THE EYB COUNTRY GUIDES · Portugal
Separate agreed selling expenses, authority services and continuing occupation costs before estimating the amount you will receive.
Boat selling costs Portugal should be a transaction-specific budget, not a guessed percentage of the asking price. The Civil Code provides a default rule for contract expenses and scoped mandate rules for remuneration and reimbursement. DGRM publishes current official inspection charges, while its transfer service distinguishes a free request from possible local authority costs. This guide explains those verified facts and practical ways to build a clear net-proceeds calculation for the actual sale.
Ask who pays each cost, when it becomes payable and what evidence supports it. Keep a professional fee agreement separate from a quotation for repairs or marina services. Where the transaction raises tax, title or contractual uncertainty, obtain qualified advice rather than hiding a possible charge in an unexplained contingency. For anything this guide does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
Key facts at a glance
Civil Code Article 878 puts contract and ancillary expenses on the buyer unless the parties agree otherwise. (Current Civil Code text listing amendments through Law 29/2026 of 23 June 2026.)
Procuradoria-Geral Distrital de Lisboa – Official Civil Code text ·DGRM describes its own ownership-transfer service as free. (Current official service page; no revision date displayed.)
DGRM – Ownership-transfer service ·DGRM warns that additional local maritime-authority costs may apply to ownership transfer. (Current official service page; no revision date displayed.)
DGRM – Ownership-transfer service ·Civil Code Article 1158 presumes a mandate remunerated where it concerns acts the agent performs professionally. (Current Civil Code text listing amendments through Law 29/2026 of 23 June 2026.)
Procuradoria-Geral Distrital de Lisboa – Official prosecution-service legal database ·Annex III lists €280.20 per technician visit for initial or periodic recreational inspections of craft under twelve metres. (Order 12/DG/2026, dated 18 February 2026, effective 1 March 2026.)
DGRM – DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the off ·Section 1
Civil Code Article 878 puts contract and ancillary expenses on the buyer unless the parties agree otherwise. That is a default allocation rule, not a statement that every expense connected with marketing or maintaining the boat belongs to the buyer. As a practical recommendation, identify each proposed charge in the agreement and ask a qualified lawyer about an unclear category. Record any different allocation expressly so that a buyer and seller do not reach completion with incompatible assumptions about the same invoice.
Article 879 identifies payment of the price as an essential effect of sale. As a practical recommendation, distinguish that agreed price from deductions, reimbursements and authority charges in the completion statement. Show who receives each payment and what event permits it to be made. Do not assume that a broad net-price description supplies a complete allocation of fees. A clear statement should allow both parties to understand the purchase payment and the separate expenses without reconstructing them from informal messages.
DGRM describes its own ownership-transfer service as free but warns that additional local maritime-authority costs may apply. As a practical recommendation, obtain the complete current charge for the particular administrative route rather than assuming ownership change has no cost. Establish who submits the application and who pays any additional step. Keep the authority's answer with the cost schedule, especially if another registration action or a change to technical particulars accompanies the sale and may require a different procedure.
Broker tip: List each contract and authority expense with its payer and trigger. Confirm the complete ownership-transfer route, and get qualified advice where the default expense rule or a proposed deduction is unclear. Readers often go on to our guide on how much yacht broker commission is in Portugal.
Boat insurance and tax paperwork on a desk.
Default contract expenses
Section 2
Article 1158 presumes a mandate remunerated when it concerns acts the agent performs professionally. Where an onerous mandate has no agreed remuneration, the provision gives a fallback hierarchy involving professional tariffs, usages and equity. These are scoped mandate rules; they do not establish a universal yacht-broker commission percentage. As a practical recommendation, have a qualified adviser identify the legal character of the actual brokerage arrangement and agree the fee basis before instructing work instead of relying on a supposed Portuguese standard.
