You are renting an apartment in Portugal and it is time to move on: a new job, a new city, or simply the end of your stay. Portuguese tenancy law gives tenants the right to walk away from a lease, but it attaches two conditions that catch many expats by surprise: a long notice period, and a strict formal channel. Your notice must reach the landlord as a carta registada com aviso de receção, a registered letter with a signed proof-of-delivery slip, the Portuguese version of certified mail with return receipt. This guide covers the general rules for tenants. If you are the landlord looking to end a tenancy, the rules are different: see our guide to terminating a lease as a landlord instead.
Your right to terminate: Article 1098 of the Civil Code
The tenant's right to end a residential lease early is set out in Article 1098 of the Portuguese Civil Code (Código Civil). The mechanism is called denúncia pelo arrendatário, the tenant's unilateral termination. You do not need the landlord's agreement and you do not need a reason. What you need is timing and form.
These are the general rules. Contracts can contain specific clauses, and older contracts or unusual situations may follow different regimes, so always check your own contract before relying on them:
- Fixed-term contract (prazo certo): you may terminate after one third of the initial term (or of the current renewal period) has elapsed. So in a standard 1-year contract, you can give notice from month 4 onwards.
- Notice period, contract of 1 year or more: at least 120 days before the date you want the contract to end.
- Notice period, contract shorter than 1 year: at least 60 days.
- Open-ended contract (duração indeterminada): you may terminate at any time with 120 days of notice, as a general rule.
The notice must go by registered letter, in Portuguese
Portuguese tenancy law (Article 9 of the NRAU, the urban lease framework) requires termination notices to follow a formal channel. In practice that means a registered letter with aviso de receção (AR), the slip the landlord signs on delivery, sent to the landlord's address stated in the contract. This is what gives you dated, signed proof that the notice was given and when.
WhatsApp messages, emails and phone calls do not meet the formal requirement and, just as importantly, leave you with nothing to show if the landlord later disputes the date or claims never to have been notified. Since the deposit and several months of rent can ride on that date, the registered letter is not bureaucratic decoration: it is your evidence.
The letter itself should be written in Portuguese. The contract and the legal framework are Portuguese, and a notice in Portuguese removes any argument about whether the communication was understood. It can be short: identify yourself, the contract and the property, state that you are exercising your right of termination under Article 1098 of the Civil Code, and give the exact date on which the contract will end.
How to count the deadline
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1
Pick your intended leaving date
The date the contract should end, typically the day you hand back the keys.
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2
Count backwards 120 days (or 60)
The notice must be received by the landlord at least 120 days before that date (60 days for contracts under one year). Count calendar days, not business days.
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3
Check the one-third rule
In a fixed-term contract, confirm that one third of the term (or of the current renewal) will have elapsed. In a 1-year contract, that is 4 months.
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4
Send the letter with margin
What counts is when the notice reaches the landlord, so do not send it on the last possible day. A few days of buffer for delivery keeps you safe.
Deposit and check-out inspection
Portuguese law does not set a fixed statutory deadline for returning the deposit (caução). In general terms, the landlord should return it after you hand back the keys and the property is confirmed to be in the agreed condition, deducting only justified amounts: damage beyond normal wear and tear, or sums you still owe. To protect yourself:
- Photograph or film the property on the day you leave, including meters.
- Ask for a short written handover note signed by both sides when you return the keys.
- Settle utilities and communicate the final meter readings to the suppliers.
- If the deposit is withheld without justification, a registered letter with AR formally demanding its return is the standard first step before any legal action.
Sending the registered letter without going to a post office
If you are already abroad, or simply cannot spend a morning at a CTT counter (CTT is the Portuguese post office), you can send the registered letter online. You upload your signed notice as a PDF, Word file or photo, enter the landlord's address, and the letter is printed and posted in Portugal through CTT as a registered letter with AR. It costs €14.99 all included (printing up to 10 pages, envelope, postage and the AR), is posted within 2 business days, and works from any country. The proof of sending and the CTT tracking number arrive by email.
Ready to send your termination notice?
Upload your letter and we print and post it through CTT as a registered letter with proof of delivery. €14.99 all included, posted within 2 business days.
Send my letter →Frequently asked questions
Can I just agree with my landlord to end the contract earlier?
Yes. A mutual agreement (revogação) can end the contract on any date both sides accept, with no notice period. Put it in writing and have both parties sign it. The rules in this guide apply when there is no agreement and you are terminating unilaterally.
What if my contract says something different from Article 1098?
Check it carefully. Some contractual clauses on tenant termination are valid, others conflict with mandatory rules and may not be enforceable. If significant money is at stake, a quick consultation with a Portuguese lawyer is worth it. Treat the numbers in this guide as the general regime, not as a substitute for reading your contract.
Does the 120-day letter commit me to leaving?
Yes. Once the termination takes effect on the date you stated, the contract ends. If your plans change, you would need the landlord's agreement to stay.
What address do I send the letter to?
The landlord's address indicated in the contract for communications. If the landlord has formally notified you of a new address since, use that one. Keep a copy of the letter you sent together with the proof of registration and the signed AR slip.
I am the landlord, not the tenant. Where are my rules?
Landlord-side termination follows different articles and much stricter grounds and deadlines. See our guide to terminating a lease in Portugal as a landlord.