In a discussion on tax representation in Portugal, bazajaytee shares concerns about being charged 300 EUR annually by their legal firm for issuing rental receipts alongside tax returns, questioning the necessity of this service. They are unable to access the Portal das Finanças as the firm withholds the password, claiming responsibility for any discrepancies. TommyReine responds, stating that issuing receipts is straightforward and suggests a password reset as a solution to regain access. bazajaytee expresses their difficulty in confronting the firm, given their ongoing reliance on them for other legal services, and seeks advice on the legality of withholding the password. Sandi mentions facing a similar issue, where their representative demands payment prior to providing the password, despite no ongoing business activity in Portugal. tommigun advises making the payment to ease the transition but highlights that trustworthy tax representatives typically share passwords without such demands. Sandi notes that they had already paid for last year’s services and are frustrated by the demand for additional payment. TommyReine suggests checking the contract for renewal terms, indicating that it’s common practice in Portugal, and advises sending a termination notice if needed.
Hello everyone,
First time posting, so I hope this is the right place for these questions.
I have an ongoing GV application, +5 years, for me and my children and receive rental income in portugal, for the past years it is a legal firm who handled the GV process as well as the filing of IMI and IRS taxes: my questions are the following:
Recently they have indicated that we have to issue rental receipts in addition to the tax returns, and they offer an extra service for about 300EUR per year to do this, is this normal? The fee for all tax related matters is already a consequential amount each year.
Could I issue the rental receipts myself on the portal das finanças? Is the process easy to manage? When I asked if I could handle this process, I have been told they could not share my password for the portal with me, because as they are the tax representative, they would be responsible for any discrepancies between receipts and filed tax. I feel as though this is maybe to convince me to opt for the service and not necessarily the truth?
I thank you for your time and I would really appreciate help. Thank you.
Yes, you can issue them yourself in couple of minutes easily.
Sounds fishy to begin with.
Just do a password reset, Financas shall send you the physical letter with a new password to the tax registered address. If your address is same with the Tax rep address, then you need to make an appointment at any AT office and you can resolve all the issues.
Follow the steps to remove the Tax rep if you want online:
Hello Tomas! Thank you for your valuable input. My problem is I’m single, working and with the kids, and for years it was this firm who handled all aspects from GV applications to tax issues, I feel like I really could not afford the burn the bridge over this as I still need a lot of their help, moreover we currently actually reside outside Portugal. Is there a way for me to convince them, that withholding my own password is something they can’t do legally? I would really rather issue the receipts myself and have acces to my portal yet still let them handle all the rest. Thank you again.
I am trying to get the password from my rep but they tell me i have to pay them first. I don’t live in Portugal and i have no business / income in Portugal.
I will give them 2 weeks to provide it, then i will go to the Portuguese consulate here in the US. In my email thread i made it clear that legally services are not required and i hope it works out. Theres no way to log in without a passwo4d.
If they ask you to pay them for the past period then sure, I guess it’d best you pay them before parting ways.
That said, the tax reps recommended on this forum e.g. NIFOnline do share the original password straight away and not use it for extortion.
They did the work for me (i paid) in 2022. Today, when i asked for the password i was told i had to pay last year’s fee first (they never did any work for me after 2022).
Check the contract you have signed with them, it is a common practice in Portugal to renew the same contract every year if you do not give them a termination notice before the end of the term. If you go to PT embassy they wouldn’t be of much help as its a civil matter to begin with. It is highly likely you have to pay first and serve them a contract termination notice, then you can part ways. Have they provided the service or not that comes secondary as a service receiver you need to ask them for what you need them to do, unfortunately in this case the service provider has an upper hand at the moment.