Can I use Stripe / Wise / Revolut for foreign client payments?

Yes. Stripe, Wise and Revolut are commonly used by Portuguese freelancers and Lda companies for foreign client payments. Stripe handles cards and ACH. Wise gives you local account numbers in USD, GBP, EUR — useful for receiving from US ACH or UK Faster Payments. Revolut Business offers similar multi-currency. The Portuguese tax invoice must still be issued via certified software — Stripe/Wise are payment rails, not invoicing tools.

What information do I need from a foreign client for a compliant invoice?

EU business: company legal name, full address, EU VAT ID (validated on VIES). Non-EU business: legal name, address, country tax ID where available. Individual (B2C): full name and address. The VAT ID is critical for EU B2B — without it, you must charge Portuguese VAT (no reverse-charge possible) which makes you uncompetitive vs locally-VAT-registered suppliers.

Are e-signatures required on invoices to foreign clients?

Portuguese certified invoicing software auto-generates a digital signature (SAF-T hash chain) for every invoice — this is mandatory. Manual signatures are not required. The QR code on the invoice contains the signature data and is verifiable by AT. The customer receives a normal PDF and does not need any special signature beyond the embedded QR code.

What's the Recapitulative Statement (VIES Return) for EU B2B?

When you issue invoices with reverse-charge to EU B2B clients, you must file a monthly Recapitulative Statement (Declaração Recapitulativa) with AT, listing total invoiced amounts per customer's VAT ID. AT cross-checks these with the customer's home country VIES filings to verify reverse-charge is being correctly applied. Certified software auto-generates this filing. Penalty for missed submission: EUR 100-1,000.

How to Invoice Clients Abroad from Portugal 2026 | Step-by-Step

How to Invoice Clients Abroad from Portugal — 2026 Practical Guide

By Hugo Velez Ribeiro, Certified Accountant (OCC nº 64356) since 2000 · Updated April 2026

Invoicing foreign clients from Portugal involves 4 distinct VAT scenarios: EU B2B (reverse-charge, 0% VAT, VIES-validated), EU B2C digital (OSS at customer-country rate above EUR 10k threshold), non-EU B2B (out-of-scope, 0% VAT), and non-EU B2C (typically 0% export of services). All invoices must be issued via AT-certified software (Moloni, Sage, PHC, FacturaPlus, etc.) with mandatory QR code + ATCUD. Currency is flexible (any currency with EUR equivalent at AT rate). Payment platforms — Stripe, Wise, Revolut — are widely used; SEPA for EU.

📅 Book a free 30-min invoicing setup call →

The 4 VAT scenarios — quick reference

Client type	VAT treatment	Rate	Invoice note
EU B2B (with valid VAT ID)	Reverse-charge	0%	"VAT reverse-charge — Article 196 of Directive 2006/112/EC"
EU B2C digital, < EUR 10k cross-border	Portuguese VAT	23% (mainland)	Standard PT VAT line
EU B2C digital, ≥ EUR 10k cross-border	OSS — customer-country VAT	Customer country rate	"Subject to OSS regime — VAT charged at customer-country rate"
EU B2C non-digital services	Portuguese VAT	23%	Standard PT VAT line
Non-EU B2B services	Out of scope (export)	0%	"Out of scope — export of services to non-EU"
Non-EU B2C services	Out of scope (export)	0%	"Out of scope — export of services to non-EU"
Goods exported outside EU	Exempt	0%	"VAT exempt — Article 14 CIVA, export"
Goods sold to EU B2B (intra-EU supply)	Exempt	0%	"VAT exempt — Article 14 RITI, intra-EU supply"

Step-by-step: issuing an invoice to a foreign client

Step 1 — Identify the client type and country

Before issuing the invoice, determine:

Is the client a business or individual?
Is the client in the EU or outside?
For EU B2B: do they have a valid VAT ID?
For B2C digital services: where is the customer's permanent address?

Step 2 — Validate EU VAT ID (for EU B2B)

For EU business clients, validate their VAT ID at vies.europa.eu. This is critical:

If VAT ID is valid → apply reverse-charge (0% PT VAT)
If VAT ID is invalid → must charge Portuguese VAT at 23%
Validation should be done at the time of invoice and saved as evidence (most certified software stores VIES validation logs automatically)

Penalty for incorrectly applying reverse-charge with invalid VAT ID: full Portuguese VAT plus interest, plus penalties up to 100% of the VAT.

Step 3 — Determine VAT treatment

Apply the matrix above. Common cases:

Software developer in Lisbon billing a US tech company: Non-EU B2B services → 0% VAT, out-of-scope. Invoice in USD or EUR.
Designer in Porto billing a German agency: EU B2B (with valid DE VAT ID) → 0% VAT, reverse-charge note.
SaaS company in Lisbon billing French consumers (B2C): EU B2C digital — OSS at FR 20% if above EUR 10k cross-border, else PT 23%.
Consultant in Lisbon billing a UK company: Post-Brexit UK is non-EU → 0% PT VAT, out-of-scope.