Article 1167 addresses the principal's duty to reimburse expenses that the agent reasonably considered indispensable within the mandate regime. As a practical recommendation, agree which third-party costs require approval, how the agent will document them and whether an advance is required. Separate the professional fee from photography, advertising, travel and other proposed expenses. Do not assume that a percentage quote includes all such items or that an unsuccessful sale automatically settles every reimbursement question without reference to the agreement and applicable rules.
Article 1161 requires an agent to account when the mandate ends or the principal demands it. As a practical recommendation, ask for a statement showing authorised expenses, payments received and proposed deductions before completion. Confirm whether quoted fees include applicable tax and what contractual event triggers payment. If more than one intermediary is involved, ask the adviser to explain the arrangements rather than inventing a split. Retain the signed instructions and supporting invoices so that the net-proceeds calculation follows the actual agreement.
Broker tip: Agree the fee basis, payment trigger, tax treatment and approval of additional expenses in writing. Request supporting invoices and an account, with the agreement's legal classification reviewed where needed. Our guide on boat valuation in Portugal covers a related point.
Port customs office at a harbour.
Professional mandate presumption
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Section 3
DGRM's recreational tariff lists initial or periodic inspections per technician visit at €280.20 for craft under twelve metres, €423.30 from twelve metres to under twenty-four metres, and €566.30 at least twenty-four metres long. These are the published official-service brackets. As a practical recommendation, confirm whether the boat needs that service and what attendance the authority will require. A tariff entry does not establish a private purchase-survey price or guarantee that every associated activity is included in the same charge.
The tariff lists €423.30 per technician visit for an extraordinary recreational inspection irrespective of those length brackets. As a practical recommendation, identify the inspection type and why it is needed before putting a figure in the selling budget. Ask the responsible authority about the full charge for the actual case, and obtain separate quotations for lifting or facility services. Do not choose the smallest tariff line simply because it appears near another inspection entry; the service and its scope must match the work required.
For other preparation costs, commission only work with a clear purpose as a practical recommendation. Ask whether a repair addresses a known defect, enables inspection or is a cosmetic choice, then obtain a written scope and quotation. Decide whether the seller will complete the work or disclose it for the buyer to assess. No official source here establishes that a particular repair recovers its full cost or that a maintenance percentage predicts the amount needed before sale. Keep unquoted work visible as unresolved rather than presenting a guessed total. No official fixed yacht-broker commission, typical sale duration, private survey average or nationwide berth cost was verified. Mandate rules require the actual arrangement to fall within that legal regime; they are not a declaration that every brokerage contract is a mandate. For these, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
Broker tip: Match the authority tariff to the actual inspection type and length bracket. Obtain separate lifting and repair quotations, and mark unquoted preparation work clearly instead of treating one service line as the total. A related question is answered in our guide on whether you pay VAT on a boat in Portugal.
Tablet showing a boat valuation beside a model yacht.
Short craft official inspection
Annex III lists €280.20 per technician visit for initial or periodic recreational inspections of craft under twelve metres. (Order 12/DG/2026, dated 18 February 2026, effective 1 March 2026.)
Source: DGRM – DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the offAnnex III lists €423.30 per technician visit for initial or periodic recreational inspections from twelve metres to under twenty-four metres. (Order 12/DG/2026, dated 18 February 2026, effective 1 March 2026.)
Source: DGRM – DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the offAnnex III lists €566.30 per technician visit for initial or periodic recreational inspections of craft at least twenty-four metres long. (Order 12/DG/2026, dated 18 February 2026, effective 1 March 2026.)
Source: DGRM – DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the offAnnex III lists €423.30 per technician visit for extraordinary recreational inspections, irrespective of the listed length brackets. (Order 12/DG/2026, dated 18 February 2026, effective 1 March 2026.)
Source: DGRM – DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the offSection 4
A berth remains a separate budget item while the boat is being marketed. As a scoped example, APL's published class IV rate for 10.01–12 metres with beam up to 3.30 metres is €25.55 daily before applicable VAT. This is a Lisbon tariff example, not a national marina average. As a practical recommendation, obtain the actual operator's current quotation for the intended occupation and ask how a sale or departure affects the arrangement before estimating the continuing cost.
