Taxman clamps down on LA

The Portuguese tax authorities are preparing a tax sweep on Local Accommodation properties nationwide, the timing of which, given the government ‘s ‘More Housing’ clampdown on Local Accommodation establishments, may be seen by private property associations as yet another politically motivated attack on privately run holiday lets which are already being penalised by government policy.

According to Jornal Económico the operation will run until the end of the third quarter. The tax authorities will be looking at more recent Local Accommodation units, those that have made late tax returns or have registered very low invoice numbers with their declaration forms or have outstanding VAT payments.
The inspectors will be looking for cases of potential tax evasion after scores of denouncements to the tax authorities and the Public Ministry with cases where invoices were not issued at all or of improper invoicing.
The Portuguese tax authorities say they are undertaking the tax swoop to prevent the development of a black economy and make economic operators (i.e., owners and rental operators) aware (of the requirement to provide proper invoices and include tax deductions on each letting operation).
The last time the government carried out a tax inspection on Local Accommodation was in 2017 on 3,750 Local Accommodation establishments.