NIF, Bank Account, Mortgage: The Right Order for Non-Residents Buying in Portugal

Most guides tell non-resident buyers the same thing: get a NIF, open a Portuguese bank account, then talk to a bank about a mortgage. The first step is right. The other two are in the wrong order, and getting them wrong costs you time and money.

Here is the order I use with every client, and why each step sits where it does.

The Short Answer

Step	What you need	Typical time
1. First analysis and simulations	Your documents. No NIF, no bank account.	3 to 5 days
2. NIF	Started as soon as you send your documents	2 to 3 weeks
3. Pre-approval	Your NIF and the bank you have chosen	1 to 2 weeks after you choose
4. Bank account	Opened only at that bank, when it asks	Part of the approval
5. Approval to deed	Mortgage, insurance and payments in that bank	30 to 45 days from pre-approval

Step 1: The First Analysis Needs Neither a NIF Nor an Account

To find out what Portuguese banks are likely to lend you, you only need to send your documents: identity, income, tax returns and existing commitments. I set out the full list for a typical employed buyer in Can a Swedish Resident Get a Mortgage in Portugal?; most nationalities need the same.

Usually within three to four days, and never more than five, you receive simulations from several banks. You do not need a Portuguese tax number or a Portuguese bank account for any of this.

Step 2: Get Your NIF While the Banks Are Working

The NIF (Número de Identificação Fiscal) is your Portuguese tax number. No bank will start a pre-approval without it. It usually takes two to three weeks in total, mostly depending on how quickly the tax office (Finanças) responds.

That is why the right moment to start is the day you send your documents, not the day you choose your bank. The weeks you spend waiting for simulations and comparing offers are exactly the weeks the NIF needs.

It can be done entirely at a distance. Whether you also need a fiscal representative depends on where you live:

Resident in the EU or EEA (including Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein): no fiscal representative is required.
Resident outside the EU (for example the UK or the US): you will normally need a fiscal representative to obtain the NIF. In some cases it can be dropped later, once you activate electronic notifications on the tax portal. Your lawyer will confirm what applies to you.

If you do not already have a lawyer, I can put you in touch with a law firm I work with for NIFs and fiscal representation. I receive nothing from them. I recommend them because the cost is controlled and the service is reliable. You are always free to use any lawyer you prefer.

Step 3: Pre-Approval at the Bank You Choose

Once you have compared the simulations and chosen a bank, the pre-approval usually takes one to two weeks. It tells you how much you can borrow and on what terms, before you sign a promissory contract (CPCV). I explain why that order matters in Portugal Property: Finance Before You Fall in Love.

Step 4: Open the Account Only at That Bank

This is where most buyers go wrong. Opening a Portuguese account early, at a bank you may not use for the mortgage, gains you nothing. You will pay maintenance fees of roughly €7 to €15 a month for an account you do not need, and the bank that lends to you will ask you to open one with them anyway.

The bank you choose will ask for the account so your income can arrive there and the monthly payments can be debited from it. Depending on the bank, you can open it in person or at a distance. The essentials are:

An identity document.
Your NIF.
Proof of address, less than six months old.
Proof of your employer and profession, less than six months old.

Some banks ask for more, but these are the documents every bank will want.

Paying the CPCV Deposit

If you only open the account after choosing the bank, how do you pay the deposit on the promissory contract (CPCV)? There are two safe ways:

An international transfer from your account abroad, directly to the seller.
An international transfer to your lawyer, who then pays the seller.

I never advise paying the deposit through the estate agency.

The best route, though, is through your account at the bank you have chosen, for three reasons:

The deed is simpler. On the day of the deed (escritura), you must show how every payment for the purchase was made. When everything has gone through one Portuguese account, that takes minutes.
Your deposit is protected. Paying from that account means you sign the CPCV only after the bank has agreed to lend. You no longer risk losing the deposit because the bank says no. The one risk left is the valuation, if the bank has not done it yet.
The bank trusts you more. When the bank sees your own funds arrive in its account and go to the seller, it knows exactly how they were used. The decision is already made by then, but for a buyer with no banking history in Portugal, that trust can mean better terms in the future.

Step 5: Keep the Relationship in One Bank

The rate and spread in your offer depend on what you agree to keep with that bank. In practice, that means three things:

Your income, or a monthly transfer. If you are paid abroad, the bank will ask for a fixed monthly transfer instead of your salary. The usual minimum is around €500, but the sensible amount is what you pay each month: the instalment, the insurance and the account fees.
The insurance. You can always take life and home insurance outside the bank. It may be cheaper, but it can increase the price of the loan. Compare the total monthly cost, not the insurance premium alone. The FINE lets you do that.
The payments. The mortgage and the main day-to-day movements stay in that account.

If you stop meeting these conditions later, the bank can increase your spread. A typical increase is 0.25 percentage points, though it varies from bank to bank. On a long mortgage, that is real money.

What Makes the Difference

The most common mistake I see is not about income or documents. It is about time. Because the NIF is not needed for the simulations, many clients wait until the pre-approval to request it, despite my warnings. By then, the bank is ready and the client is not, and two or three weeks are lost, often while a seller is waiting. Starting the NIF on the first day is the simplest thing you can do to protect your purchase timeline.

After 25 years inside Portuguese banks, I know which step each bank needs and when. I compare the banks for you, tell you what to prepare at each stage, and give you one recommendation. My service is free for you; the bank pays my fee. For a quick checklist of the whole process, see my Buyer's Toolkit.