In this article, we will talk to you about several government programs aimed at supporting Portuguese residents and providing access to decent rental housing for individuals and families with small and medium incomes. It is important to emphasize that one of the reasons for writing this article for the portal is that the programs are available not only for Portuguese passport holders, but for all residents.
Programs that help you save money on rent in Portugal:
Emergency income support (Apoio Extraordinário à Renda).
The program was approved in 2023 as part of the More Housing Package (Mais Habitação). This support is temporary. It is scheduled to end after the expiration of the five-year period from the start date, on December 31, 2028. The program regulations can be found in Decreto-Lei n.º 20-B/2023, dated March 22 (Decreto-Lei n.º 20-B/2023, de 22 de março).
Since rental costs are high and continue to increase, under the program, one household in 2023 could count on a maximum monthly payment of 200 euros (minimum payment of 20 euros) until the end of the program or rental agreement. And in 2024, the state increased the payment amounts by 4.94% to compensate for rising rental costs. For those who participated in the program from 2023, all adjustments were made automatically. But if a household did not previously participate in the program and now falls under the terms, it is worth keeping in mind. Information about income and updated rent terms may not be updated as quickly by Social Security and the IRS. Accordingly, some additional actions may be required on the part of the potential beneficiary.
Under the program, only the portion of the rental amount that exceeds 35% of the total family income can be repaid, but not more than the maximum threshold of €200 + an adjustment of 4.94% in 2024, i.e., €209.88.
For example, if you rent a home for €1,200 per month and 35% of your income is €1,100 per month (i.e., your net household income is €3,143 per month), the assistance would be €100 (€1,200 - €1,100).
Segurança Social is in charge of social benefits under this program. You do not need to apply to the services or write an application to receive this support from the state. The social support service identifies such households, but there are some important points to keep in mind on the part of the beneficiary:
- The tenant's office on the Segurança Social website must have a bank account number for social assistance. Although, as far as we know, if you do not have one, special checks are sent to your residential address, which can be cashed, for example, at the post office (CTT).
- The lease agreement must be registered by the landlord with the tax office (AT). We wrote, among other things, about this in the article "What you should do after signing a lease in Portugal".
- The tenant's income must be official and declared.
Basic conditions for receiving emergency income support:
- Residents (all family members) must have tax residency in Portugal.
- The lease must be in place by March 15, 2023. Although there are nuances. Portuguese residents have faced a situation where landlords have started to terminate lease agreements en masse in order to renegotiate contracts on new terms. In this case, if the landlord, property, and tax address of the tenant remained the same, then you can count on the extension of state support, but each case is considered individually.
- The amount of rent equals or exceeds 35% of the family's income.
- Family income must be equal to or less than the upper limit of IRS Step 6 (€39,791 in 2024).
Porta 65 Jovem Program.
This program is also open not only to Portuguese citizens, but also to foreigners who have legal residence status in the country.
The program was launched as early as 2007 (Decree-Law No. 308/2007 of September 3 / Decreto-Lei n.º 308/2007, de 3 de setembro) and has since been amended in 2023 (Decreto-Lei n.º 38/2023, de 29 de maio) and in 2024 (Decreto-Lei n.º 42/2024, de 2 de julho). The program is aimed at all young people between the ages of 18 and 35 who are looking for or already have a rental contract (alone, as a couple or with colleagues/friends). If it is a couple (does not have to be married or in a civil partnership), one participant must be no more than 36 years old and the other no more than 34 years old. From September 2024, a young person turning 36 who is already receiving support under the Porta 65 Jovem program will also be able to make another application for payments.
The essence of the program is financial support, namely, payment of a percentage of the rent (from 30% to 50% during the first year of participation in the program). The program participant will receive the amount to his/her bank account on the 8th day of each month. Payments under the program have a maximum allowable limit. It is calculated from the maximum rental value allowed in a particular region under this program (see the table). The rent cannot exceed 60% of the average net family income.
