Competitively priced Working remotely from Portugal

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Canadians, Americans and NRIs retiring to Portugal, remote workers on residence permits, and property investors. Competitively priced working remotely from Portugal with a fixed fee agreed in writing before any work starts. Call the 24-hour helpline on +1 (416) 619-0068, or request a written quote today.

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  • 15+Years of cross-border experience
  • 18,000+Clients served
  • 5.0Google rating
  • 4Global offices — India, USA, Canada & UAE
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Secure a fixed quote

Your own file sets the fee. Send it over, and a written quote arrives before anything is prepared.

24-hour helpline: +1 (416) 619-0068
  • Offices in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE
  • Google rating 5.0 out of 5
  • Fixed fee agreed before work starts
Portugal in 60 words

Portugal has run special regimes for new residents whose terms have changed more than once, so the regime a client entered under. Expats moving through Portugal usually arrive with two live filing obligations rather than one, and the first job is working out which of them residence actually keeps open.

Who we act for here

Canadians, Americans and NRIs retiring to Portugal, remote workers on residence permits, and property investors.

Regional filing pattern

European payroll does most of the collecting, which means the annual return is often a reconciliation. The catch for a credit claim is separating the income tax on the payslip from the contributions beside it.

The question that decides it

Portugal has run special regimes for new residents whose terms have changed more than once, so the regime a client entered under — and whether it still applies to them — is established from their own registration rather than from current published summaries.

Working remotely from Portugal

This page takes the Portugal corridor and narrows it to one situation. The general position is on the Portugal country guide; what follows is what changes for this specific case.

Three questions decide a remote-work position: where you are resident, where the work is treated as performed, and whether your presence gives your employer a taxable presence of its own. The third is the one that turns a personal arrangement into a corporate problem.

Two of the firm’s advisers and the team in the open-plan office

Fixed fees for working remotely from Portugal, agreed up front

Working remotely from Portugal is priced on the employer's position as much as your own: whether payroll has to be registered locally, whether a social security coverage certificate must be obtained before anything else can be settled, and whether your presence puts the company itself in scope. A contractor invoicing from Portugal is a different file again.

Individual tax filing

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Returns for people whose tax position did not stay in one country, including the years residence itself is in question.
See the fee schedule

Payroll & mobility setup

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

What an employer owes when an employee works in another country: the registrations, the withholding and the reporting that follow.
See the fee schedule

Non-resident & departure filings

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Non-resident filings and the two part-year returns a move produces, sequenced so neither country taxes the same income twice.
See the fee schedule

Foreign asset & information reporting

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Accounts, property and company interests held outside the country of residence, reported on the schedules that carry penalties whether or not tax is owed.
See the fee schedule

Catch-up & voluntary disclosure

From $349

fixed, quoted before work starts

Late and unfiled years, sequenced and filed together, with the relief available for the delay identified before the first return goes in.
See the fee schedule

Corporate cross-border filing

From $999

fixed, quoted before work starts

Returns for companies with foreign subsidiaries, foreign income or foreign shareholders, and the schedules each of those triggers.
See the fee schedule

Transfer pricing documentation

From $2,500

fixed, quoted before work starts

The transfer pricing file a group needs when goods, services or finance move between its own companies across a border.
See the fee schedule

Estate & trust filing

From $799

fixed, quoted before work starts

Cross-border estates and trusts, from the reporting on the assets to the returns the beneficiaries then have to file.
See the fee schedule

All published fees on one page — each engagement priced as one number on one list, with nothing left as a range.

Do you still file at home?

Whether you still file at home is the first question and it has three different answers here. Canada: only if you remained resident, which is a ties test. The United States: yes, because the obligation follows the passport into Portugal. India: it depends on the day counts, and on whether the transitional status applies to you this year.

Portugal has run special regimes for new residents whose terms have changed more than once, so the regime a client entered under — and whether it still applies to them — is established from their own registration rather than from current published summaries.

Residency and the tie-breaker

Where Portugal and your home country disagree, the treaty picks one — provided a treaty is in force. The evidence that decides it is contemporaneous and specific, which means it is gathered at the time or reconstructed expensively later.

We confirm the treaty in force for your year, including any protocol and any modification made through the multilateral instrument, before relying on an article. Treaty networks change, and a summary written three years ago is not evidence about this year.

