How Long Does It Take to Open a Company in Portugal? (2026 Timelines)
In a normal year, registering a company in Portugal is quick. Through Empresa na Hora you can walk out with a registered company the same day, and Empresa Online usually takes a few days to a couple of weeks. 2026 was the exception: a national strike and a deep staffing shortage at the government registry (the IRN) created a backlog that pushed some formations out to seven to ten weeks. That backlog has cleared. As of September 2026, registration takes about 10 to 12 business days once your file reaches the IRN, and roughly three to four weeks end to end once you count preparing the paperwork, clearing the company name, and signing the power of attorney.
Updated 3 September 2026: the IRN strike and backlog described in earlier versions of this article have cleared. The timelines below are what we are seeing on current orders.
The short answer
Two numbers, because the answer moved twice this year: out to seven to ten weeks during the registry strike, and back again once the backlog cleared.
| During the 2026 backlog | Now (September 2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Registration at the IRN | Several weeks, sometimes longer | About 10 to 12 business days |
| End to end, custom name | Often 7 to 10 weeks | About 3 to 4 weeks |
The bottleneck was never the paperwork. It was the government office that processes it, and that office is working at a normal pace again. Below is what happened, with the registry’s own notices and the press coverage kept as a record, and what the timeline looks like today.
How opening a company in Portugal actually works
A Portuguese private limited company (a Lda, or a single-owner Unipessoal Lda) goes through the same core steps whether you do it yourself or through a service:
Approve the company name
Pick a pre-approved name from the official list (instant), or request a custom name certificate (certificado de admissibilidade) from the national registry. A custom name has to be checked and cleared, which adds time.
Set the company details
Share capital, shareholders, management, and your CAE codes — the official economic-activity classifications every Portuguese company must register under. Getting the CAE codes right matters: they define what your company is allowed to do and feed into your tax setup.
Register the company
In person through Empresa na Hora, or remotely through Empresa Online. This is the step that creates the company, and the step those 10 to 12 business days refer to.
Declare beneficial ownership and get your Certidão Permanente
The RCBE beneficial-ownership declaration, then the Certidão Permanente — your company’s permanent online certificate. This is what banks, clients, and the tax office will ask to see.
Appoint a certified accountant
A certified accountant (contabilista certificado, OCC) is mandatory in Portugal from day one.
Name approval and registration are the two steps where the clock really runs. For most of 2026 they were the bottleneck. Today they are back to being the predictable part.
What happened at the registry in 2026, and where things stand now
The Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (IRN) is the government body that runs Portugal’s registries: civil, property, commercial, and vehicle. Company registration lives inside it. Two things collided in the first half of 2026.
First, a long staffing shortage. The IRN had gone more than twenty years without meaningful recruitment. The registrars’ union put the gap at over 3,000 people, and the Ministry of Justice acknowledged the shortfall in parliament. Many offices were running at well under half their planned headcount.
Second, strikes. Registry workers walked out in June over what their union called a critical situation in the sector, and the disruption ran through the summer, with offices cut back to minimum services on strike days. It was not a minor protest. ECO reported around 80% of registry staff joined the June strike, Público covered the workers’ warnings about the state of the sector, and RTP reported the knock-on effects at registry offices across the country. The registry has published its own notices confirming the reduced service, which you can read here for June and August.
The result was a backlog. Company registrations, name approvals, and changes to existing companies all took longer, and it hit everyone filing at the time, whether they used a lawyer, a service, or did it themselves.
That is now behind us. The strike action ended, new staff came on stream, and the IRN worked the queue down over the following months. Company registrations are being processed at a normal pace again, which is why the numbers in this article are lower than they were in July. If you find an article dated mid-2026 quoting seven to ten weeks, it was accurate when it was written and it is out of date now, including earlier versions of this one.
What we’re seeing on our own orders
We coordinate company formations for people moving to Portugal every week. On current orders, registration is taking about 10 to 12 business days from the moment the file reaches the IRN, and about three to four weeks end to end from the day a client submits their intake form. Name approvals are clearing in roughly five to seven days again. The rest of that window is our side of the work: reviewing your CAE codes, preparing the power of attorney, and getting it signed.
We would rather publish the number we are actually seeing, and change it when it moves, than quote whichever figure flatters us.
Is the express registration fee worth paying?
Portugal offers a paid express (urgency) option on registrations. It costs €220, it is paid to the government rather than to whoever is helping you, and it puts your file on the registry’s priority track. It is a priority request rather than a guaranteed date, and it is treated as used once processing starts, so it is not refundable if the registry takes longer than you hoped.
Whether it is worth it comes down to your deadline. With standard processing running at about 10 to 12 business days, most people do not need it. If a visa appointment, a lease, or a client contract depends on the company existing by a particular date, it is cheap insurance.
Empresa na Hora vs Empresa Online vs using a lawyer
Three routes, briefly:
Empresa na Hora is the in-person, same-day service using a pre-approved name. Fast, but you have to be in Portugal in person on the day.
Empresa Online lets you register remotely through the government portal. Convenient, but it needs Portuguese digital authentication, and it sits in the same processing queue.