This calculator can help you calculate the potential government assistance under the program. For example, you and one other person live in Lisbon and your rent is 1150 euros, which corresponds to the maximum cost for T2 in this region according to the table. We specified a monthly net income of 3,000 euros. Here's what you get.
In the first year we can theoretically count on support of 50% of the rental value, in the second year - 35%, from the second year to the end of the fifth year of the lease - 25%. The support can last a maximum of five years. The participant must apply every year, in the same month, so that the support is not interrupted. If the participant exceeds the age limit when they are already in the program, they can still apply for another 2 years.
The calculator also allows you to proceed to the application after the calculation if you click on the Apresentar Candidatura (Apply) button. According to the regulations, the applicant should receive a response within 45 days.
Basic conditions for receiving support under the Porta 65 Jovem program:
- Be within the age range of 18 - 35, or older, subject to the exceptions described earlier in the article.
- All program participants must be included in a lease agreement that the landlord must register with the IRS. The agreement must be active during the entire period of participation in the program.
- The cost of rent should not exceed 60% of the family's net income. The income, by the way, must be official and declared.
- The rent must not exceed the maximum possible program fee in the area (see the table).
- The housing typology (T0, T1, etc.) should be consistent with the household type. One person - one room (applies to children as well), but exception for couples where sharing a room is acceptable.
- None of the tenants must be the owner or tenant of another property.
- None of the tenants can be related to the landlord.
- The adjusted household income cannot exceed four times the maximum possible rent for a specific housing typology in the region. That is, if you rent a T2 in Lisbon, your average adjusted household income should not exceed €1,150 multiplied by 4, i.e. €4,600. What is important here is the phrase "adjusted income", which means applying coefficients depending on factors such as number of children, other family members. Here we will not give the calculation formula, if necessary, you can search the Internet for calculation methods: Rendimento Mensal Bruto Corrigido (RMBC).
At the same time, the income must not be four times the minimum national wage in Portugal, which in 2024 is 820 euros. That is, 820 multiplied by four equals 3280 euros.
The smallest amount is taken into account.
That is, if we were looking at a T0 in Funchal, where the maximum program rent is 512 euros, we would multiply 512 euros by 4, and get 2,048 euros. In this case, the program would take this figure into account since it is less than four minimum wages.
- For a household, rented housing should be the primary residence.
- A household cannot participate in other support programs, except for the Rental Assistance Program (PAA), which we discuss below.
Additional details on the program can be found on this website under Perguntas Frequentes (frequently asked questions).
Porta 65+ Program.
This is a supplement to the Porta 65 Jovem program, effective in 2023. It is regulated by decree law, Decreto-Lei n.º 38/2023, de 29 de maio. The program provides rental support to families without age limits with a drop in income. It applies to all residents of the country. You can count on support if your income drops by 20% compared to the previous three months or the same period last year. The program is also designed to support single-parent families.
The program entitles you to financial payments ranging from a minimum of €50 to €200 monthly.
Here the possible amount of assistance is calculated slightly differently than in the Porta 65 Jovem program. The calculation is based on the allowable rent burden on the household's salary.
- In the first 12 months of participation in the program, 35%;
- 13 to 36 months - 40%;
- 37 to 60 months - 45%.
This means that if your family's net income is 2000 euros, then for the first 12 months of program participation, rents up to 700 euros will be considered acceptable, and no assistance will be provided to the household. Thereafter, the percentage that can be spent on rent will only increase, which means that payments, if any, will be gradually reduced.
It is the difference between the allowable possible rent burden and the actual rent that is compensated, but not more than 200 euros. For example, the net household income is 2000 euros and the rent is 1000 euros. 35% is 700 euros. We take the difference between 1000 and 700 euros and get 300. Ideally, the amount of compensation should be 300 euros, but due to program restrictions, only 200 euros will be compensated. If the family wants to continue to participate in the program, the amount will be recalculated every year.
The program participation limit is 60 months or 5 years.
Basic conditions for receiving support under the Porta 65+ program:
- For a household, rented housing should be the primary residence.
