Property Registration

What Is It?

Property Registration (Registo de Aquisição) is the legal act of recording the new ownership of a property at the Portuguese Land Registry (Conservatória do Registo Predial) after the purchase is completed.

Although ownership transfers at the moment of signing the Escritura, it is the registration that makes that ownership officially recognised and legally protected against third parties.

Why Is It Important?

Legal Protection of Ownership
Registration publicly confirms who the legal owner is. Until the property is registered in your name, third parties cannot reliably verify ownership.

In legal terms:

The Escritura transfers ownership.
The registration protects it.

Required for Future Transactions
Without updated registration, you may face problems when:

• selling the property later,

• applying for refinancing,

• registering a mortgage,

• or resolving legal disputes involving ownership.

Mortgage Requirement
If bank financing is involved, the lender ensures registration is completed immediately, since the mortgage (hipoteca) must also be registered.

How Is It Done?

In most modern transactions, registration is completed automatically:

• through the Casa Pronta service,

• by the Notary,

• or by the lawyer/solicitor handling the completion.

The buyer usually does not need to submit the request personally.

Where Is It Registered?

At the Land Registry Office (Conservatória do Registo Predial), which maintains Portugal’s official property ownership records.

Cost

The registration cost is typically included within the completion process.

Average cost:

• €225 to €300, depending on whether mortgage registration is also included.

When using the Casa Pronta service, registration fees are normally bundled with the overall completion cost.

When Does It Happen?

Registration is usually submitted immediately after the Escritura.

Processing times vary but ownership protection applies from the moment the registration request is filed.

Practical Tip

Many foreign buyers assume the process ends at the Escritura.
In reality, the transaction is only fully secured once registration is completed.

Always confirm that the updated Certidão Permanente Predial shows your name as the registered owner after completion.