Markets
Start an online business in Portugal
The steps the government of Portugal sets for a new business that sells online, each linked to the official page that runs it, then the steps to open your store. Read from the official sources on October 14, 2026.
Set up your business in Portugal
The steps in the order most new sellers take them. Each is read from the official page linked under it.
1. Choose a legal form
The Ministry of Justice online company guide names three company types: sociedade unipessoal por quotas with one partner, sociedade por quotas with at least 2 partners, and sociedade anónima with at least 5.
2. Register the business
Companies are created online or at Empresa na Hora counters of the Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado, and sole traders open activity with the Finanças.
3. Get your tax number
A sole trader uses the NIF from the Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira and files a declaração de início de atividade with the Finanças.
4. Check when you must register for VAT
Artigo 53.º of the CIVA (Decreto-Lei n.º 35/2025, de 24 de março) exempts taxable persons whose annual turnover in national territory did not exceed 15 000 € in the previous year.
5. Follow the rules for selling online
The Direção-Geral do Consumidor sets out consumer rights, including the 14-day free withdrawal for distance contracts.
Open your store in Portugal
What Tanqory sets up for a store based in Portugal. You change any of it in Settings.
- Tax
Your store starts with a tax entry for Portugal, collecting off, until you confirm the rate or connect a tax service.
VAT in Portugal- Card payments
Through your own Stripe account, which Stripe opens for businesses in Portugal. Tanqory adds no transaction fee; Stripe charges its own rate.
- Shipping labels
DHL Express and Easyship, bought in your admin, with the customs declaration sent with each label for parcels that cross a border.
What stays with you
- Registering the business and choosing its legal form. Tanqory does not register a business for you.
- Registering for VAT, filing returns and paying the tax authority.
- Licences or permits your products need in Portugal.
- Legal or tax advice. This page points to the official sources; an adviser in Portugal can apply them to your business.
Questions about starting a business in Portugal
Which legal form should I choose in Portugal?
The official page in step 1 lists the forms a business in Portugal can take. Your choice decides how you register, how you are taxed and whether your own money is kept apart from the business, so an adviser in Portugal is worth asking before you decide.
What does Tanqory set up for a store in Portugal?
A tax entry for Portugal with collecting off, card payments through your own Stripe account, and DHL Express and Easyship labels you buy in your admin. You change any of it in Settings.
Does Tanqory file my VAT return?
No. Your store works out and charges VAT at checkout and keeps a record of every order. You register, file and pay the tax authority yourself, or through your accountant.
What do I have to tell buyers when I sell online in Portugal?
The official page in step 5 lists the information and rights a buyer in Portugal must get before and after they order. Put that information on your store before your first sale.
How current are these steps?
Each was read from its official page on October 14, 2026. Rules change; the official page is the authority, so open it before you act.
How we checked
Each step on this page was read from its official page on October 14, 2026. The store facts come from Tanqory's tax settings, payments and shipping setup.
- Tanqory's tax settings, payments and shipping setup
- registo.justica.gov.pt
- justica.gov.pt
- eportugal.gov.pt
- info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt
- www.consumidor.gov.pt
Open your store in Portugal today
Build your store while you set up your business, and switch on tax collecting when your registration is in place.