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ThonRetire

Head to head · verified July 2026

Portugal vs Spain

Spain scores 1 point higher on our balanced view — but that gap is small enough that your own priorities can flip it. The breakdowns below show exactly where each one earns and loses.

Everyday street scene in Portugal

PortugalPortugal

Western Europe

72/100

Portugal remains the poster child of retiring to Europe — top-tier healthcare, genuinely safe, and the D7 visa asks for only €920 a month. But the tax story flipped: the new IFICI regime excludes pensions, so retirees pay the full 13–48% progressive rates, and the 2026 reform stretched citizenship from five years to ten. Carta Social lists ERPI residential structures for older people — searchable by type and place, not a priced nursing-home table. Go for the life, not for the tax.

Full Portugal guide
Everyday street scene in Spain

SpainSpain

Western Europe

73/100

Spain is simply the best place on this list to live — infrastructure, healthcare, food, the largest expat scene in Europe — and it makes you pay for it: the Non-Lucrative visa forbids work, pensions face the full 19–47% progressive scale, and 183 days locks in tax residency. Residential care sits under Ley 39/2006; licensing lists sit with the Autonomous Communities — no single national searchable register was opened. Madrid and Andalusia soften the blow with no wealth tax and 99% inheritance relief.

Full Spain guide

Side by side

Portugal compared with Spain
CriterionPortugalSpain
Visa & Residency
Retirement visaD7 (Passive Income) verifyingNon-Lucrative verifying
Minimum ageNone (18+) verifyingNone verifying
Min income / assets€920/mo (~$1,000) verifying€2,400/mo (IPREM ×4) verifying
Visa processing time~60d visa; 6–9 mo to card1–3 mo at consulate
Path to permanent residency5 yrs verifying5 yrs verifying
Path to citizenship10 yrs (2026 reform — was 5) verifying10 yrs + tests; must renounce AU citizenship verifying
Tax
Tax-residency threshold183 days or habitual home183 days (or spouse/economic centre)
Tax on foreign pension13–48% verifying19–47% verifying
Capital gains tax28% shares — worldwide gains verifying19–30% on foreign gains (30% above €300k) verifying
Inheritance / estate taxNo inheritance tax (10% stamp exempt for kin)Regional + forced heirship
Annual property taxIMI 0.3–0.45% + AIMI >€600k verifyingIBI ~0.4–1.1% of low cadastral value verifying
Finance & Property
Foreign property ownershipYesYes
Deposit / bond required~€11k (12-mo income) in PT bank verifyingNone — €28,800 in bank acceptable verifying
Forced-heirship rulesForced heirship; will can elect AU lawForced heirship — but AU law electable by will (Brussels IV)
Cost to establish residency~€2–5k legal + fees verifying~$1.5–4k incl. lawyer verifying
Living
Cost of living26002500
Healthcare quality99
Safety8.58.2
Logistics
Flight time from Australia2424
Health insurance requiredYes verifyingYes — full private policy, no copays verifying
Visa renewal ease2 yrs then 3 — AIMA backlogs verifying1+2+2 yrs; renewal proves >183 days → tax resident verifying
Provision for dependentsYes — +50% spouse income verifyingYes — +€7,200/yr per dependent verifying

Showing the open fields. 17 more criteria — tax-residency day counts, capital gains, forced heirship, setup costs and processing times — need a free Thon account. Sign in to see the full table.

Why Portugal scores 72

72/100

Why this number

Every point is accounted for. Nothing is hidden in a weighting you cannot see.

  1. Base country quality74Portugal scores 74/100 before anything about you is applied — visa system, tax regime, healthcare, safety and property rights.
  2. Australian passport-2Worse than average for Australian retirees: Pension tax perk faded; long flight from AU
  3. Best fit for you72A decision aid, not a prediction. Two people with the same passport can rank these differently — that is the point of showing the working.

Why Spain scores 73

73/100

Why this number

Every point is accounted for. Nothing is hidden in a weighting you cannot see.

  1. Base country quality75Spain scores 75/100 before anything about you is applied — visa system, tax regime, healthcare, safety and property rights.
  2. Australian passport-2Worse than average for Australian retirees: Tax can bite; long flight
  3. Best fit for you73A decision aid, not a prediction. Two people with the same passport can rank these differently — that is the point of showing the working.