12 steps to incorporating in Portugal in 2025

Forming a company in Portugal can be completed in an average of three weeks. Our Client will issue a Power of Attorney (PoA) to Healy Consultants Group’s Portugal business incorporation agent, who will then complete all procedures on the Client’s behalf, including opening a corporate bank account without our Client travelling to Portugal. The typical procedures are as follow:

Pre-incorporation planning

1. Consultation: Before we proceed, our Client i) settles Healy Consultants Group engagement fees ii) signs our Client Engagement letter and iii) provides us the requested due diligence documents;
2. Corporate structure: Our Client and Healy Consultants Group agree on the optimal corporate structure for the company, including shareholders and directors;
3. Project plan: Healy Consultants Group drafts a detailed project plan mapping out, week by week, each step to engagement completion, optimising transparency and setting our Client’s expectations;
4. Power of Attorney: Healy Consultants Group prepares a draft PoA in Portuguese and English and sends to our Client for review, signatures, attestation at the Portuguese Embassy and courier to our affiliate office in Lisbon;
5. Name reservation: Healy Consultants Group’s incorporation team applies for a name approval certificate with the Portuguese Institute of Registries and Notaries;

Incorporation procedure

1. Personal tax numbers: Healy Consultants Group proceeds to secure personal tax numbers for the proposed directors of the new Portuguese company;
2. Company incorporation: Upon receipt of personal tax numbers, Healy Consultants Group submits a complete company incorporation application to the National Registry of Collective Entities and receives a certificate of incorporation;
3. Tax number: During the incorporation process, Healy Consultants Group also applies for a Corporate Tax Identification Number for the company;

Post-incorporation procedure

1. Accountant appointment: If needed, Healy Consultants Group may assist our Client with appointing a local accountant who will act as tax representative and who will handle book keeping and tax filing on behalf of our Client;
2. Bank account: Healy Consultants Group’s banking team assists our Client to open a corporate account in Portugal. Our Client will sign the bank forms and courier back the same to our Lisbon office within 30 days. Bank proceeds to activate the account;
3. Tax declaration: If our Client’s company director will not be receiving salaries from the new company, Healy Consultants Group declares the same to the Tax Authority to avoid paying social security tax;
4. Engagement completion: Healy Consultants Group couriers a company kit folder to our Client’s preferred international address, containing the original corporate documents, unopened bank correspondence and a Client feedback survey.