Income by type: who taxes what

Income typeGeneral treatment
Gains on shares deriving value from local propertyCommonly treated like the underlying property rather than like ordinary shares, which reverses the usual answer on share gains.
Government service incomeUsually reserved to the paying state under a dedicated treaty article, regardless of where the person lives.
Employment incomeGenerally taxable where the work is physically performed, with a treaty exemption for short assignments where the presence, employer and cost tests are all met.
Self-employment and professional feesTaxable where the business is carried on; a treaty limits the source country to profits attributable to a permanent establishment.
Crypto disposals while resident thereUsually taxed where you are resident at the moment of disposal, which makes the date you became resident the whole question.
Capital gain on property thereGenerally taxable where the property is situated, with the home country taxing the same gain and giving credit.
Trust distributions received thereDepends on the trust's own residence and on whether the distribution carries income or capital, and the two systems frequently characterise it differently.

The local nuance

Portugal has run special regimes for new residents whose terms have changed more than once, so the regime a client entered under — and whether it still applies to them — is established from their own registration rather than from current published summaries. None of that is exotic, but it is corridor-specific — and corridor-specific detail is what a template answer cannot supply.

If your position runs mostly in one direction, the US ↔ Portugal cross-border tax page carries both filing calendars side by side, the treaty article by article, and the withholding table.

Worked through with figures

Worked through with figures, the mechanism looks like this.

Credit relief on one stream of income

Take C$109,000 of income taxed in both countries. Assume the other country charged 24% on it and the home country would charge 39% on the same amount.

ItemAmount
Income taxed in both countriesC$109,000
Tax paid abroad (assumed 24%)C$26,160
Home tax on the same income (assumed 39%)C$42,510
Credit available (lesser of the two)C$26,160
Home tax still payableC$16,350

The credit absorbs C$26,160 and leaves C$16,350 payable at home, because the home rate on this income is the higher of the two. The balance is real cash and it is due on the home timetable, which is why instalments get raised in the first meeting. We run this on your actual numbers before advising anything, because the conclusion can invert with a modest change in inputs.

The figures here are an illustration, not an engagement: amounts are picked so the mechanism is easy to follow, and every rate or threshold is an assumption of the example. Before anything is filed for you, each one is confirmed with the issuing authority for your own tax year.

Three mistakes we see most

  1. Reporting the foreign account and not the foreign asset, or the reverse, on the assumption that one satisfies the other.
  2. Paying tax twice and calling it double taxation, when the real problem was a credit claimed in the wrong country or in the wrong category.
  3. Missing the arrival-value documentation, so the cost base that would have sheltered pre-arrival growth cannot be evidenced years later.
  • A change of scope is re-quoted before the work, never added to the invoice after it.
  • Fixed fees agreed before any work starts, so the number in the quote is the number on the invoice.
  • 18,000+ clients served across 4 global offices: India, the USA, Canada and the UAE.

One call now is worth more than a filing season of guessing.

Reviewed against current guidance for the 2025 and 2026 filing seasons by Udit Gupta, Cross-Border Tax Expert, Legal Quotient Consultants. This is general information rather than advice about your file — a short call is the way to get the second.

Portugal tax year, in practice

This is the page to read on Portugal tax year. It takes working remotely from Portugal in order — the test that decides who is affected, the returns and forms that follow from it, and a fee quoted in writing before anything starts.

People also search for: foreign tax credit carryover · limit on foreign tax credit · reporting foreign accounts · is there a limit on foreign tax credit · how does foreign tax credit carryover work.

Canadians, Americans and NRIs retiring to Portugal, remote workers on residence permits, and property investors.

The four phases of the work

  1. Share your documents

    A secure upload link arrives after the first call — send files in any state.

  2. A written fixed fee

    The quote is fixed from what you send; it does not move once accepted.

  3. Preparation, both sides at once

    The returns are drafted together, reconciled line against line.

  4. Approve, then file

    Nothing is filed until you have seen it and approved it.

How working remotely from Portugal is handled here

Factor Legal Quotient Hourly billing model
Pricing A fixed fee, agreed in writing before work starts Hourly, billed as incurred
Experience 15+ years of cross-border work, 18,000+ clients Varies by file
Both sides of the border Prepared together by one team, so relief is claimed exactly once One country at a time, reconciled later
Who reviews it A named practitioner, published on the page Whoever the queue reaches
Where the work happens Our offices in India, the USA, Canada and the UAE Whichever single office you can travel to

The vocabulary this page leans on

Bona fide residence test
The other US qualifying test, satisfied by being a genuine resident of a foreign country for an uninterrupted period covering a full tax year.
Dual citizenship
Holding two nationalities. It changes nothing for a residence-based system and everything for a citizenship-based one, which is why one passport can create a lifelong filing obligation.
Liaison office
An Indian form of presence that may not earn income. Exceeding its permitted activities creates a taxable presence.
Tax residency certificate
The certificate from a treaty partner's authority that India requires before granting treaty relief, for the right period and in the right name.

