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Legal Matters in times of COVID-19

July 2020 

Legal Matters in times of COVID

NHR APPLICATION OR STATUS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Expired Documents during the COVID – 19 Pandemic.

For all legal purposes, documents which expiry date was 24 February 2020, it is possible to request an online renewal, analyse in which cases it is possible to do so on the ePortal website.

Nonetheless, the national authorities shall accept, until 30 June  2020, documents that were to expire on February 2020.                                                                                                                                                       Among these documents are the following: the citizen card, the driver's license, the criminal record, as well as certificates, documents and visas relating to the mandatory stay in the national territory. All documents that are subject to renewal and of which expiry date is from 24 February will not have to be renewed now and will be accepted for all legal purposes by 30 June.

Documents whose validity period had already been extended until 30 June is now extended until 30 October 2020 and may also be accepted after that date provided that the holder proves the schedules appointment of their renewal.

Face-to-face appointment in Public Services:

From May 4TH 2020, the offices of Finance, Conservatoires and other unconsecrated services are open, in addition to most citizenship spaces. Citizen Shops are already open. To be attended in these services you must make a prior appointment and wear a mask or face shield on the day of your appointment. It is not possible to enter or remain in the public establishment if you do not comply. 

Non-face-to-face means of contact during Covid-19 Pandemic:

e-Counter (Finance Portal)

https://www.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/formularioContacto.action

Call Center - CAT: +351 217 206 707


You can request the NHR- Non-Habitual Residents Regime by one of the following means:

  • Online, in the Finance Portal (easier and faster);
  • Application (paper-based) with a mandatory prior appointment scheduled. 


How to communicate with the Tax and Customs Authority?

To communicate with the Tax Authorities through the Finance Portal, you can request your password in www.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt in the SERVICES option TAX > Register and fill out the form with your personal data, as requested. The filling of this form may also authorise the Tax Authorities to send optional and voluntary compliance support, via SMS and/or e-mail. This service is completely free of charge and of confidential nature. However, for them to be possible to provide it safely, it will be asked of you to confirm both your e-mail and telephone number.

 As soon as the password request is made, two Codes will be sent to you:

  • for mobile phone, by text message (SMS);
  • Via e-mail to the e-mail provided by you.

These codes can only be confirmed on the Finance Portal in Citizens > Other Services > Confirmation of E-mail and Telephone after reception of the password to access the Finance Portal, which is sent by mail to your fiscal address. 


NHR- Non- Habitual Resident Regime Application 

The tax benefits of non-habitual residents (RNH) will be made automatically at the time of their registration with the Tax Authority. The goal is to avoid delays in recognising this status to candidates.

This way, the taxpayer is now subject to a rate of 20% IRS from the time of registry and during the following 10 years to which he is entitled to take advantage of this tax regime.

The Tax Authority thus abandons the practice that has been followed in recent years of making prior recognition of the activity simultaneously with the application for registration of a person as an unusual resident.

But the fact that this prior recognition of the activity is not made does not prevent the taxpayer from having to be prepared to prove the effective exercise of the activity and obtaining income in international and national territories.

"The taxpayer shall prepare the evidence proving the effective exercise of this activity(s) and the corresponding obtained income, as well as the other legal assumptions of the right it relies on, in any of the years, during the maximum period of ten years in which they can enjoy the status of NHR, and present themselves whenever requested by the Portuguese Tax Authorities' services", states the guiding document, signed by the General- Director of the Portuguese Tax Authorities.

Thus, the verification of facts/assumptions of the right invoked in the declaration occurs through the evidence to be presented by the taxpayers in the phase after the submission of the declaration of revenue, and not using or the validation of the registration application code (SGRC), as has occurred in the present moment. 

According to the IRS code, the supporting evidence must be submitted within 15 days, and it may be extended to 25 days when and if the taxpayer invokes difficulty in obtaining the required documentation.

This change in procedures is due to the fact that the prior recognition procedures that the Tax Authorities carried out at the same time as an application for NHR, proved to be excessively "time-consuming", and did not eliminate the need for further control entitled to this tax regime.

STATUS OF YOUR NHR APPLICATION

An electronic requests made through the Finance Portal website:

If you have applied for your registration through the Finance Portal, you can consult the application status, 48 hours after submission. If your request is granted, you can obtain proof in PDF format.

After your request has been granted and if you carry out one or more of the high added value conditions, provided for in Ordinance No. 12/2010 of 7 January, refer to the Directorate of Taxpayer Registration Services (DSRC), at Av. João XXI, no. 76, 6, 1049 - 065 Lisboa, the original or certified copy of the document proving the activity carried out, as a statement issued by the employer, employment contract or, in the case of an employment activity "Senior Management Board" means, a power of attorney where it appears that the applicant has powers of direction and binding of the legal person, in accordance with the 7/2010 of DSIRS.

The high-value-added activity code will be registered by the DSRC, after confirmation of the respective financial year, available, for consultation, on the Finance Portal, in the Current Registration Situation. If your application is rejected, you will be notified by the Tax Authority and (TA) of the draft rejection decision, which includes the grounds, in order to submit their allegations and possible supporting documents.

Application Request made on paper:

In situations where the citizen has previously applied for registration, application, you will be notified by the AT of the grant or rejection of the application.

Source: https://www.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/at/html/index.html

 



 

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