Buying off-plan property in Portugal in 2026: risks, guarantees and the promissory contract

Buying off-plan means committing to buy a home that does not yet exist, or is still being built. You sign a promissory contract (contrato-promessa) with the developer, pay a deposit, often topped up as the works progress, and the deed is only signed when the home is finished and has its occupancy title.

The advantage is choosing the home from the project, sometimes with room to choose finishes, and getting a new home with a warranty. The risk is that, for months or years, the buyer has paid money and has no home. This guide explains, under the law in force in November 2026, what those risks are and how to reduce them.

Summary

Risk	How to protect yourself
Construction delay	Deadline for the deed, a penalty for delay and the right to withdraw with a refund
Home differs from the promise	Floor plans, areas and finishes schedule attached to the contract
Developer insolvency	Registered real effect, guarantees on the deposit, staged deposits
Construction mortgage	Check the land registry and provide for the release of your unit in the contract
Mortgage for the buyer	Pre-approval and a mortgage condition in the contract
Defects	10-year (structural) and 5-year (other) warranty
Early IMT	Beware of taking possession before the deed

Before you sign: what to check

The building permit

Check that the works have a building permit or another title allowing them. Ask for the number and confirm it with the municipality. Article 410 of the Civil Code requires that, in a promissory contract for a building or unit “under construction or yet to be built”, whoever certifies the signatures also certifies that the building or occupancy permit exists.

The Simplex planning reform (Decree-Law 10/2024) did not amend this article, but some rulings hold that the certification was replaced by the information duty created by Simplex, such as a Coimbra Court of Appeal ruling of 27 January 2026. That is one court decision, not a general rule. In practice, always ask for the permit: it is the first evidence that the home can be built as promised.

The land registry

Ask for the land registry certificate (certidão permanente) for the plot or building. It shows who owns it and whether there are mortgages or attachments. It is common for the land to be mortgaged to the bank financing the build. That is not a problem in itself, but the promissory contract should say how the mortgage over your unit will be released on the day of the deed, so you receive it free of charges.

The developer

Find out which projects the developer has already completed and delivered, and whether they kept to schedule. A company set up for a single project deserves extra care.

Horizontal property

In an apartment building, your home will be an autonomous unit (fração autónoma), which only exists legally once horizontal property has been set up. The horizontal property title must match the approved project. Until then, the promissory contract should identify the unit by the project: floor, layout, areas, parking space and storage room.

The technical file and the energy pre-certificate

The developer must prepare the housing technical file (ficha técnica da habitação), and a provisional version exists while the works are unfinished. Since 2024 the file is no longer checked at the deed, so ask for the provisional version before you sign.

A new building needs an energy pre-certificate before construction starts, and an advert for a home under construction should show the energy class from that pre-certificate. The energy certificate is issued once the works are finished.

The promissory contract

The promissory contract is the most important document in an off-plan purchase. It must be in writing, signed by both parties, with the signatures certified in person, for example by a notary, lawyer or solicitor. If the certification is missing, the developer can only rely on that if the buyer culpably caused it.

As well as the price and the parties, an off-plan contract should include:

• Attached floor plans and areas, with the gross private area and the ancillary areas, and any tolerance margin, written as a number.
• Attached finishes schedule, with brands or specifications. If the developer may change materials, it should be for materials of equivalent quality, with a stated way of deciding what is equivalent.
• A deadline for the deed, either a fixed date or one linked to the issue of the occupancy title, and what happens if it is missed: a penalty for each month of delay and, after a longer period, the right to withdraw with a refund of what you paid.
• A schedule for deposit top-ups, ideally linked to specific construction stages rather than dates alone.
• Changes to the project: which ones need your consent and what happens to the price.
• Release of the construction mortgage over your unit at the deed.
• A mortgage condition, if you are borrowing: a deadline for approval and return of the deposit if the loan is refused.

Our guide to the promissory contract and deposit explains the general rules in detail.