Through a lawyer or a service like Novomove, you sign a power of attorney and a licensed Portuguese lawyer files on your behalf, so you never travel and the paperwork (name, CAE codes, statutes, RCBE) is done correctly the first time. That last part matters, because a rejected or incorrect filing means doing the step again and waiting for it a second time.
Forming a company for a D2 visa? Read this first
Many of our company formation clients aren’t just starting a business. They’re building a D2 visa application, and the registration delay lands directly on their critical path.
Here’s why. When you go the company route for the D2, the bank wants to see your business plan and your commercial registry documents together, not one or the other. So a company stuck in the IRN queue can hold up your bank file, and the bank file feeds your visa dossier. A delay of weeks at the registry can push your whole application back if you leave the company until last.
Two practical moves fix most of this:
Start the company first, not last. If your D2 plan involves a Portuguese company, get the formation moving before you book anything that depends on it. Budget about three to four weeks end to end, and allow a little more if you want a custom name that has to clear an admissibility check.
Prepare the business plan in parallel. The D2 business plan doesn’t depend on the registry, so there’s no reason to wait. Have it ready while the company is being registered, and the moment your Certidão Permanente lands, your bank file is complete.
One more thing worth knowing: registering your activity with Finanças isn’t required at the consular stage. That step belongs after arrival, at the residence permit stage, so a slow registry doesn’t need to delay your consulate appointment preparation.
How to keep the rest of your move moving
The registry sets its own pace, but it does not have to be the thing everything else waits on. A few practical moves:
- Sort your NIF and bank account in parallel. You don’t need the company finished to start these, and they’re on the critical path for most relocations. Get your Portuguese NIF and bank account moving now.
- Get your documents right the first time. Most avoidable delay comes from a name or a filing that bounces back. Clean documents and correct CAE codes keep you out of the redo loop.
- Set a realistic expectation with anyone depending on the date. If a visa, a client contract, or a lease is riding on your company, build in a buffer. Three to four weeks is the realistic planning figure, not three to four days.
If you’d rather not manage the bureaucracy yourself, that’s what we’re here for.
We coordinate your formation end to end with licensed Portuguese partners. You sign one power of attorney, we handle the name, the CAE codes, the filing, and the Certidão Permanente, and a dedicated case manager keeps you posted the whole way.
We can’t make the government faster. But we file correctly and promptly, chase the registry for you, and tell you the truth about timing.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to open a company in Portugal in 2026?
About 10 to 12 business days at the registry once your file is submitted, and roughly three to four weeks end to end once you include preparing your documents, clearing the company name, and signing the power of attorney. The strike and backlog that pushed this out to seven to ten weeks in mid-2026 have cleared.
How much does it cost to register a company in Portugal?
The government registration fee is around €220 online, or €360 through Empresa na Hora, plus a custom-name certificate if you want a specific name. A certified accountant is also mandatory, and service providers charge their own fee on top for handling the process. Our coordinated packages start at €970 with the government incorporation fee included: see company formation pricing.
Can I open a Portuguese company without going to Portugal?
Yes. With a power of attorney, a licensed Portuguese lawyer can register the company on your behalf, so you don’t need to travel.
Why is my Portuguese company registration taking so long?
In mid-2026 the answer was the registry itself: the IRN was short thousands of staff and hit by strikes, which created a national backlog. That has cleared, and registrations are running at about 10 to 12 business days again. If your case is taking materially longer than that today, the usual causes are a custom name still clearing admissibility, a query raised by the registry, or a document that needs correcting. Ask whoever filed for you which of the three it is.
Is the express registration fee worth paying?
It costs €220, goes to the government, and puts your file on the registry’s priority track. It is a priority request, not a guaranteed date, and it is non-refundable once processing starts. With standard registration now around 10 to 12 business days, most people do not need it. It is worth paying if a specific date depends on the company being registered.
Will the registry delay affect my D2 visa application?
It can. If you go the company route, the bank wants your business plan and commercial registry documents together, so a company that is still being registered can hold up your bank file and your dossier. Start the formation early and prepare your business plan in parallel so nothing else waits on the registry.
Do I need a Portuguese accountant?
Yes. Appointing a certified accountant (OCC) is mandatory for a Portuguese company from the start.
Sources
Updated 3 September 2026. The strike and staffing backlog described above were real, and the sources below are kept as a record of what happened; the delays they caused have since cleared. Processing times change, so check the date on anything you read about the Portuguese registry, including this article.
- IRN official notice, reduced registry services during the June strike: irn.justica.gov.pt — Greve nos Registos, junho
- IRN official notice, reduced availability of registry services in August: irn.justica.gov.pt — Greve, agosto
- ECO, around 80% strike participation in the registry sector: eco.sapo.pt
- Público, registry workers begin strike week over “critical situation” in the sector: publico.pt
- RTP, knock-on effects at registry offices across the country: rtp.pt
Novomove is a technology platform that coordinates licensed Portuguese lawyers and accountants. We are not a law firm, and this article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Company registrations are filed by licensed Portuguese professionals; processing times are decided by the Portuguese authorities and depend on the situation at the registry. For advice on your case, book a consultation with one of our partner professionals.
