Under Ministerial Order n. 150/2004 of 13 February, issued by the Portuguese Ministry of Finance and consequently updated, Portugal defines an official blacklist of countries and jurisdictions considered for legal and tax purposes as tax havens.

Blacklisted Jurisdictions

Current Blacklisted Jurisdictions +Blacklisted JurisdictionTypeNotesBritish Overseas Territory -Country -Constituent CountryThe Netherlands Antilles were dissolved in 2010.Constituent Country -British Overseas Territory -CountryCountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Country -Country -Country -Country -Country -Commonwealth -Country -Country -Country -Australian external territory -Country -Country -Unincorporated internal area of NorwayPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country but the agreement does not include these territories.British Overseas Territory -British Overseas Territory -Unincorporated and organized U.S. territory -Country -Country -CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Country -CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -British Overseas TerritoryPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory.Country -Country -Country -Unincorporated and organized U.S. territoryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Crown dependencyPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory. The Isle of Man was briefly whitelisted between January 1, 2017 and December 31, 2018.Country -British Overseas Territory - (Qeshm Island)CountyOnly the county of Qeshm, more specifically the island of Qeshm has been blacklisted by the Portuguese government.Overseas collectivity of FrancePortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country but the agreement does not include this territory.Dependent territory of New Zealand -Australian external territory -Malaysian Federal Territory -Country -Country -Country -Country -British Overseas Territory -Country -Country -Overseas country and collectivity of FrancePortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country but the agreement does not include this territory.U.S. Commonwealth and Unincorporated and organized U.S. territoryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Country -Unincorporated and unorganized U.S. territoryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Country -Country -CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -British Overseas TerritoryPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory.British Overseas TerritoryPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory.Cocos (Keeling) IslandsAustralian external territory -Country -BailiwickPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory. BailiwickPortugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information with the territory.Other Pacific IslandsNon-specifiedThe Portuguese Government considered "other Pacific Islands" all the islands in the Pacific Ocean not mentioned in the list.British Overseas Territory -Country -Country -Country -CountryPortugal has signed an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation with the country.Country -Country -

Former Blacklisted Jurisdictions JurisdictionTypeDate of WhitelistingNotesCountryJanuary 1, 2021Portugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information and an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation, in force since April 23, 2017, with Andorra. The Government of the Principality of Andorra sent a formal request under Article 63d(3) of the Portuguese General Taxation Law to review the country's place on the Portuguese blacklist, which was then subject of a positive opinion issued by the Portuguese Tax and Customs Authority, and the conditions for excluding the Principality of Andorra from the blacklisted were approved by the Ministry of Finance.EU Member StateNovember 9, 2011Portugal has signed an agreement of exchange of tax information and an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation, in force since August 16, 2013, with Cyprus. Under EU Law Portugal could not discriminate fellow Member-States nor prevent the free movement of capital. Special Administrative RegionJanuary 1, 2026Removed from the list because it is not on the European Union list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes adopted by the Council of the European Union, which was last updated on February 18, 2025.CountryJanuary 1, 2026Removed from the list because it is not on the European Union list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes adopted by the Council of the European Union, which was last updated on February 18, 2025.EFTA MemberJanuary 1, 2026Removed from the list because it is not on the European Union list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes adopted by the Council of the European Union, which was last updated on February 18, 2025.

Sanctions

National sanctions The Portuguese Tax Code foresees aggravated withholding tax, 35% tax rate, on capital income (interests and dividends) deriving from black listed jurisdictions and an aggravated municipal property tax of 7% on property owned by entities located in said jurisdiction. Portugal's "blacklist" is defined by decree issued by the Minister of Finance and taking into account confidential reports issued by the Portuguese Tax and Customs Authority.

In addition, non-habitual residents (NHRs) status holders do not benefit from personal income tax exemption on interests, dividends, capital gains, income from immovable property (rents), royalties, intellectual property income and business income) if: these are sourced from black-listed jurisdictions. Therefore, taxation of such income will be subject to the normal rates or to the 35% rate depending on the type of income earned by the NHR status holder.

European Union Sanctions On December 16, 2019, the EU Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) (CCG), under the Economic and Financial Affairs Council, published a new guidance on sanctions to be applied by EU Member States against blacklisted 'non-cooperative' jurisdictions by the end of 2020. These sanctions were immediately backed by the Finish Presidency of the Council of the European Union who labelled them as "defensive-measures" that are recommended to EU Member States to take against blacklisted jurisdictions. Implementation of such sanctions by Portugal are expected to occur on January 1, 2021.

Jurisprudence

Arbitration Court A recent ruling from the Portuguese Arbitration Court (CAAD) in case 494/2024-T has challenged Portugal’s approach to taxing capital gains for non-residents from jurisdictions listed on the country's tax "blacklist." The case involved taxpayers residing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) who were subjected to a higher 35% tax rate on real estate capital gains, in contrast to the lower rate applicable to other non-residents.

The court ruled that this differential tax treatment violates the principle of free movement of capital as established in Article 63 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The decision highlighted several key points:

Residency in a blacklisted jurisdiction does not automatically justify increased taxation. Blanket tax measures aimed at preventing tax avoidance can be excessive and restrict the free movement of capital. Portugal has a tax treaty with the UAE, including an exchange of information clause, which weakens the justification for imposing a higher tax rate.

As a result, the Arbitration Court annulled the 35% tax rate and ruled that the affected taxpayers were entitled to a refund, including interest on the excess tax paid.

Criticism The list has been said to have violated EU Law by discriminating against a former EU-Member State's territory such as Gibraltar, therefore violating the principle of free movement of capital. Furthermore, the list does not take into account whether Portugal has in place a double taxation agreement with the blacklisted territory.

Critics also point out that the list is not clear given the fact that it makes no provisions regarding the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles nor if countries such as Japan, Australia or New Zealand fall under the category of "other Pacific Islands." In addition, the Portuguese list does not mirror the list adopted by the European Union regarding tax aggressive and non-cooperative jurisdictions.

References