What is a virtual mailbox in Portugal?

A service that gives you a real Portuguese street address, receives your letters there, opens them under your written mandate, scans them and emails you the scan. You read your Portuguese mail from anywhere in the world.

How much does a virtual mailbox in Portugal cost?

From 9.99 euros per month with scanning included (Portugal Mailbox) up to 15 to 25 euros plus VAT for Lisbon virtual offices, which usually charge scanning separately at around 2.50 euros for the first page. International networks like Anytime Mailbox charge around 9.99 dollars per month plus per-item fees.

Is it legal for a service to open my mail in Portugal?

Yes, but only with your express written authorisation. Opening someone else's correspondence without consent is a criminal offence under article 194 of the Portuguese Penal Code, which is why serious services make you sign a reception and opening mandate and verify your identity.

Does CTT reexpedição scan my mail?

No. CTT reexpedição only forwards your mail to another physical address, in Portugal or abroad, for a fixed period. Nobody opens or scans anything, and international forwarding of every letter adds up quickly.

Best Virtual Mailbox Services in Portugal (2026, Compared)

You left Portugal, or you have not arrived yet, and the letters keep coming: the bank, Finanças, Segurança Social, the insurer, the condomínio. Someone has to receive them, and "ask a relative to open my mail" stops working fast. This guide compares every real option for receiving Portuguese mail while you live abroad, with prices and limits side by side.

Full disclosure Portugal Mailbox, one of the services compared below, is operated by our own group (Urtech, Unipessoal Lda, the company behind cartaregistada.pt). We built it precisely because of the gap this comparison shows. Judge the table, not our words, and check every competitor's site yourself: we link to all of them.

The comparison

Option	Monthly price	Scanning	Contract	Best for
Portugal Mailbox	€9.99, VAT incl.	Included: 5 letters/month, no per-page fees	Monthly, cancel anytime, 30-day money-back	Individuals abroad with regular Portuguese mail
Anytime Mailbox (Algarve)	~US$9.99 + fees	Paid per item and per page (~$0.25–0.50/page + handling)	Monthly	People who want a US-style app and an Algarve address
Lisbon virtual offices (e.g. LXoffice)	€15–24 + VAT	Extra: ~€2.50 first page + €0.80/page	Often 6–24 months	Companies needing a registered office / fiscal address
Tópico Disruptivo	€43–67	Included, incl. parcels	Quarterly to yearly	Digital nomads and businesses that also receive parcels
CTT reexpedição (official forwarding)	from ~€10	None: forwards physical mail only	Fixed periods	Temporary address changes inside Portugal
Asking family or friends	Free (in money)	Depends on their patience	Until the favour wears out	Very occasional mail, and very patient relatives

Prices taken from the providers' public websites in August 2026 and may change. Currency as displayed by each provider.

What actually matters when you choose

Scanning included vs paid per page. This is where the "cheap" options get expensive. A 6-page letter from Finanças costs nothing extra on an included plan, and several euros on per-page pricing. If you receive mail every month, per-page fees dominate the real cost.
Correspondence address vs fiscal address. Virtual offices sell something legally heavier: a registered office (sede social) or tax domicile, which is why they cost more and ask for longer contracts. If you just need your letters read, you do not need that product.
The legal side of opening mail. Opening someone else's correspondence without consent is a crime in Portugal (article 194 of the Penal Code). A serious service makes you sign an express written mandate and verifies your identity before activating anything. Treat any provider that skips this as a red flag.
Registered letters. The mail that matters most (banks, courts, Finanças deadlines) often arrives registered. Check the service signs for registered letters as your agent; forwarding-only options and reluctant relatives both struggle here.
What happens to originals. Ask how long they are stored, how they are destroyed, and what forwarding an original costs.

Our verdict, with the bias on the table

For an individual abroad who receives normal Portuguese correspondence, the comparison is not close: €9.99 all-in with scanning included beats $9.99-plus-fees and €15-plus-VAT-plus-per-page on every line that matters to a private person. That is the gap we built Portugal Mailbox to fill, so of course we recommend it: the honest framing is that nobody else was serving this exact need at this price.

Equally honest: if you need a company address or a tax domicile, Portugal Mailbox is deliberately not that product. Use a proper virtual office (LXoffice and similar) and pay their price, which reflects the legal obligations they take on. And if all you need is three months of forwarding inside Portugal while you move house, CTT reexpedição is the boring, correct answer.

Your Portuguese mail, in your inbox

A real Portuguese address, letters scanned to your email within 1 business day. €9.99/month, scans included, 30-day money-back guarantee.

Get your address →

Frequently asked questions

Is a virtual mailbox legal in Portugal?

Yes. The service receives and opens your mail as your agent, under an express written mandate you sign, which is what the law requires. Without that mandate, opening another person's correspondence is a criminal offence.

Can I use a virtual mailbox as my NIF address?

For correspondence-only services, no: tax domicile is a different legal product. Some virtual offices sell fiscal-address packages for companies; expect higher prices and identification requirements.

What about parcels?

Most correspondence services handle letters only. If you regularly receive parcels, you need a service that accepts them explicitly (and charges accordingly), or a parcel locker solution.

I still need to send registered letters to Portugal. Same problem?

The mirror one, and it is what this site does: cartaregistada.pt lets you send registered letters with proof of receipt through CTT from anywhere, without a printer or a post office visit.