The published fees closest to working remotely from Portugal

The other driver is how many countries your working year actually touches. A full year in Portugal for one employer reconciles simply; a year split between clients or postings means income apportioned by where the work was done, credits claimed on each side, and a residence position to document. Fees are agreed in writing first.

Payroll & mobility setup

$999fixed, before work starts

Covers: The employer side of mobility — where to register, what to withhold, and what to report once someone works across a border.

See this fee page

Individual tax filing

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: One engagement for a personal return that touches more than one country: the income, the assets held abroad and the relief claimed against them.

See this fee page

Non-resident & departure filings

$349fixed, before work starts

Covers: Non-resident filings and the two part-year returns a move produces, sequenced so neither country taxes the same income twice.

See this fee page

Why choose Legal Quotient for working remotely from Portugal

Late and missed years are ordinary work

An unfiled history is not a reason to wait longer. We assess what is still open and what relief the delay attracts before the first return goes in.

Every figure on a page is traceable

Where a rate or a threshold appears in our writing it names the tax year it belongs to. Where it could not be confirmed, the page describes the mechanism and quotes no number.

The reporting penalties get named early

The heaviest exposure on a cross-border file is usually a disclosure form, not the tax. We identify which ones apply before a deadline turns into a penalty.

You deal with the person who did the work

The practitioner who prepared and reviewed your file is the one who answers the question about it.

The team reviewing a file together at a desk

Working remotely from Portugal — the four phases

Step 1

Establishing the facts

A call to our 24-hour helpline to establish the facts and the dates that matter

Step 2

Agreeing the fee

A written scope and a fixed fee before any work starts

Step 3

Drafting and review

Preparation, then a named reviewer's sign-off before anything is filed

Step 4

Filing and follow-up

Filing, then payment — after you have seen and approved the result

Two of the firm’s advisers at the glass desk in the Delhi office

From first document to filed return

  • Step 1: Send the documents as they are – No tidying required — forward what you have and we tell you what is missing.
  • Step 2: Get a fixed quote in writing – Priced from your actual documents before any work begins, not estimated after.
  • Step 3: Both countries prepared together – One team builds the filings against each other so the relief lands exactly once.
  • Step 4: Review, then file – You approve the finished work before we file it.

Quoted up front, in writing.

Contact Us 24-hour helpline +1 (416) 619-0068

Where to go next

Browse sideways: the pages below answer the neighbouring questions.

Core services for this situation

Payroll for a Canadian employee abroad Payroll for a Canadian employee abroad — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Form T2 Schedule 29 — payments to non-residents The full guide to t2 schedule 29 payments to non-residents, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Local resident director services in Canada Its own page: resident director services Canada — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Form ITR-7 — trusts & institutions (India) Everything on ITR-7 India, at the same depth as this page.
Form 709 — gift tax return Form 709 gift tax return — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Crypto tax in India for non-residents The full guide to crypto tax in India for non-residents, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Notice of objection (Canada) Its own page: notice of objection Canada — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Indian ESOPs held after leaving India Everything on Indian ESOPs held after leaving India, at the same depth as this page.
Form ITR-4 (Sugam) — presumptive income (India) ITR-4 (sugam) India — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

Clients who arrive with this exact page

Tax for oil & gas rotational workers Oil & gas rotational workers tax — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Tax for seafarers & mariners The full guide to seafarers & mariners tax, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Tax for podcasters Its own page: podcasters tax — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Tax for gig-economy drivers & couriers Everything on gig-economy drivers & couriers tax, at the same depth as this page.
Cross-border truck drivers — relief you're probably missing Cross-border truck drivers relief you're probably missing — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Construction & contracting — relief you're probably missing The full guide to construction & contracting relief you're probably missing, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Tax for construction workers abroad Its own page: construction workers abroad tax — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Tax for travel nurses (us contracts) Everything on travel nurses (US contracts) tax, at the same depth as this page.
Tax for cabin crew Cabin crew tax — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

Countries and corridors this work reaches

Retiring in Hong Kong — pensions & withholding Retiring in Hong Kong — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Moving to Saudi Arabia — the tax year you leave The full guide to moving to Saudi Arabia, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Moving back from UAE — re-establishing residency Its own page: moving back from UAE — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Moving back from Saudi Arabia — re-establishing residency Everything on moving back from Saudi Arabia, at the same depth as this page.
Moving to India — the tax year you leave Moving to India — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.
Moving back from France — re-establishing residency The full guide to moving back from France, with the fee fixed before any work starts.
Moving to Portugal — the tax year you leave Its own page: moving to Portugal — mechanism, deadlines and published fees.
Buying or selling property in UAE Everything on buying or selling property in UAE, at the same depth as this page.
Moving back from Japan — re-establishing residency Moving back from Japan — the guide, the FAQ and the fixed fee.

