Opening a company in Madeira without living in Portugal: steps, NIF and fiscal representative
You do not need to live in Portugal. You need a NIF for every shareholder and manager, and, if you live outside the EU, a fiscal representative or the tax authority's electronic notifications.
Planning a company in Madeira from abroad?
Book a meetingYes, you can own and manage a company in Madeira from abroad. Every shareholder and manager first needs a NIF (Portuguese tax number). If you live outside the EU or the EEA, you also appoint a fiscal representative in Portugal or sign up to the tax authority's electronic notifications. The company itself never needs one.
What you can do from abroad
A company whose registered office is in Madeira is a Portuguese company, resident in Portugal for tax, wherever its owners live. Its shareholders and its manager (gerente) can live anywhere. What the company does need is a real address in Madeira for its registered office, a business bank account of its own and a contabilista certificado (certified accountant) from the start.
Most of the process can be done from abroad through a representative, usually a lawyer or a solicitor, with a power of attorney. The step that most often needs you in person is the bank.
When you need a fiscal representative
A fiscal representative (representante fiscal) is a person or company resident in Portugal who receives the tax authority's notices on your behalf. Whether you need one depends on where you live, under artigo 19.º of the Lei Geral Tributária (the general tax law):
| Where you live | Fiscal representative |
|---|---|
| In Portugal | Not needed |
| In another EU or EEA country | Optional |
| Outside the EU and the EEA, including the UK since Brexit | Required, unless you sign up to the Autoridade Tributária's (AT, the tax authority) electronic notifications instead |
| The company, with its registered office in Madeira | Never needed. It uses an electronic mailbox for official notices instead |
If you live outside the EU, do one or the other as soon as your NIF is issued: appoint a representative, or activate electronic notifications on the Portal das Finanças. Activating them needs your Portal das Finanças password, which is sent to your address.
Step 2: forming the company
Most non-resident founders form a sociedade unipessoal por quotas (Unipessoal, Lda., a single-member private company) or, with partners, a sociedade por quotas (Lda.). There are three routes:
| Route | How it works | Time to register |
|---|---|---|
| Empresa na Hora | At a registry counter, with a pre-approved name and articles. Funchal has one, in the Loja do Cidadão | Usually the same day |
| Empresa Online | On the government portal, signed with a Portuguese digital identity, or by a lawyer or solicitor with their professional certificate | 5 to 10 working days |
| Traditional | Name approval first (the certificado de admissibilidade), then the articles and registration | The longest of the three |
From abroad, the practical route is usually a lawyer or solicitor acting for you under a power of attorney. Documents issued outside Portugal need an apostille (or consular legalisation) and, usually, a translation.
Share capital can be as little as €1 for each shareholder. If the founding act says so, it can be paid in by the end of the company's first financial year rather than at the start. We usually recommend more, €2,000 to €5,000: a bank looks at the share capital when the company later asks for credit.
Official costs. The registration fee is €360. A company name of your own choosing, rather than one of the pre-approved names, first needs a certificado de admissibilidade, at €75. Our own fees depend on what you need from us: see company creation or ask us for a quote.
Step 3: the first month
Registration is the start, not the end. In the weeks after it, in this order:
- Your contabilista certificado is appointed. It is compulsory for a company.
- The beneficial owners are declared in the RCBE (the central register of beneficial owners) within 30 days.
- The bank opens the company's account, in the company's name and for its business only, and gives you the account number that the start of activity needs.
- The start of activity is declared to the AT within 15 days of registration, including the company's IVA (VAT) position. If the company will trade with businesses in other EU countries, its registration for intra-EU trade (VIES) is requested here: it is not automatic and not backdated.
- Back to the bank. The account can be used only once the bank has the start-of-activity document.
- Segurança Social (social security). The company is registered automatically; the company must then register the gerente as a member of its management, which your accountant normally does for it.
- An electronic mailbox for official notices is set up within 30 days of starting activity.
How long the account takes depends on the bank. Portuguese banks check non-resident owners closely, often with a meeting in person or by video.
Madeira's rates, and the IBC
A company based in Madeira pays IRC (corporate income tax) at Madeira's regional rates. For 2026 that is 13.3%, or 10.5% on the first €50,000 of taxable profit for small and medium-sized companies. IVA in Madeira is charged at 22%, 12% and 4%. For 2027, the national rate, which applies to a company based on the mainland, is already set by law at 18%. Madeira's regional rate, the one a company based here pays, is set in the regional budget at the end of each year.
The International Business Centre of Madeira (IBC, or CINM) is a separate regime, with a lower IRC rate for licensed companies that meet job and investment conditions. New licences can be granted until 31 December 2026. See IBC Madeira.
Three things to plan for
- Where the company is really managed. If every decision is taken in your home country, that country may consider the company resident there, or as having a permanent establishment there. The tax treaty between the two countries then decides. Decide early where and how the company is run.
- Your pay as gerente. A salary paid by the company to a non-resident manager is Portuguese income, taxed in Portugal at a flat rate withheld at source. Your home country may tax it too, with credit for the Portuguese tax.
- Segurança Social for the gerente. A gerente can owe Portuguese contributions even when unpaid, unless covered by another country's compulsory system. If you live in the EU, an A1 certificate from your home system shows which country applies.
How Conta Plena helps
We handle every step in this guide for you: the NIFs, the incorporation with our partner lawyer, the start of activity and the registrations of the first month, and the bank account opening. After that, we stay on as your company's certified accountant.
You can do it all from abroad, with one contact in English and a fixed quote before we start. See our services for company creation and single-member companies.
FAQ
Do I need to live in Portugal to open a company in Madeira?
No. A company with its registered office in Madeira is Portuguese whatever the residence of its owners and manager.
Do I have to travel to Portugal?
Not necessarily. Your NIF can be requested through a representative, and the company formed by one with a power of attorney. The bank account is the step most likely to need you in person.
I live in the UK. Do I need a fiscal representative?
Yes, or electronic notifications instead. Since Brexit, UK residents are treated as living outside the EU.
What is the minimum share capital?
€1 for each shareholder, although we usually recommend €2,000 to €5,000 for the company's standing with banks.
How long does it take?
Mostly as long as the bank. A NIF can be issued the same day in person, or within a few weeks through a representative. The company can be registered the same day at Empresa na Hora, or in 5 to 10 working days online. The bank account often takes several weeks.
Planning a company in Madeira from abroad?
We can take you through the NIF, the representative and the formation, and keep the company's accounts from its first day. See our company creation service, or book a meeting with our team in Funchal.
This guide is general information based on the rules in force in October 2026. It is not advice for your situation.