the reporting obligation under Art. 26(2) is shown to have been fulfilled (Art. 63-A).

Which assets to declare in the list of assets

Only assets deemed located in Portugal are included in the report (Art. 4(3) and (4)). These include real estate in Portugal, movable assets registered in Portugal (such as cars), amounts deposited in banks with a head office or establishment in Portugal and, under certain conditions, shareholdings and receivables. The list of assets is made in Annex I, with six tables:

• 01 — Real estate held in full ownership: all rural and urban properties in the deceased's name, including separate and common property. The value is the taxable property value (valor patrimonial tributário) recorded in the property tax register (Art. 13(1)).
• 02 — Partial interests and other rights over real estate: usufruct, bare ownership, timeshare rights, burial vaults.
• 03 — Movable assets and receivables: vehicles, boats, works of art, bank accounts. For accounts, attach a bank document showing the balance on the date of death and the transactions for the last 60 days (Art. 26(6)(l)).
• 04 — Shareholdings and businesses: shares, quotas, commercial establishments, with the documentation indicated in the Tax Authority leaflet (certificate from the CMVM, the Portuguese Securities Market Commission; extract of the latest balance sheet).
• 05 — Public debt securities and certificates and other securities.
• 06 — Liabilities: debts and charges existing on the date of death, such as mortgages, and taxes whose taxable event occurred up to that date, which are deducted from the value of the assets (Art. 20).

Not subject to item 1.2 are, among others, personal or household effects, life insurance proceeds, and death pensions and allowances paid by social security systems (Art. 1(5)).

Even when there is an exemption, the list must cover real estate, shareholdings and securities, other assets subject to registration and monetary amounts, including bank deposits (Art. 28(1)).

If the family has questions about which assets to include, who should take on the role of estate administrator or how to meet the deadline from Brazil, Sene & Araújo can help organize the report. Talk to our team.

Step-by-step filing on the Tax Authority portal (Portal das Finanças)

1. Gather the basic documents: death certificate, identification and NIF of the deceased and of all heirs and legatees and, if any, the will.
2. Request the NIF for the undivided estate. According to the Tax Authority leaflet, the report can only be filed after this number has been assigned. The request is made on the Portal das Finanças (Cidadãos > Serviços > Dados Cadastrais – Herança Indivisa – Entregar Pedido), only by the estate administrator, or at a Tax Office (Serviço de Finanças) by prior appointment.
3. Fill in Form 1 ISTG on the Portal (Cidadãos > Serviços > Modelo 1 ISTG), with Annex I (list of assets) and Annex II (identification of the heirs, their shares and indication of who is exempt and who is taxable).
4. Attach supporting documents for the values: bank statements, CMVM certificates, balance sheets, documents on liabilities.
5. Follow the assessment. Based on the report, the Tax Authority opens the proceeding and, if tax is due, notifies the interested parties. The tax is paid by the end of the second month following the month of notification; if it exceeds €1,000, it may be split into up to ten installments, with a minimum of €200 each (Art. 45).

The report can also be filed in person, at a Tax Office by appointment, or through the Inheritance Desk, which files the report as part of the declaration of heirs (habilitação de herdeiros) procedure itself.

Heirs in Brazil without a NIF

It is common for the deceased to have lived in Portugal while some of the children or grandchildren remain in Brazil, or vice versa. Three points deserve attention:

• Each heir needs a Portuguese NIF. Annex II identifies the beneficiaries by their tax identification number. Anyone who does not yet have a NIF should apply for one in advance, which can be done from Brazil through an attorney-in-fact. See our page on the NIF.
• Tax representation. Under the General Tax Law (Lei Geral Tributária), Article 19, anyone residing outside the European Union and the European Economic Area must, as a rule, appoint a tax representative, unless they opt in to electronic notifications. The Tax Authority (AT) leaflet provides that, where the estate administrator (cabeça-de-casal) is a nonresident, the request for the estate's NIF may be made by their tax representative through the e-balcão, together with the identification documents of everyone involved and the death certificate.
• Competent tax office. If the deceased did not reside in Portugal, the assessment is carried out by the tax office (serviço de finanças) of the place of residence of the estate administrator or of the beneficiary; if there are several, where the oldest resides or, if there are assets in Portugal, where the assets of greatest value are located (Article 25, paragraphs 2 and 3).

Assets located in Brazil are not included in the Portuguese filing: they follow the Brazilian inventory proceedings and ITCMD. Coordination between the two procedures is covered on our international succession page.

Two practical scenarios

Father living in the Algarve, children in Brazil

A Brazilian national who lived in Albufeira dies, leaving an apartment and an account at a Portuguese bank. His two children live in São Paulo. They are exempt, but the child who takes on the role of estate administrator must report the death by the end of the 3rd month following. Without this, the bank cannot release the account. Both children need a NIF, and the estate administrator must request the estate's NIF before filing Form 1.

Childless aunt, nephews and nieces as heirs

An aunt leaves a property in Lisbon by will to two nephews. Nephews are not covered by the Article 6 exemption: each pays 10% on their share, calculated on the basis of the property's taxable value (valor patrimonial tributário), less the charges encumbering it on the date of death.

Common mistakes

• Assuming the exemption removes the need to file. Spouses, children and parents are exempt, but the filing remains mandatory.
• Counting the deadline from the date of death. The deadline ends on the last day of the 3rd month following the month of death, not 90 days after the death.
• Leaving the heirs' NIF for later. Without a NIF, Annex II cannot be completed.
• Omitting accounts or movable property. If there are assets not listed by the estate administrator that are in the possession of an heir, that heir has 30 days to describe them (Article 26, paragraph 9).
• Dealing only with the Portuguese side. Assets in Brazil have their own deadlines, such as the two-month deadline to open inventory proceedings.

When to consult a lawyer

The family can make the filing itself, but legal assistance often makes a difference when there are heirs in Brazil without a NIF, when it is unclear who the estate administrator is, when there is a will, assets in several countries or heirs subject to the 10% rate, or when the deadline is close to expiring. Sene & Araújo, with lawyers in Albufeira and São Paulo, assists with the filing, the declaration of heirs (habilitação de herdeiros) and the partition of the estate (partilha) in Portugal, working with the accountant when the undivided estate has IRS or IMI (municipal property tax) reporting obligations.

• Stamp Duty Code (Código do Imposto do Selo) — Law 150/99 (Arts. 1, 4, 5, 6, 13, 20, 25 to 28, 45 and 63-A; item 1.2 of the General Table)
• Portuguese Tax Authority — Leaflet 'Participação do Imposto do Selo – Óbito' (Stamp Duty filing upon death) (December 2025)
• Portuguese Tax Authority — Instructions for completing Stamp Duty Form 1
• Portuguese Tax Authority — Stamp Duty Form 1 (Participação de Transmissões Gratuitas, return of gratuitous transfers)
• Portuguese Civil Code (Código Civil) — Decree-Law 47344/66 (Art. 2080)
• General Tax Law (Lei Geral Tributária) — Decree-Law 398/98 (Art. 19, paragraphs 6 and 15)
• IRN — Inheritance Desk (Balcão das Heranças): frequently asked questions

Sene & Araújo Sociedade de Advogados team. Content prepared and reviewed by the firm's lawyers, admitted to the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) and the Portuguese Bar Association (Ordem dos Advogados), with offices in São Paulo and Albufeira. The provisions cited were checked against the official sources listed above. Meet the team.