VAT Exemption Codes in Portugal 2026, Complete Reference

Common exemption codes for solo entrepreneurs

When you issue an invoice at 0% VAT, you must include an exemption code and the corresponding legal text. These are the codes most freelancers encounter:

Portal code	SAF-T	Legal basis	When to use
122	M10	Art. 53.º CIVA	Small business exemption, revenue under €15,000.00/year
115	M40	Art. 6.º n.º 6 a) CIVA, a contrário	Reverse charge, B2B services to an EU customer who is a taxable person
090	M44	Art. 6.º CIVA, specific rules (n.º 7 onward)	Place of supply outside Portugal under one of the specific rules
113	M16	Art. 14.º RITI	Intra-community supply of goods to an EU business
063	M05	Art. 14.º CIVA	Export of goods outside the EU

How to choose the right code

The exemption code depends on three factors:

1. Your VAT regime: exempt under Art. 53, or standard regime?
2. Your customer: business or consumer? With or without a valid VAT number?
3. Your customer's location: Portugal, EU, or rest of world?

Use the VAT guide to answer these questions interactively and get the correct code.

Art. 53 exemption (122 / M10)

If your annual revenue is below €15,000.00, you can operate under the Article 53 exemption. You don't charge VAT and don't file quarterly VAT returns for domestic outbound work.

The code is not the same on every invoice, though. Art. 53.º only reaches operations that are taxable in Portugal in the first place, so a domestic invoice carries 122 / M10 while a B2B service to a taxable person in another EU country is outside Portuguese VAT altogether and carries 115 / M40. AT says so directly in ficha doutrinária n.º 12969: independentemente of the regime, that invoice takes the IVA - autoliquidação mention.

The invoice text reads: "IVA, regime de isenção, artigo 53.º do CIVA."

Reverse charge for EU B2B (115 / M40)

When you sell services to a business in another EU country that has a VIES-validated VAT number, you issue at 0% with code 115 / M40. The customer accounts for VAT in their own country (reverse charge mechanism).

In the normal VAT regime you must also file a quarterly recapitulative statement (declaração recapitulativa) declaring these transactions. Under the Article 53 exemption you no longer file it, for operations carried out from 1 July 2025 onward.

Services to non-EU customers

Services provided to businesses or consumers outside the EU are outside the scope of Portuguese VAT. No recapitulative statement needed for non-EU transactions.

Important: every 0% line needs a code

Portuguese invoicing law requires that every invoice line with 0% VAT includes the applicable exemption code and legal reference. Issuing a 0% invoice without an exemption code is a compliance violation.