The people on your file

Five named practitioners, each with the part of a cross-border file they carry. Every page on this site says who reviewed it, and the reviewer is one of these people rather than an unnamed team.

Udit Gupta

Udit Gupta

Cross-Border Tax Expert

CA (ICAI), In-Depth Tax Trained

Reviews and signs off the practice's cross-border positions, and carries final responsibility for the treaty analysis on every file that leaves the office.

Abhinav Gupta

Abhinav Gupta

Canada Tax / International Tax

Canada Tax, International Tax, Cross-Border Tax, Transfer Pricing

Canadian returns with foreign income, non-resident filings, and the transfer-pricing documentation that runs alongside intercompany work.

Raghav Gupta

Raghav Gupta

International Tax

International Tax, Transfer Pricing Specialist

Benchmarking, method selection and the local-file and master-file sets that support a group's pricing policy under examination.

Anmol Mittal

Anmol Mittal

Canada and US tax

CPA Canada, CPA USA, CA (ICAI)

Files that have to be right on both sides of the border at once — dual filings, streamlined catch-ups, and the foreign tax credit reconciliation between them.

Vinayak Indolia

Vinayak Indolia

CFO advisory

CPA, CA. Fractional CFO and Senior Advisory Specialist

Groups that need the tax position and the finance function to agree: structure reviews, intercompany policy, and the reporting a board can act on.

Meet the whole team

Files that look like this one

Case study 1

One Salary, Two Countries Claiming It

A US citizen resident in Canada, taxed in full on both sides because each return was prepared without the other in view. Deciding which country has the first right to the income, then claiming relief on the second return in the right order, is what stops the same dollar being taxed twice.

Read how this one runs
Case study 2

Two Passports, Two Returns, One Income

Dual citizenship does not let you choose which country taxes you. The work is establishing residence, applying the treaty article that governs each income type, and preparing both returns from one set of figures so they agree line for line.

Read how this one runs
Case study 3

A Pension Taxed Where the Treaty Did Not Intend

Pension and annuity articles allocate taxing rights differently from employment income, and a flat withholding often exceeds what a return would produce. The alternative filing is elective and has a deadline.

Read how this one runs
Case study 4

US Estate Tax on Assets a Canadian Did Not Know Were Exposed

US shares and US real estate sit inside the US estate tax net regardless of where the owner lives. The treaty provides relief that is proportionate rather than automatic, and the calculation depends on the worldwide estate.

Read how this one runs
Case study 5

Social Security Contributions Owed in Two Countries at Once

A totalization agreement assigns contributions to one system and exempts the other, but only against a certificate obtained in advance. Without it both sets come out of the same salary and neither is straightforward to recover.

Read how this one runs
Case study 6

A Student or Researcher Covered by a Treaty Article

Several treaties carry a dedicated article for students, trainees and visiting researchers that displaces the ordinary employment rules. Whether it applies turns on the purpose of the stay and the source of the funds, both of which are evidenced rather than asserted.

Read how this one runs
Case study 7

A Canadian Working in the US on a Work Visa

Immigration status and tax residence are different tests, and a visa says nothing about which country taxes the salary. The file fixes residence, applies the employment article, and sequences the two returns so the credit lands where it is usable.

Read how this one runs
Case study 8

Leaving Canada — the Bill You Get for Assets You Still Own

Emigrating triggers a deemed disposition of most holdings, which produces tax on gains never realised in cash. The file values the property, identifies what is excluded, and looks at whether security can be posted rather than the tax paid outright.

Read how this one runs

All case studies — every published engagement in one place.

Delivery, coverage and how we work

Browse sideways: the pages below answer the neighbouring questions.

Where the work is delivered

More coverage detail

Core International & Cross-Border Tax Services

International Tax Planning & Advisory

Strategy and compliance for income, assets and families spread across borders.

