Rent Arrears Letters for Portugal (2026): 3 Free Templates with English Explanation

If your tenant in Portugal is not paying rent, the correct first move is a registered letter. Below you will find three ready to use letter templates (each one is called a "minuta" in Portuguese): a friendly first reminder, a formal demand with a legal deadline, and a pre-action letter terminating the lease. They are free: copy, fill in your details and send.

Important: the letters must be sent in Portuguese. They are formal legal notices to a tenant in Portugal, and Portuguese is the language courts and tenants expect. Each template below is in Portuguese exactly as it should be sent, followed by a paragraph by paragraph explanation in English so you know precisely what you are signing.

All three must go by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt, known in Portugal as "carta registada com aviso de rececao" (AR), sent through CTT, the Portuguese postal service. That is what gives you proof of delivery.

Prefer a letter filled in, personalized and posted through CTT for you? Send your letter for 14.99 EUR →

Template 1, First Reminder (friendly)

What this letter says, paragraph by paragraph

• "Assunto: Renda em atraso": the subject line, "Subject: Rent in arrears", followed by the month or months owed.
• First paragraph ("Na qualidade de senhorio..."): you identify yourself as the landlord of the property at the stated address, refer to the lease signed on the stated date, and inform the tenant that, to date, payment of the rent for the listed month or months has not been received, stating the total amount owed.
• "Solicito que proceda à regularização...": politely asks the tenant to settle the amount as soon as possible by bank transfer to your IBAN.
• "Aguardo a normalização...": says you await the situation being resolved and remain available for any clarification. This keeps the tone cooperative.
• Closing: "Com os melhores cumprimentos" means "Best regards", followed by your name, NIF (Portuguese tax number) and contact.

Template 2, Formal Demand with Legal Deadline

What this letter says, paragraph by paragraph

• "Assunto: Interpelação por falta de pagamento de renda": the subject line, "Subject: Formal demand for non-payment of rent". "Interpelação" is the legal term for a formal demand.
• First paragraph ("Conforme contrato de arrendamento..."): identifies the lease by date and property address, and states which months' rents are owed and the total amount.
• The demand paragraph ("Pelo presente, nos termos do artigo 1083.º..."): this is the core of the letter. Invoking article 1083 and following of the Portuguese Civil Code, you formally demand full payment of the arrears, plus any late payment interest, within a non-extendable deadline of 8 (eight) days from receipt of the letter, by bank transfer to your IBAN.
• The warning paragraph ("Caso não seja efetuado o pagamento..."): warns that if payment is not made within the deadline, you reserve the right to terminate the lease and pursue the legal remedies provided by the NRAU (Novo Regime do Arrendamento Urbano, Portugal's urban lease law).
• Closing: "Sem outro assunto" is a formal closing meaning "Without further matters", followed by your name, NIF and contact.

Template 3, Pre-action Letter (lease termination)

What this letter says, paragraph by paragraph

• "Assunto: Resolução do contrato de arrendamento por falta de pagamento": the subject line, "Subject: Termination of the lease agreement for non-payment".
• First paragraph ("Conforme comunicações anteriores..."): refers to your previous notices, in particular the registered letter of the stated date, and records that the tenant has still not paid the rents for the listed months, in the stated total amount, now more than three months in arrears. Three months of arrears is the legal threshold for termination.
• The termination paragraph ("Nos termos do n.º 3 do artigo 1083.º..."): under article 1083(3) of the Civil Code, you formally communicate the termination ("resolução") of the lease for the property at the stated address, with immediate effect.
• The cure period paragraph ("Nos termos do artigo 1084.º n.º 3..."): under article 1084(3) of the Civil Code, the tenant has one month from receipt of the letter to cure the default by paying everything owed plus 20% as compensation (article 1041 of the Civil Code). If that month passes without payment, the termination becomes definitive and you will start eviction proceedings at the BAS (Balcão do Arrendatário e do Senhorio, Portugal's landlord and tenant desk) without further notice.
• "O valor em dívida continua a acrescer...": notes that the debt keeps growing until the keys are actually returned.
• Closing: formal closing, your name, NIF and contact.

Filling in the fields

The highlighted fields in square brackets are placeholders you must replace before sending:

• [Cidade] and [Data]: the city where you write the letter and today's date
• [Nome do inquilino]: the tenant's full name as it appears in the lease
• [Morada completa]: the full address of the rented property
• [Data do contrato]: the date the lease agreement was signed
• [Mês(es) em falta] / [Meses em falta]: the month or months of unpaid rent
• [Valor total em dívida] / [Valor total]: the total amount owed in euros
• [IBAN]: the bank account where the tenant should pay
• [Data da carta anterior] (Template 3 only): the date of your previous registered letter
• [Nome do senhorio], [NIF], [Contacto]: your name, your NIF (Portuguese tax number) and a contact

Not sure when a registered letter is mandatory? Read the full article →  |  Tenant more than 3 months behind? See the step by step guide →

How to send the registered letter

You have two options:

1. In person at a CTT post office. Print the letter, sign it, go to a CTT branch and ask for "carta registada com aviso de rececao". Cost: around 3 to 4 EUR. Time: the trip plus the queue. Not practical if you live abroad.
2. Online in 5 minutes. Use our service. We prepare the letter with your details, you handle the signature (digital or photo; Portugal's CMD, the Chave Movel Digital or official mobile digital key, can be used to sign remotely) and we post it through CTT. 14.99 EUR without leaving home, from anywhere in the world.