Step 4 — Issue the invoice via certified software

Required elements on every Portuguese invoice:

Issuer: name, NIF, address, "Sociedade por Quotas" or "Empresário Individual" indication
Client: name, address, country, VAT ID (where applicable)
Invoice number, document type (FT — fatura), document series, ATCUD code
Issue date, supply date
Description of goods or services
Quantity, unit price, total per line
VAT rate per line, VAT total
Total in original currency + EUR equivalent (if not EUR)
Reverse-charge / exemption legal references where applicable
Payment terms and method
QR code (mandatory since 2022)
Software certification number from AT

Step 5 — Send invoice and configure payment

Common payment configurations:

SEPA (for EU clients)

Provide IBAN of your Portuguese business bank account (Millennium BCP, ActivoBank, etc.)
Free or near-free for EU customers paying in EUR
Settles in 1 business day

Wise (multi-currency, popular with US/UK/BR clients)

Get local account numbers in USD (US ACH), GBP (UK Faster Payments), EUR, CAD, etc.
Customer pays domestically in their currency at zero/low cost
You convert to EUR when needed at mid-market rate + small fee
Account-level integration with Portuguese accounting via CSV import

Stripe (for cards and recurring billing)

Best for B2C SaaS, marketplaces, e-commerce
Card processing fee ~1.4% + EUR 0.25 per transaction (EU cards)
Settles to your Portuguese bank account or Wise account
Stripe Tax handles OSS automatically for B2C digital

Revolut Business

Multi-currency similar to Wise
Useful if you also use Revolut personally
Card-issuance and FX features

Step 6 — Record the invoice for VAT and accounting

Certified software automatically:

Records the invoice in your VAT ledger
Generates the monthly SAF-T file (submitted to AT by day 5 of next month)
Calculates the Recapitulative Statement for EU B2B (Declaração Recapitulativa, monthly)
Feeds the monthly or quarterly VAT return
For OSS: generates the quarterly OSS return

Currency handling — practical guidance

Portuguese invoices can be issued in any currency, but:

The VAT line (where applicable) must show EUR equivalent
The total must show EUR equivalent
Use the AT-published exchange rate of the invoice date (most certified software fetches this automatically)
For accounting, the EUR equivalent at invoice date is what matters; FX gains/losses on payment are accounted separately

Practical example: USD invoice from Lisbon to NYC

Invoice issued 15 April 2026: USD 5,000 for services
AT FX rate that day: 1 EUR = 1.08 USD → EUR 4,629.63
VAT: 0% (non-EU B2B services, out of scope)
Total invoice: USD 5,000 (EUR 4,629.63)
Customer pays via Wise on 28 April → EUR 4,650 received (FX rate moved)
Accounting: revenue EUR 4,629.63 (invoice date) + FX gain EUR 20.37 (payment date)

Common errors when invoicing foreign clients

❌ Charging Portuguese VAT to an EU B2B customer with valid VAT ID (should be reverse-charge)
❌ Reverse-charging without validating VAT ID on VIES (creates AT exposure)
❌ Forgetting to file the monthly Recapitulative Statement
❌ Using invoicing software not certified by AT (invalid invoices)
❌ Issuing in foreign currency without EUR equivalent line (non-compliant)
❌ Treating UK clients as EU B2B post-Brexit
❌ Mixing personal and business payment platforms (Wise personal vs Wise Business)
❌ Not registering for OSS when crossing the EUR 10k B2C digital threshold

Recommended toolkit for Portugal-based freelancers/Lda invoicing abroad

Invoicing software: Moloni (most popular for freelancers), InvoiceXpress, FacturaPlus, or PHC for larger Ldas
VIES validation: bookmark vies.europa.eu — also automated by most invoicing software
Multi-currency receiving: Wise Business (USD, GBP, EUR local accounts) + Revolut Business as backup
Card processing: Stripe (with Stripe Tax for OSS) — for B2C SaaS, e-commerce
Bank: Millennium BCP or ActivoBank — for EUR settlement and IBAN-based SEPA receipt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I charge VAT to a UK client when I'm in Portugal?

Post-Brexit UK is non-EU. B2B services: 0% PT VAT (UK customer reverse-charges domestically). B2C: 0% PT VAT (export of services to non-EU).

How do I handle currency on invoices?

Any currency allowed but EUR equivalent must appear (using AT FX rate of invoice date). Payment can be in original currency via Wise/Revolut.

Can I use Stripe / Wise / Revolut?

Yes — widely used. Note: Stripe/Wise are payment rails, not invoicing tools. The Portuguese invoice must still come from AT-certified software.

What information do I need from a foreign client?

EU business: legal name, address, EU VAT ID (validated on VIES). Non-EU: legal name, address. Individuals: full name and address.

Are e-signatures required?

No manual signature — certified software auto-generates digital signature embedded in QR code. Mandatory.

What's the Recapitulative Statement?

Monthly filing listing reverse-charged EU B2B invoices per customer VAT ID. Auto-generated by certified software. Required for VIES cross-checking.