The end of the paper headache

Running a business in Portugal is a dream. The lifestyle, the ocean, the community - it's all there. But there's a shadow that follows every solo entrepreneur: the complo.

In Portuguese, a complo is a plot - a tangle of rules, deadlines, and headache-inducing paperwork from the tax authority (Finanças) and Social Security. For years, the only options were to become an expert in things you never wanted to study, or to delegate everything and hope for the best - without really understanding what was being filed in your name.

We decided it was time to descodify.

Where the name comes from

Descodify comes from the Portuguese descodificar- to decode. It's what we do: decode the Portuguese bureaucracy so you don't have to. The rules don't change. We just make them readable.

The story behind this

I moved to Portugal from Sweden in 2023 and registered as a trabalhador independente (independent worker). I found an accountant, gave her my Portal das Finanças login - because everyone does - and let her handle my invoicing, VAT, and annual tax declaration.

For three years, the system worked. My accountant issued my Recibos Verdes, filed my quarterly VAT, and submitted my annual IRS declaration. I emailed her my hours and expenses each month. She handled the rest.

The problem wasn't that she did anything wrong. The problem was that I had no way to follow along. I didn't understand why certain expenses were included and others weren't. I couldn't read the declarations before they were submitted. My NIF was on every document, but I never really understood what was filed under it.

After three years, I decided to do my own administration. I wanted to understand what was actually being submitted in my name. And I found that the tools that existed assumed you already understood how things work here - the terminology, the workflows, the rules. They were built for Portuguese accountants, not for someone like me.

That's the gap. Thousands of remote workers and expats arrive in Portugal every year, bringing their clients and business with them. They need to issue invoices, track expenses, file VAT declarations, report Social Security contributions, and submit their annual IRS declaration - in a system they don't understand, in a language many of them don't speak. Most people just sign whatever their accountant hands them at tax time and hope it's right.

We started with the IRS declaration because it's the moment every year when this gap hurts the most. Our IRS filing toolreads your tax data, explains every field - what it means and what to do - and walks you through your declaration step by step - so you actually understand what you're submitting. It's free during early access.

What Descodify is

Descodify wasn't built to be another accounting system. It was built to sit between you and the Portuguese bureaucracy and make sure nothing falls through the cracks.

Being a solo entrepreneur should mean focusing on your craft - whether you're a developer, a designer, or a consultant - not spending your Sundays scanning receipts and worrying about recibos verdes.

The paperwork runs itself

Upload a photo of a receipt, and Descodify turns it into a compliant expense - categorized, with the correct VAT treatment, ready for your next declaration. Certified invoicing, quarterly declarations, Social Security - handled before you think about them.

Your data, your control

Whether you handle your own admin or work with an accountant, you see everything and understand everything. If an expense gets excluded, you see why. If a declaration is ready to submit, you review it first. If your accountant handles the filing, you still see exactly what was filed.

Step-by-step compliance

While you're providing services to your clients, Descodify is in the background making sure every VAT report and Social Security trigger is handled before you even think about it. Certified invoicing, automatic VAT calculations, expense tracking, quarterly declarations - all taken care of.

Is Descodify for you?

Descodify is built for solo entrepreneurs in Portugal at any stage of the journey:

Planning your move to Portugal.You don't have a NIFyet, haven't registered any activity, and you're trying to understand what the process looks like. Descodify helps you see the full picture before you arrive - what you'll need to set up, what invoicing looks like, and what your tax obligations will be.

Just arrived and got your NIF.You have a tax number but haven't opened your activity yet. You're figuring out which tax category to register under, whether you need VAT exemption, and what your first steps should be. Descodify walks you through what each decision means so you set things up correctly from the start.

Activity registered, ready to work.You've opened your activity and need to start issuing invoices and staying compliant. This is where Descodify does the heavy lifting - certified invoicing, automatic VAT calculations, expense tracking, and Social Security reporting. You focus on your clients, Descodify handles the admin.

Already established, want better control. You've been working in Portugal for a while, maybe with an accountant handling everything. You want to understand what's being submitted in your name - or take over the admin yourself. Descodify gives you full visibility. You can invite your accountant to collaborate, or run everything on your own. Either way, you see every invoice, every declaration, every number before it goes to the tax authority.

You can use Descodify alongside your accountant or on your own. Either way, you see everything. You understand what's being done. And you're the one who approves it before it goes to the tax authority.

Your NIF is your responsibility, but it shouldn't be your burden. We built Descodify so that every independent worker in Portugal can see exactly what's being filed, understand why, and approve it before it goes to the tax authority.

- Mikael Hammarin, founder. LinkedIn