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 explained: what the Banco de Portugal macroprudential recommendation changed versus 2018 (the DSTI cap, the exception allowance, the maximum loan maturity, the removed special regime for repossessed homes), what stayed the same (the LTV ceilings), and a worked example of how much a buyer can actually borrow — every figure bound to its primary source (Recomendação Macroprudencial n.º 1/2026).
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.
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.