Selling property without a use licence in Portugal: rules from October 2026

Did Portugal abolish the use licence?

People still refer to the licença de utilização, autorização de utilização or, less precisely, a habitation licence. From 1 October 2026, the amended legislation uses a wider system of urban-planning titles. Under that reform, legal references to the former use licence or authorisation are treated, depending on the case, as references to a prior notification or a prior notification with a time limit.

The documents will differ between properties. An older home may have a municipal licence issued decades ago or an earlier deed that identifies it. A recent development may rely on a set of documents covering the planning operation and the start of use. If an office or shop has become a dwelling, check what use is actually authorised.

Until the file has been checked, ‘the corresponding urban-planning title’ is the safer expression. The change in language does not remove the rules governing the work and use of the building. This guide was reviewed on 1 September 2026 and reflects Decree-Law 108/2026 as amended by Decree-Law 155-B/2026. The reform is scheduled to enter into force on 1 October 2026; the relevant municipality and the transaction professionals should confirm a particular property and the rules in force on the completion date.

What must appear from 1 October 2026

The statement required by Article 4-A(14) applies to transfers of urban construction land, completed buildings, buildings under construction and their autonomous units. From 1 October 2026, the registrar, notary, lawyer, solicitor or other legally competent professional handling the transfer must record the declaration about the title in the transfer document.

From that date this is not optional wording. The reform links failure to include the required statement to the transaction being voidable. A description in the listing or an informal discussion between buyer and seller does not replace it.

From 1 October 2026, a title of use for a building or autonomous fraction passes automatically with that property. A fresh title is not needed merely because the owner changes. The seller should nevertheless identify the existing title and let the buyer check whether it corresponds to the property being sold.

• The title exists and is presented
• The seller declares that they hold the title but do not present it
• The seller declares that they do not hold the title

‘I cannot find the licence’ can mean several things

Sometimes the title exists and only the owner’s copy is missing. Look for references in previous deeds and ask the municipality how to inspect or reproduce the file. The address, tax article, land-register description and details of earlier owners may help, although the procedure varies between municipalities.

In other cases the age of the building matters, but ‘the house has always been here’ is not evidence on its own. Later extensions, alterations or changes of use can change the analysis. Establish the documentary history of the building as it stands rather than treating family recollection or an old photograph as an exemption.

A title may also exist while the property no longer matches it. An enclosed balcony, a garage converted into a bedroom or a rear extension may be absent from the approved or notified documents. Picture an owner who still holds the 1980s licence for a flat whose balcony was later incorporated into the sitting room. The document has not disappeared, but it does not by itself confirm that alteration.

Finally, the property may not have the necessary title. From 1 October 2026, the amended rules provide for the transfer document to record that declaration. This is not regularisation. Whether a solution is possible depends on the property, its valid planning history and the rules that apply, not on a sentence placed in the deed.

Run two checks, not one

The first check concerns the land register and tax record. The permanent land-register certificate identifies registered owners, the property description, charges and pending registrations. The tax record serves a different fiscal purpose. Both matter, but neither replaces the municipal planning file.

The second check concerns planning and the property on site. Assemble the construction and use titles that exist, notifications, plans, projects, responsibility statements and records of later work. Compare that history with the building: footprint, floor area, storeys, outbuildings, layout and use.

If the documents tell different stories, do not choose the one that is easiest to market. Record the discrepancy and put it before the professional able to assess it. The owner is not expected to become a planning lawyer; the aim is to reach the first serious offer knowing what is being sold, what can be proved and what still depends on somebody else’s decision.

• What is the latest known valid planning record?
• What use does it cover: residential, retail, services or something else?
• Does the present property match what was approved, notified or lawfully exempt?
• What will be presented and declared in the CPCV and at completion?

Deal with the uncertainty before the deposit is paid

A promissory sale and purchase agreement, usually called a CPCV in Portugal, cannot make a documentary gap vanish. It can set out what each party must provide, verify or resolve before completion.

Where there is a planning question, a contract reviewed for the particular sale may identify the known title, documents still requested from the municipality, any technical review, an agreed finance condition, deadlines and the consequences of an unfavourable result. A loose promise that ‘all documents will be in order’ does not explain who carries the risk of an unapproved garage or a use that differs from the listing.

Nor should the seller promise a completion date based on an uncomplicated transaction. Inspecting the archive may simply confirm the title. It may also reveal work that needs a longer assessment. A Portuguese lawyer or solicitor should confirm the wording and consequences before signature.

Regularise first, or sell with the position disclosed?

There is no single answer for every property. Regularising first may broaden the pool of buyers and remove uncertainty. It may also involve drawings, technical work, municipal charges, physical alterations or a formal decision. Do not advertise a guaranteed outcome or timescale before the applicable route has been checked.

Selling with the position expressly disclosed may be possible in a particular transaction, provided the buyer understands what is being acquired and receives independent advice. Price and conditions are likely to reflect the work, time and risk left unresolved. Disclosure lets the parties compare offers that may look similar while assuming very different responsibilities.

Be careful with a quick renovation before marketing. Repainting and routine repairs are one matter; altering the floor area, structure, façade or use is another. Ask a qualified professional how the intended work should be treated before spending money on something that may complicate the file.

The order in which to prepare the sale

Start with what can be proved. Obtain the permanent land-register certificate and gather the tax record, previous deeds and plans. Identify the municipal file, compare it with the current layout and use, and keep ‘the copy is missing’, ‘there is a discrepancy’ and ‘no title is known’ as separate findings.

Ask the legal professional to define what can accurately be said in the listing, offer, CPCV and completion instrument. Only then set a timetable and decide whether regularisation comes before marketing or forms part of the negotiated conditions. Keep requests, replies and documents supplied to the buyer in one dated file.

If you do not yet know which title applies, begin with the documents you do have. IMOJA can organise the commercial presentation and sale process; the municipality and qualified legal and technical professionals remain responsible for confirming the planning, legal and technical position.

• A sale does not legalise unauthorised work or use
• The land-register certificate does not replace the municipal file
• From 1 October 2026, a title of use for a building or autonomous fraction passes automatically with that property
• The declaration in the transfer must match the known facts