Tax breaks for foreign residents in Portugal are “no longer justified”, the prime minister, Antonio Costa, has declared, promising to close the scheme for new applicants in 2024 after it stoked housing prices in one of western Europe’s poorest nations.
Launched in 2009, the scheme allows people who become residents by spending more than 183 days a year in the country to benefit from a special 20% tax rate on Portuguese-sourced income derived from “high value-added activities“”, such as doctors and university teachers.
Costa told CNN Portugal late on Monday the scheme had “inflated the housing market”, calling it a “fiscal injustice that is no longer justified”.
The announcement came two days after thousands of people took to the streets of Lisbon and other cities across Portugal to protest against soaring rents and house prices stoked by growing gentrification and record tourism.
Government data show more than 50% of workers earned less than €1,000 (£866) a month last year, and a 65% increase in Lisbon rents since the start of the tourism boom in 2015 has made flats unaffordable for many.
Critics say measures announced by the government earlier this year that include curbs on Airbnb short-term rentals and changes to the country’s golden visa scheme were not enough to tame the crisis, which has also been exacerbated by a chronic shortage of affordable housing.
The original article contains 327 words, the summary contains 225 words. Saved 31%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Tax breaks for foreign residents in Portugal are “no longer justified”, the prime minister, Antonio Costa, has declared, promising to close the scheme for new applicants in 2024 after it stoked housing prices in one of western Europe’s poorest nations.
Launched in 2009, the scheme allows people who become residents by spending more than 183 days a year in the country to benefit from a special 20% tax rate on Portuguese-sourced income derived from “high value-added activities“”, such as doctors and university teachers.
Costa told CNN Portugal late on Monday the scheme had “inflated the housing market”, calling it a “fiscal injustice that is no longer justified”.
The announcement came two days after thousands of people took to the streets of Lisbon and other cities across Portugal to protest against soaring rents and house prices stoked by growing gentrification and record tourism.
Government data show more than 50% of workers earned less than €1,000 (£866) a month last year, and a 65% increase in Lisbon rents since the start of the tourism boom in 2015 has made flats unaffordable for many.
Critics say measures announced by the government earlier this year that include curbs on Airbnb short-term rentals and changes to the country’s golden visa scheme were not enough to tame the crisis, which has also been exacerbated by a chronic shortage of affordable housing.
The original article contains 327 words, the summary contains 225 words. Saved 31%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!