The Portuguese Government will approve this week in the Council of Ministers two measures to support citizens: an extraordinary supplement for pensioners and an IRS reduction up to the 6th bracket. The two measures represent a joint investment of approximately 800 million euros, half for each purpose. The announcement was made by the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, in Parliament on September 8 and officially confirmed by the Executive.
In the case of pensions, an extraordinary supplement will be granted to pensioners with pensions up to 1,611.13 euros, paid in one lump sum in December together with the monthly pension. The measure is expected to cover more than two million pensioners and represent an expenditure close to 400 million euros. The Executive has not yet revealed the concrete brackets or specific amounts that each pensioner will receive, although previous supplements have used values of 100, 150, and 200 euros.
As for IRS, the reduction of rates up to the 6th bracket will have an estimated impact of an additional 400 million euros and cover more than two million households. The Government intends for the relief to be felt as early as November through a reduction in the withholdings applied to salary and Christmas bonus, with retroactive effects to January 2026. The new rates have not yet been disclosed.
There is an important difference in the legislative path of the two measures. The pension supplement will be implemented by the Government without the need for parliamentary approval, as it was already provided for in the State Budget for 2026. The alteration of general IRS rates, however, requires approval from the Assembly of the Republic, so the approval in the Council of Ministers is only an intermediate step.
