IRS Jovem: Eligibility, Benefits, and How to Apply

• Available to non-dependent residents 35 or under, for up to 10 years — no degree requirement.
• Exemption tapers: 100% year 1, 75% years 2-4, 50% years 5-7, 25% years 8-10, each capped as a multiple of the IAS.
• Mutually exclusive with NHR, IFICI, and Programa Regressar — you can only hold one.
• Doesn't reduce Social Security contributions — only IRS.

IRS Jovem (Article 12.º-B of the Código do IRS) gives residents 35 or under a partial exemption on employment or self-employment income for up to 10 years. It was substantially expanded by the 2025 State Budget (Lei 45-A/2024): the age cap rose to 35, the duration extended to 10 years, and the degree requirement was dropped entirely.

Who's eligible

• 35 or under (inclusive) in the year you earn the income
• Earning employment (Categoria A) and/or self-employment (Categoria B) income
• A Portuguese tax resident in that year
• Not a dependant for IRS purposes
• Your tax situation up to date
• Never benefited from NHR or IFICI
• Never used the Programa Regressar regime

The 10-year clock starts in the first year you earn qualifying Category A/B income as a non-dependant — a year with zero qualifying income doesn't count against your 10 years.

The exemption taper

The exemption applies to your net income, up to an annual cap set as a multiple of the IAS (Indexante dos Apoios Sociais). The percentage steps down every few years:

2026 note: the AT's most recent published IRS Jovem folheto covers the 2025 tax year, with a €28,737.50 year-1 cap based on the 2025 IAS (€522.50). The table above applies the same statutory 55×IAS formula to the confirmed 2026 IAS (€537.13, Portaria 306-A/2025) — it's our own calculation, not a figure copied from an official 2026 publication. Confirm against the AT's 2026 folheto once it's published, or against your own Modelo 3 pre-fill, before relying on the exact euro amount.

How to claim it

1. 1
   Employees (Categoria A)

   Tell your employer which benefit-year you're in — they'll apply the reduced withholding tables the Government publishes annually.

2. 2
   Self-employed (Categoria B)

   Mark the relevant field on Anexo A or Anexo B of your Modelo 3, in the IRS Jovem section, with the year you first earned qualifying income. You can claim it under either Regime Simplificado or Contabilidade Organizada.

What it doesn't do

• It doesn't exempt you from Social Security contributions — those are calculated separately and still due.
• It's incompatible with NHR, IFICI, and Programa Regressar — you can only hold one of these regimes at a time.
• Duration is capped at 10 years or until you turn 35, whichever comes first.