Treaty residency & tie-breaker
FATCA reporting (Form 8938)
Foreign tax credit (Form 1116)
Multi-country filing calendar
Real estate holding structures
International tax planning
Pre-immigration tax planning
Family office structures
One coordinating team: filings on every side of the border are sequenced so treaty relief and foreign tax credits are claimed once — and in the right country.

U.S. & Cross-Border Tax Returns

Form 1040 from abroad
US state non-resident returns
FBAR (FinCEN 114) filing
Form 5472 — foreign-owned US corp
FIRPTA withholding (Form 8288)
US estate tax exposure
IRS streamlined foreign offshore
PFIC reporting (Form 8621)
Dual filers: U.S. citizens in Canada and Canadians with U.S. income run two parallel systems — we prepare both, in the right order, every year.

Expat & Emigration Tax

Departure tax leaving Canada
T1161 properties on emigration
Residency planning
Step-up in cost base on arrival
Split-year residency
Employment income under a treaty
Social security totalization
Returning to Canada after years abroad
The move year is its own project: the elections and valuations filed that year decide the next decade of both countries’ returns.

Non-Resident Canadian Tax

Section 216 rental return
NR4 & NR6 withholding
Section 217 pension return
Section 116 clearance certificate
Regulation 105 waiver
Non-resident employment income
Taxable Canadian property
Part XIII withholding review
Default withholding is 25% of gross: elective returns routinely turn over-withheld rent and pensions into refunds.

Transfer Pricing & BEPS

s.247 contemporaneous documentation
Functional & risk analysis
Benchmarking study
Intercompany agreements
Country-by-country report
BEPS & Pillar Two
Permanent establishment risk
TP audit defence file
Documentation prepared with the return is the cheapest insurance in international tax; reconstructing it during an audit is the most expensive.

Cross-Border Estates & Trusts

Cross-border wills
US estate tax for non-resident aliens
Terminal return & clearance certificate
Non-resident trusts (s.94)
T1141 & T1142 trust reporting
Inheriting property abroad
Graduated rate estates
Post-mortem planning & pipeline
Wills drafted for one country routinely misfire in the other — deemed disposition here, estate tax there, credits in between.

Cross-Border Corporate Tax

Entity selection across borders
Business profits & PE
Intercompany loans & thin cap
Paying dividends to a foreign parent
Global mobility & day tracking
Debt vs equity funding
Branch or subsidiary
Cross-border M&A due diligence
Expansion raises the same four questions every time — entity, PE, repatriation, payroll. We answer them before the tax authorities do.

India Tax for NRIs & Returning Residents

NRI residency day tests
NRE, NRO & FCNR accounts
TDS on property (s.195)
Lower or nil TDS certificate
Repatriating sale proceeds
Capital gains on Indian shares
India–Canada DTAA
ITR-2 for NRIs
The deduction is taken on the sale price, not the gain — which is why an NRI property sale strands cash unless the certificate is applied for before closing.

Canadian Tax with a Foreign Element

T1135 foreign property
T1134 foreign affiliates
Departure tax
Newcomer's first return
Returning to Canada
Split-year residency
US citizens in Canada
Canada–US corridor
Residency is decided on facts, not on a form — and the year you arrive or leave is the one where the largest amounts turn on the smallest details.

UAE Tax for Expats & Their Home Country

Expat tax in the UAE
Moving to the UAE
Moving back from the UAE
UAE property purchases
Retiring in the UAE
Canada–UAE corridor
India–UAE DTAA
US–UAE corridor
A zero-tax country is only half the answer — the question that decides the bill is whether the country you came from still treats you as resident.

Industries & Client Types We Serve Worldwide

Global E-commerce & Marketplaces
Technology & SaaS
Professional Services Firms
Cross-Border Real Estate
Importers, Exporters & Manufacturers
Athletes, Artists & Entertainers
Remote Workers & Digital Nomads
Investment Funds & Holding Companies

Global E-commerce & Marketplaces

  • Foreign VAT / GST / sales tax registrations
  • Marketplace withholding reviews
  • Inventory nexus & PE analysis
  • Multi-currency books reconciled
Explore E-commerce & Marketplaces

Technology & SaaS

  • Cross-border revenue sourcing & withholding
  • IP structuring with real substance
  • Equity for cross-border teams
  • U.S. expansion: entity & PE setup
Explore Technology & SaaS

Importers, Exporters & Manufacturers

  • Transfer pricing documentation (s.247)
  • Customs value vs transfer price
  • Foreign affiliate reporting (T1134)
  • Country-by-country reporting
Explore Trade & Manufacturing

Athletes, Artists & Entertainers

  • Reg 105 & U.S. CWA agreements
  • Multi-state & country calendars
  • Touring income allocation
  • Royalty & image-rights withholding
Explore Athletes & Entertainers

Remote Workers & Digital Nomads

Working from anywhere doesn't mean taxed nowhere: residency defaults, employer payroll exposure and treaty relief decide where income actually lands.

