Portugal's digital nomad visa (D8): working from Lisbon for a UK boss or UK clients

If your job lives on a laptop and your employer or clients are outside Portugal, the digital nomad visa is the cleanest way to work from Lisbon legally. The catch is the income bar, and the tax that follows you there.

The short version

• The digital nomad visa, usually called the D8, is for people working remotely as employees or freelancers for employers and clients abroad [2][4].
• You need average income of at least four times the Portuguese minimum wage over the last three months: EUR 3,680 a month (about £3,070) in 2026 [2][3].
• It comes in two versions: a temporary stay visa for up to a year, or a residency visa that leads to a residence permit from AIMA [4].
• The visa fee is EUR 110 (about £90), and you apply through VFS in London, Manchester or Edinburgh [4].
• Live in Portugal for more than 183 days and you'll usually be Portuguese tax resident, whatever the visa is called [5].

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.2002).

Who it's for

Portugal created the remote work visa in 2022, and its visa portal lists it as being "for the exercise of a professional activity done remotely" [4]. It suits:

• Employees of UK companies whose employer is happy for them to work from Portugal.
• Freelancers and contractors with clients in the UK or elsewhere outside Portugal.
• Company owners running a business registered outside Portugal.

It doesn't suit someone looking for a Portuguese job (that's a work visa) or someone living off pensions and rent (that's the D7, with a much lower bar). And if you're on the Withdrawal Agreement because you lived in Portugal before 2021, you don't need it at all [1].

Before you apply, get your employer's agreement in writing. Working abroad has payroll, National Insurance and social security consequences for a UK employer, and some firms simply say no. Our guide to working abroad for a UK employer explains PAYE and posting certificates, and the FCDO reminds Brits working in the EU to check whether they still owe UK National Insurance [1].

The income test in 2026

The visa portal asks for "proof of average monthly income for the last three months with a minimum value equivalent to four monthly minimum guaranty remuneration" [2]. With the Portuguese minimum wage at EUR 920 a month in 2026 [3], that works out as:

The money has to come from the work itself: the visa portal says proof of means must be the funds arising from an employment contract, a company contract or a service contract [2]. Savings don't replace salary here. If a partner or children are coming with you, they apply as accompanying family members, and you'll need to show enough stable income to cover them as well [2].

For context, EUR 3,680 a month is a decent salary in Portugal, where the minimum wage is a quarter of it, but it's not huge by London standards. Lisbon rents will still take a big bite; see the cost of living in Lisbon.

Temporary stay or residence?

This is the choice that matters most, and people often muddle it.

The temporary stay version is simpler: no AIMA appointment, and you can come and go for up to a year. But it doesn't build towards anything. If you think you might stay, go for the residency visa from the start, because time on a residence permit is what counts towards permanent residence and, eventually, citizenship [6][7].

The paperwork

Every national visa needs the same basics [2]:

1. The application form, signed, and two passport photos.
2. A passport valid at least three months beyond your planned return, plus a copy.
3. An ACRO police certificate with an apostille.
4. Travel insurance covering medical treatment and repatriation.
5. Proof of means, as above.

On top, the digital nomad visa asks for [2]:

• Employees: your employment contract, or a declaration from your employer confirming the job.
• Freelancers and company owners: a company contract, service contracts, or documents showing the services you provide to one or more clients.
• Three months of income at the required level, usually payslips and bank statements.
• A document showing your tax residence, which for most people is something from HMRC confirming UK residence.

The consulate can ask for more at its discretion [2]. Most applicants also get a NIF (Portuguese tax number) and an address lined up before they go, because you'll need both for almost everything once you land [1].

Applying from the UK

Book an appointment with VFS in London, Manchester or Edinburgh [4], pay the EUR 110 fee, and allow up to two months for a residency visa decision [4]. On the residency route you then have four months to travel and attend AIMA for your residence permit, where you give fingerprints and a photo [4]. The FCDO notes you must carry a valid residence document in Portugal [1], and once you hold a biometric card you're out of the EU's Entry/Exit System checks and your days no longer count towards the 90 in 180 [1].

Tax: the bit people forget

A visa decides whether you can live in Portugal. Tax residence is a separate question, and the answer is often "Portugal".

Under the Portuguese tax code you're resident if you spend more than 183 days there in any 12-month period, or if you have a home there that you appear to intend to keep as your habitual residence [5]. Both versions of the digital nomad visa can tip you over that line. Portuguese residents are taxed on their worldwide income, so your UK salary or fees would normally be taxed in Portugal, with the UK–Portugal double taxation agreement there to stop you paying twice [1].

The old non-habitual resident regime (NHR) is closed to newcomers: Portugal's 2024 budget law revoked it [5]. Its replacement, IFICI, is aimed at research, innovation and certain highly qualified jobs, and plenty of remote workers won't fit it. After NHR: Portugal's IFICI tax regime explains who qualifies.

On the UK side, tell HMRC you're leaving, on form P85 or through the SA109 pages of Self Assessment [8]. If you work full-time abroad you can usually spend up to 90 days in the UK, working no more than 30 of them, without becoming UK resident again [8]. Check whether split-year treatment applies in the year you go. A UK employer that keeps running PAYE on your salary while you're tax resident in Portugal is a classic double-tax tangle, so a tax adviser who knows both countries can check your case before you go.

After the first year

On the residency route, your temporary residence permit is renewed through AIMA as long as you still meet the conditions, including the income test. After five years of temporary residence, you can apply for permanent residence with proof of basic Portuguese and a clean record [6]. Citizenship now takes 10 years of legal residence for Brits, counted from when your residence permit was granted [7]; see Portuguese citizenship for Brits.

Lisbon has no shortage of co-working spaces and laptop-friendly cafés, from Cais do Sodré to Arroios, so you won't be lonely. For tips from people already doing it, our community group for Brits in Portugal is the place to ask.

Sources

1. GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Portugal (last updated 10 July 2026)
2. Vistos MNE: Necessary documentation – national visas (digital nomads) (checked 8 November 2026)
3. Vistos MNE: Means of subsistence
4. Vistos MNE: Type of visa, fees, deadlines and external service providers
5. Portal das Finanças: Código do IRS, Article 16 (residence)
6. AIMA: Permanent residence permit – Art. 80.º
7. Diário da República: Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026, de 18 de maio
8. GOV.UK (HMRC): Tax if you leave the UK to live abroad

Keep reading

• Moving to Lisbon as a Brit: visa and residence routes
• Portuguese taxes for Brits: the UK link and your State Pension
• The Statutory Residence Test explained
• Working abroad for a UK employer: PAYE, National Insurance and posting certificates