The APL tariff changes class where either the length or beam limit is exceeded, and permanent prices concern allocated berths. Pontoon water and electricity are included in its occupation charge. As a practical recommendation, confirm what your own facility includes and which services are additional rather than copying a brochure total from another operator. Keep the permitted stay, charging period and departure arrangements in the sales file. Do not assume that an annual occupation payment means every subsequent use or service is free.
Prepare a net-proceeds worksheet as a practical recommendation, using the agreed sale price and actual costs rather than an invented typical selling duration. Show continuing occupation separately from professional remuneration, preparation work and authority charges. Indicate which costs are already paid and which remain contingent on a contractual event or a future stay. Review the worksheet when the plan changes, and ask a qualified tax adviser about transaction-specific liabilities. This guide supplies no universal sale-tax bill, nationwide berth average or guaranteed net receipt.
Broker tip: Use the actual operator's quotation and agreed departure plan for continuing occupation. Build net proceeds from documented costs, with unpaid, contingent and uncertain items clearly separated and updated when arrangements change. See also our guide on how to prepare a boat for sale in Portugal. Non-resident sellers should also read our guide on whether a non-resident can sell a boat in Portugal.
Boat registration at a marina office.
Published class IV example
Practical support
Peter Mattey is a yacht broker at European Yacht Brokers with a BA in Law. He is not a Portuguese lawyer: for Portuguese law and tax we refer you to a locally qualified adviser. What we can do is help you plan the sale, put the right questions to the other side and spot gaps in the paperwork before you commit.
If you are selling a boat in Portugal, tell us about the boat and where it is through the enquiry form on this page and a broker will reply. For anything this guide does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
The handover of a boat at the dock.
Your questions
No: Article 878 concerns contract and ancillary expenses and allows a contrary agreement. It is not a universal allocation of marketing, maintenance or professional fees. As a practical recommendation, identify each charge and payer expressly, then ask a qualified lawyer about an uncertain category before completion. Keep the allocation visible in the agreement and resulting completion statement. (Procuradoria-Geral Distrital de Lisboa)
No fixed yacht-broker percentage was verified in the official sources used. Article 1158 instead provides scoped rules for mandate remuneration and a fallback where no remuneration is agreed. As a practical recommendation, confirm the arrangement's legal character and agree the fee basis, trigger, applicable tax and additional expenses in writing before instruction, rather than assuming an undocumented industry rate. (Procuradoria-Geral Distrital de Lisboa)
No: DGRM describes its own service as free but warns that additional local maritime-authority costs may apply. As a practical recommendation, confirm the full route and current charges for the boat, including any separate registration or technical change. Agree who submits and pays for each step so the administrative budget reflects the actual transaction rather than one isolated free-service statement. (DGRM)
No: the tariff concerns defined DGRM inspection services per technician visit, with stated inspection types and length brackets. A private purchase condition inspection needs its own quotation and scope. As a practical recommendation, obtain separate figures for professional work, lifting and related attendance instead of treating the official line as the entire cost of checking or preparing the boat for sale. (DGRM)
No: the cited prices are published APL occupation charges for specified Lisbon facilities and classes. They do not establish every marina's rate or the time a boat will take to sell. As a practical recommendation, use the actual operator's quotation and planned stay in the net-proceeds calculation, with included services, applicable tax and departure conditions confirmed separately. (APL – Porto de Lisboa)
This guide only includes facts checked against official sources. For anything it does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information, and ask a locally qualified adviser to confirm the position for your own boat.
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Official Civil Code text: sale definition, allocation of contract costs and essential sale effects.
Official prosecution-service legal database: mandate definition, remuneration and principal/agent duties.
Ownership-transfer service: applicant, online submission, supporting documents and service-specific costs.
DGRM 2026 tariff, visually checked in the official PDF: Annex III recreational inspection and technical-information charges.
2026 berth classes, temporary and allocated-berth prices, utilities and supplementary services.
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