DSTI cap (debt service ÷ income)
Tightened- Before (2018)
- 50%
- From 2026
- 45%
Art. 6.º n.º 1
2026 mortgage rules · Banco de Portugal
What changed in Portugal's 2026 mortgage rules, and how much can I borrow?
Portugal's 2026 mortgage-lending rules: the Banco de Portugal DSTI cap, the LTV ceilings, the maximum maturity and how much a buyer can actually borrow.
First published
The answer
7material changes take effect from 2026-08-01
From 2026-08-01, the Banco de Portugal macroprudential recommendation makes 7 material changes to Portugal's mortgage-lending rules — most visibly the DSTI cap moving from 50% to 45%. On the illustrative €500,000 Lisbon scenario below, those limits cap the loan at €450,000 (a €50,000 deposit), bound by the LTV ceiling.
Effective from 2026-08-01
General information, not financial or legal advice (DR-5). Lending limits are the bank's to apply; your actual offer depends on the lender's own assessment. For the transfer tax on the purchase itself, see the 2026 non-resident IMT explainer and the all-in buying-cost calculator.
What changed for 2026
Every old→new value below is transcribed from the Banco de Portugal recommendation with its article citation — none is typed into this page.
DSTI exception allowance (share of new lending above the cap, per semester)
Tightened- Before (2018)
- 15%
- From 2026
- 10%
Art. 6.º n.º 2
Average-maturity recommendation
Removed- Before (2018)
- recommended average-maturity limit
- From 2026
- —
Art. 7.º (preâmbulo)
Maximum loan maturity, borrowers aged ≤ 35
New fixed limit- Before (2018)
- —
- From 2026
- 40 years
Art. 7.º n.º 1 a)
Maximum loan maturity, borrowers aged > 35
New fixed limit- Before (2018)
- —
- From 2026
- 35 years
Art. 7.º n.º 1 b)
LTV ceiling — institution-owned (REO) properties
Removed- Before (2018)
- 100%
- From 2026
- —
Art. 5.º (preâmbulo)
Real-estate financial leasing
Excluded from scope- Before (2018)
- in scope
- From 2026
- excluded from scope
Art. 1.º n.º 1 f) (preâmbulo)
What stayed the same
Not everything moved. These limits carry over unchanged from the 2018 recommendation — stated so no reader infers a change that did not happen.
LTV ceiling — own & permanent home (HPP)
Art. 5.º n.º 1
90%
LTV ceiling — other purposes
Art. 5.º n.º 2
80%
How much can I borrow?
These three limits set your ceiling. The worked example below applies them to one illustrative Lisbon purchase — every figure computed by the affordability engine from the pinned limits, not hand-typed.
DSTI cap (debt service ÷ income)
45%
pinned to Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 5.º/6.º/7.º)
LTV ceiling (loan ÷ property value)
90%
pinned to Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 5.º/6.º/7.º)
Maximum loan maturity
40 years
pinned to Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 5.º/6.º/7.º)
The buyer's illustrative inputs
- Property price
- €500,000
- Gross monthly income
- €5,000
- Assumed interest rate
- 3.5%
- Requested term
- 30 years
Maximum you can borrow
€450,000
Bound by the LTV ceiling
Deposit you need
€50,000
Price − maximum loan
Max monthly payment
€2,250
At the DSTI cap on this income
How the engine got there
- 1.effective term: min(requested 30y, max 40y) = 30y (360 months)
- 2.DSTI: 0.45 × income 5000 = max monthly payment 2250.00
- 3.DSTI-capped loan (annuity PV @ 0.035/yr): 501063.72
- 4.LTV: 0.90 × price 500000 = 450000.00
- 5.binding = ltv: max loan 450000.00
- 6.required deposit: price − max loan = 50000.00
- DSTI-capped loan
- €501,063.72
- LTV-capped loan
- €450,000
- Effective term used
- 30 years
- Binding constraint
- ltv
Illustrative scenario inputs (a buyer's chosen income, price, assumed interest rate and term) — not a market or statutory figure. The DSTI cap, LTV ceiling and maximum maturity come from the BdP macroprudential recommendation with provenance.
Common questions
- What is the DSTI cap for a mortgage in Portugal in 2026?
- The Banco de Portugal macroprudential recommendation caps DSTI — the share of your documented income that goes to total debt service — at 45%, down from 50% under the 2018 recommendation (Art. 6.º n.º 1). Banks may still lend above the cap, but only up to 10% of the total amount they lend in a semester. These limits apply to solvency assessments from 2026-08-01. Source: Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 6.º n.º 1).
- Is a mortgage in Portugal different for non-residents?
- The Banco de Portugal macroprudential recommendation sets no limit based on the borrower's tax residence. Its LTV ceilings apply according to the purpose of the credit: up to 90% of the property value for an own and permanent home, and up to 80% for any other purpose (Art. 5.º n.º 2). A non-resident buying a holiday or investment property falls under the other-purposes ceiling — so the regulatory minimum deposit is the difference between the price and that 80% ceiling, not a residence-based band. The 45% DSTI cap and the maturity limits are set by income and age, not by residence, so they apply the same way to a non-resident borrower. Individual banks apply their own stricter lending policies for non-resident applicants; those are commercial terms, not regulatory limits, and vary by lender. These limits apply to solvency assessments from 2026-08-01. Source: Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 6.º n.º 1).
- What is the minimum deposit for a mortgage in Portugal?
- The recommendation caps how much a bank should lend against the property value, which sets the minimum deposit indirectly: at least 10% of the price for an own and permanent home, and at least 20% for any other purpose, including a second home or an investment property (Art. 5.º n.º 1). Purchase costs such as transfer tax and stamp duty are paid on top of that deposit. These limits apply to solvency assessments from 2026-08-01. Source: Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 6.º n.º 1).
- What is the maximum mortgage term in Portugal?
- The recommendation sets two maximum maturities by borrower age: 40 years for borrowers aged 35 or under, and 35 years for borrowers over 35 (Art. 7.º n.º 1 a)). Where a loan has more than one borrower, the age of the oldest one applies. The separate average-maturity recommendation that applied under the 2018 rules was removed. These limits apply to solvency assessments from 2026-08-01. Source: Banco de Portugal, Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Art. 6.º n.º 1).
How this is calculated
Your borrowing ceiling is the lower of two limits: the DSTI cap (a maximum share of your income that can go to debt service, converted to a loan at the assumed rate and term) and the LTV ceiling (a maximum share of the property value). The maximum loan is whichever binds first; the deposit is the price minus that loan. Every figure is computed by the affordability engine from the two pinned limits — none is hand-typed into this page.
Provenance
Where these mortgage rules come from
- Method
- Transcribed from BdP Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026 (Preâmbulo + Art. 5.º/6.º/7.º/11.º). Old→new deltas are stated by the 2026 preamble itself (DSTI 50%→45%, exceptions 15%→10%, 100% REO LTV eliminated, real-estate leasing excluded, average-maturity recommendation eliminated). Effective 2026-08-01 (Art. 11.º). Source capture: research/source-captures/bdp-recomendacao-1-2026.md.
- Licence
- © Banco de Portugal (official public regulatory document; cite, do not relicense)
- Effective from
- 2026-08-01
- Retrieved
- 2026-07-15T00:00:00Z
BdP 2026 mortgage-rules change narrative vs. the 2018 recommendation, effective for solvency assessments from 1 August 2026.
Ready to work out your own numbers?
The lending limits are one piece of the purchase. Use the all-in buying-cost calculator to model the whole cost — or speak with an advisor about your financing and eligibility.