Working from another country does not by itself end tax residence in the one you left, and it can start one where you are sitting. Day counts, ties, the employer's own exposure and the treaty tie-breaker all point at the same question, and the year you move is the year it has to be answered on paper.

  • Residency analysis before moving
  • Employer payroll exposure
  • Totalization & social security
  • Foreign tax credits
Explore Remote Workers

Investment Funds & Holding Companies

  • Treaty access & PPT reviews
  • FAPI & surplus computations
  • Withholding-efficient routing
  • Governance & substance
Explore Funds & Holdcos

Portugal — questions we are asked

Do I have to file at home while living in Portugal?

For most people the answer turns on whether the ties that made them resident have actually ended. For a US citizen or green-card holder it does not: the return is due in Portugal exactly as it would be at home. Everything else on the file follows from which of those you are.

Is there a treaty between my country and Portugal?

That is verified rather than assumed: we confirm which treaty text governs Portugal and your home country for the year in question, because a protocol can move a rate or an article between years. If there is no treaty, unilateral credit rules are what prevent double taxation.

I own property in Portugal. Where is the rent taxed?

Where the property is. That is close to universal, and it usually arrives as withholding on the gross rent rather than as a return on the profit — which is why the election onto a net basis, where Portugal offers one, is normally the first thing to check. Your home country taxes the same rent and credits what was paid.

How does a foreign tax credit carryover work?

Credit you could not use because of the limitation does not disappear. It carries back one year and then forward, within its own category and tracked year by year, and is applied after the current year's credit — oldest first. Two things kill it in practice: no Form 1116 in the year the excess arose, so nothing was ever computed; and no foreign income in that category later, so there is no limitation to absorb it. See Form 1116.

Can I revoke the foreign earned income exclusion, and what happens if I do?

You can stop claiming it, but a revocation is not a free toggle: having revoked, you are locked out of electing it again for a period of years unless the IRS consents to an earlier return. That is why switching from the exclusion to the credit is a modelled decision — it can be right, particularly where local tax is high or where you need earned income for retirement contributions or the refundable child credit, but it should be made once and deliberately. See exclusion against credit.

Is there a limit on the foreign tax credit?

Yes, and it is the whole design. To calculate the limit you compute the US tax on your foreign-source income in that category; the credit cannot exceed it, because its purpose is to stop double taxation, not to refund another country's tax. Pay a higher rate abroad than the United States charges and the excess is not lost but deferred, becoming a carryover for a year with room. Pay a lower rate and the credit simply covers the foreign tax. See Form 1116.

Tax terms explained

DomicileDual citizenshipNRO accountJuridical double taxationCredit methodStock option benefitExcess distributionClubbing of incomeBranchRNORBEPSAlter ego trustForeign tax creditPart XIII tax Browse the full A–Z glossary

More on Portugal and this corridor

Elsewhere in this section

All country guidesMoving back from Portugal — re-establishing residencyBuying or selling property in United StatesBuying or selling property in United KingdomMoving back from Singapore — re-establishing residencyMoving back from Qatar — re-establishing residencyBuying or selling property in Netherlands

Related work

Costa Rica tax for expats — country guideUS–Germany tax corridorPhilippines tax for expats — country guideCanadian with a US brokerage accountReturning to India after years abroadBarbados tax for expats — country guide

Pricing for this work

Cross-border payroll setup — fixed-fee priceT1135 foreign property filing — fixed-fee priceT1134 foreign affiliate reporting — fixed-fee price1120-F / 5472 filing — fixed-fee price
No hourly billing, ever

Talk to us about your Portugal filing

Send us the facts. You will get a scope and a fixed fee in writing, and nothing starts until you agree to both.

Contact Us 24-hour helpline +1 (416) 619-0068 See fixed fees
  • Your existing accountant keeps the domestic file
  • A named reviewer signs off every filing
  • Fixed fees agreed before work starts

Our practitioners are alumni of leading accounting and tax institutions

Where our partners studied — CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program), AICPA, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and the Malaysian Institute of Accountants.

Request a Quote +1 (416) 619-0068