Buying & Selling a Car in Portugal

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Buying & Selling a Car in Portugal

The Government Traffic Department (Direcção Geral de Viação, DGV) deals with all aspects of car ownership, registration and licensing.

A civil registry office - the Directorate General of Registry and Notary, Department of Automobile Registration (Direcção-Geral dos Registos e do Notariado, Gabinete de Apoio ao Registo Automóvel, DGRN) - provides a single place for citizens to take care of many administrative matters, including vehicle registration.

• To find a local DGRN office: Click here
• See AngloINFO INFOrmation page on Registering a Vehicle in Portugal for more details

Note that nearly all the websites and documentation needed are in Portuguese. For those who don't speak Portuguese, staff at the Citizens Shops (Lojas do Cidadão) can help with all matters concerning vehicles and registration.

• For a list of the local Citizens Shops: Click here

Buying a New Car

Dealerships selling new cars take care of the registration of the vehicle on behalf of the buyer. Dealerships also often offer insurance deals (it is a legal requirement for all vehicles to have at least third party car insurance).

• See AngloINFO INFOrmation page on Vehicle Insurance in Portugal

Buying and Selling a Second Hand Car

Buying a second hand or used car (de segunda maõ/usado) in Portugal is generally more expensive than in other European Union countries. There are several reasons for this, including the fact that depreciation is slower and higher taxes on purchases means that new cars tend to hold their value better than they do in other countries.

A foreigner may buy a Portuguese-registered car in Portugal provided they have at least one of the following documents:

• An official Residence Permit (Cartão de Residência) or
• Proof that they are a Portuguese home owner (by showing title deeds) or
• A rental contract for a minimum duration of one year

Where to find a second hand car

Used cars for sale are available through dealerships, or may be advertised in automobile magazines, such as:

• Guia Automóvel (monthly)
• Revista Turbo (monthly)
• Auto-Hoje (weekly)
• Auto-Comércio (monthly)

Newspapers also carry motor classified advertisements:

• Auto Ocasião
• Correio da Manha
• Diário de Noticias

Online publications:

• Automóveis.pt
• Auto Geiza
• Automóveis-Barcos-Motos
• Motorpress Lisboa

When scrolling down online publications look for words like classificados (classifieds) and then automoveis or carros (cars). The site may specify new cars (novos) or second hand cars (usados).

There are also two Internet auction sites (Leilões) in the Lisbon area which deal in cars:

• Mega Leilões
• Miau (Portuguese ebay-type site)

Transfer of ownership

It is the seller's responsibility to provide the form for the registration of the change of ownership (Transferência de Propriedade or Contrato verbal de compra e venda). This Form 2 (Modelo 2), available from the local civil registry DGRN office, will contain information about the vehicle, the previous owner and the new owner. At the point of sale it should be completed and signed by both the buyer and the seller. 

It is the buyer's responsibility to register the change of ownership at the local DGRN vehicle registration department (Direcção-Geral dos Registos e do Notariado) within 30 days of purchase.

• To download Form 2 for registration of change of ownership: Click here
• To find the local civil registry DGRN office: Click here

The seller must provide

At the point of sale the seller should provide the following:

• The transfer of ownership form 2 for completion and signing
• The vehicle's registration papers:
  This will either be a DUA All-In-One Vehicle Document (Documento Único Automóvel) 
  or three documents:
  • vehicle registration document (Título de Registo de Propriedade)
  • log book (Livrete)
  • and licence plate certificate (Certificado de Matrícula)
• Proof of roadworthiness: a valid IPO (Inspecção Periódica Obrigatória) test certificate
• Green Technical Inspection card/certificate (Calendário das Inspecções Técnicas de Veículo, also called: Carta Inspecção Técnica Periódica) which details the vehicle's inspection history and when the next inspection is due
• Owner's Municipal Vehicle Tax Contribution (Imposto Municipal de Veiculo) documents or card as proof of paid up vehicle tax

• For full details of the Documento Único Automóvel or DUA: Click here (in Portuguese)

Registering the new owner

A foreign buyer will need to provide the following documents when registering the vehicle at the DGRN office:

• Proof of residence in Portugal as outlined above (proof by means of residence card, property title deeds or rental contract)
• Proof of vehicle roadworthiness (the IPO test certificate) provided by the seller 
• The vehicle registration papers provided by the seller 
• Proof of up-to-date payments of vehicle tax (Imposto Municipal de Veiculo) provided by the seller 
• A registration fee

Note: The registration of transfer of ownership of a used vehicle bought from a dealership will be handled by the dealer who should also provide a warranty and service history.

If, following the process above, the buyer does not submit the change of ownership documents to the DGRN vehicle registration department, responsibility for all fines or accidents involving the vehicle remain the responsibility of the seller. It is strongly advised to confirm that the buyer has completed the transfer process.

Further Information

• AngloINFO INFOrmation Page on Registering a Vehicle in Portugal
• AngloINFO INFOrmation Page on Vehicle Insurance in Portugal
• AngloINFO INFOrmation Page on Accidents in Portugal
• AngloINFO INFOrmation Page on Vehicle Roadworthiness in Portugal