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Good practice Imported

Programa Regressar — Portugal's Tax Incentive and Support Scheme for Returning Emigrants

Portugal · Lisbon · See the Portugal profile · See the Lisbon profile

Evidence: Observational / pre–post Top 76% 57/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Since 2019, Portugal's Programa Regressar has given returning emigrants a 50% income-tax break for five years plus IEFP grants; applications hit 36,000+ in H1 2025 alone, and Finance Ministry research says resulting spending offsets much of the foregone tax.

36,000+
Applications filed (H1 2025)
~2,200
Average annual beneficiaries at launch (since 2019)
50% %
Income-tax exclusion (5 years, capped at €250,000/year)
Programa Regressar — Portugal's Tax Incentive and Support Scheme for Returning Emigrants

Details

Maturity
Established
Promoter
Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira (Portuguese Tax Authority) / IEFP
Period
2019–2026 (extended)
Keywords
diaspora policy, talent retention, return migration, tax incentives

Context

Launched in 2019 and most recently extended through the end of 2026, Portugal's Programa Regressar targets former residents who move their tax residence back to Portugal. Qualifying returnees can exclude 50% of employment or self-employment income from personal income tax (IRS) for five years, capped at €250,000 of annual income, and may access IEFP relocation grants and a business-creation credit line.

Activities

Official Tax Authority and programme data show demand rising sharply: from an average of about 2,200 beneficiaries a year since the 2019 launch to more than 36,000 applications filed in the first half of 2025 alone. About three-quarters of applicants are aged 25-44 and a third hold a university degree.

Results

Research from GPEARI, the finance ministry's planning office, finds that returnees' above-average spending generates additional VAT receipts that partly offset the personal-income-tax revenue the scheme forgoes.

Conclusions

No published counterfactual study isolates how much of the recent surge in applications is attributable to the scheme itself, as opposed to broader economic conditions driving return migration to Portugal.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k) — Fiscal cost is foregone personal-income-tax revenue plus IEFP relocation grants; partly offset by additional VAT receipts per GPEARI analysis.
Time to results
Long (> 3 years) — Running since 2019, extended through 2026.
Staffing & skills
Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira (Portuguese Tax Authority), IEFP

Conditions for success

  • Additional VAT receipts from returnee spending partly offset foregone income-tax revenue

Common failure modes

  • Domestic fairness critique that the tax break advantages returnees over residents who never emigrated

Where it fits

Governance type
national tax and employment agencies
Scale
national
Income level
high income

Commonly funded by

National / regional programmes

Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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