The deposit

In a promissory contract of sale, every amount the buyer pays the seller is presumed to be a deposit (sinal), including top-ups. The rules are in article 442 of the Civil Code:

• if the buyer withdraws without cause, they lose what they paid;
• if the developer fails to perform, the buyer can claim double what they paid;
• alternatively, the performing party can ask the court for specific performance, meaning the sale is made in place of the defaulting party.

In an off-plan purchase, the amounts paid can be large and the period long. Ask the developer what guarantees they offer on the deposit, such as a bank guarantee or surety insurance, and ask your lawyer to confirm the rules that apply to your case. Deposits staged with the works limit the amount at risk at any time.

Developer insolvency

This is the most serious risk. If the developer becomes insolvent before the deed, the insolvency administrator can, as a rule, refuse to perform the promissory contract. The buyer is left with a claim against the insolvent estate, which may not be paid in full.

There are two protections, and both have limits:

• Real effect. A promissory contract with real effect (eficácia real) is made by deed or certified private document, with an express declaration, and is registered. If, in addition, the home has already been handed to the buyer, the administrator cannot refuse the sale. In an off-plan purchase the home is rarely handed over before the deed, which limits this protection, but registration still makes the promise enforceable against third parties.
• Right of retention. A buyer who has already received the home has a right of retention for the claim arising from the seller’s default. In insolvency, the Supreme Court of Justice ruled (uniform case-law ruling 4/2014) that this right belongs to a buyer who is a consumer, meaning someone buying for their own use.

Note a 2024 change: under Decree-Law 48/2024, for retention rights arising from 24 August 2024, retention only prevails over an earlier registered mortgage for expenses to preserve or increase the value of the property. The buyer’s deposit claim generally no longer ranks ahead of the mortgage of the bank that financed the build. That is why releasing the mortgage over your unit and registering the promise have become more important.

Defects and warranty

After completion, a new home comes with a warranty. For contracts between a professional seller and a consumer signed since 1 January 2022 (Decree-Law 84/2021):

Defect	Warranty period
Structural building elements (such as foundations, pillars and slabs)	10 years
Other non-conformities	5 years

A defect that appears within the period is presumed to have existed on delivery, and the period is suspended from the moment you report it. The law no longer sets a deadline for reporting a defect after you discover it, but your rights lapse 3 years after the report. Always report in writing and keep proof.

At handover, take time over the inspection, ideally with a technician, and record in writing anything that does not match the contract and the finishes schedule.

IMT, Stamp Duty and the mortgage

IMT (property transfer tax) and Stamp Duty are as a rule paid before the deed, as with any purchase, on the higher of the price and the tax value (VPT). Our guide to the cost of buying property in Portugal explains the rates and the exemption for buyers aged 35 or under.

One rule matters in particular for off-plan buyers: if the home is handed over to the buyer before the deed, for example to carry out works or move in, the promissory contract counts as a transfer for IMT purposes, and the tax must be paid within 30 days. The exception is a purchase as the buyer’s own permanent home, which loses that exception if the contract allows the buyer to assign their position to a third party.

As for the mortgage, the bank values the home and lends based on the lower of the price and the valuation. Years may pass between the promissory contract and the deed, and lending conditions and the market may change. Get a pre-approval before you sign and include a mortgage condition in the contract. Our guide to the bank valuation explains the limits in force.

At the deed

Since 1 October 2026, the document formalising the sale must state the position of the planning title: whether it was shown, whether the seller declares having it without showing it, or whether the seller declares not having it. For a new home, ask for the occupancy title to be shown. Also check that horizontal property has been set up, that the construction mortgage is released over your unit, and that you receive the final housing technical file.

How we help

When we help you buy, we review the property and developer documents, negotiate the terms and follow the promissory contract, the mortgage and the deed. If you are looking for a home under construction, see Greenville Estoril, a development of seven villas with completion expected in 2027, or our homes for sale.

This guide is general information and does not replace legal advice. When buying off-plan, always ask a lawyer to review the promissory contract before you sign and pay the deposit.