- The lease agreement must be registered by the landlord with the tax office.
- None of the tenants must be the owner or tenant of another property.
- None of the tenants can be related to the landlord.
- The adjusted household income cannot exceed four times the maximum possible rent for a particular housing typology in the region. An example was given earlier in the description of the Porta 65 Jovem program.
- Family income equal to or less than the upper limit of IRS Step 6 (€39,791 in 2024). Same as the Emergency Income Support program we described earlier.
- Household members must not be tenants or owners of other housing for the duration of the support period.
You can apply for assistance on the familiar portal. Please note that there are two tabs for applications: one for single parents and one for other households.
Rental Assistance Program (Programa de Arrendamento Acessível or PAA).
After the program's launch in 2019 and three years later, only 1,000 applications for participation have been collected, far less than what the program's initiators expected. The program continues to be analyzed, and its conditions are periodically updated to make it more accessible. In particular, the permissible characteristics for participants are being expanded, and bureaucratic procedures are being reduced.
In this case, it is not financial support to pay rent for households, but a platform to access housing for rent at more affordable prices. Link to the platform. Tenants and landlords meet on the platform, which has its benefits, but also obligations and limitations of this program. Through the portal, the owner, and landlord can register a property for the program and the tenant can apply to rent such property.
The main advantage for tenants is getting decent housing at below-market prices (20% below the maximum values for a particular region). The main advantage for landlords is various tax benefits or full but temporary exemption from some taxes (IRS and IRC on rent, as well as from IMI and IMT).
All residents can become tenants under this program. Any person or group of people (family, group of friends, etc.) can register a PAA application if their total income is less than the maximum amount determined by the program. For a single person, the maximum allowable net income is €35,000 per year. For a two-person household, it is €45,000 per year. From then on, for each additional person, €5,000 per year is added.
Applicants may be students or trainees on vocational training courses, even if they have no income of their own, as long as the rent payment is provided by a person with income.
A detailed and up-to-date overview of the program can also be found on the DecoProTeste website, and answers to basic questions can be found on the program portal.
Supported Rent (Arrendamento apoiado) from the Institute of Housing and Urban Management (IHRU).
This option is not about government financial assistance, but it can also help improve housing conditions if a family or individual is living in unsuitable housing and does not have enough income to move.
What are considered unsuitable conditions? Here are some examples:
- Insolvency;
- Domestic Violence Situations;
- Overcrowded housing, unsanitary conditions and lack of structural safety;
- A mismatch between the special needs of the occupants and the characteristics of the dwelling. For example, lack of wheelchair accessibility.
Depending on the availability of the resource, the applicant may have the option of relocating to public or municipal housing.
You can apply on the electronic Assisted Rental (eAA) platform by authorizing, for example, through your NIF and accessing your tax account.
Answers to frequently asked questions about the program can be found here.
Part of this broad supported rental initiative are, programs such as:
- Chave na Mão: for those who live in their own permanent home in a high-density area and wish to move to a lower-density area.
- Porta de Dentro: for people who have been temporarily or permanently deprived of their home or place of permanent residence. Or who are at immediate risk of being left in this situation as a result of unforeseen circumstances.
- NRAU: rather than a program, but a new urban rental regime where, among other things, it regulates the mechanism of negotiation between landlord and tenant when updating old rents established before 1990. This is in an attempt to avoid a situation of economic crisis of tenants aged 65 or older or severely disabled.
There are other programs as well. We understand that they are also supported by IHRU and through application on the electronic Assisted Rental (eAA) platform.
Municipal Rental Assistance.
You and I have briefly looked at some programs operating at the state level, but a number of municipalities have their own programs to help rental residents in difficult situations. It is worth looking for information about these programs on the municipalities' websites or by contacting the secretariat or the responsible department directly.
We hope that you will not have a life circumstance where you will need to use the above programs. But if you do, you can be assured that you will not be left alone in a difficult situation.
To clarify, the information is compiled as of August 2024, so you will need to double-check and update the information for yourself in the future.
