Portugal answers, taxes
Will I lose my Social Security if I move to Portugal?
Moving abroad does not cancel a benefit you have earned. The rules that do change are about work, health cover and tax.
What the Social Security Administration says
Its publication on payments outside the United States, in the April 2026 edition, states that a US citizen may continue to receive payments abroad while eligible and in a country where it can send them. The countries it names as restricted are Cuba and North Korea, under Treasury sanctions, and seven former Soviet republics: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Portugal is in neither list. You count as outside the United States once you have been away for 30 days in a row. Non citizens have extra conditions to meet, so check your own case if you hold a green card and not a passport.
What changes when you live in Portugal
| Topic | What happens |
|---|---|
| Monthly retirement, disability or survivor payment | Continues for an eligible US citizen |
| Working before full retirement age | Benefits are withheld for each month you work more than 45 hours abroad in work not subject to US Social Security tax |
| Medicare | Usually does not cover health care outside the United States, and you pay the full cost in most cases |
| US income tax | Up to 85 percent of benefits can be taxable, wherever you live |
| Contributions on work in Portugal | The totalization agreement, in force since 1 August 1989, means the same work is covered by one system only |
Health cover is the real loss
Medicare.gov is plain about it: outside a few narrow emergency exceptions it does not pay for care abroad, and its drug plans do not cover prescriptions bought outside the United States. Plan on Portuguese cover, public or private, from your first day. Our healthcare guide explains how access to the public system works for residents.
If you have worked in both countries
The agreement between the two countries lets periods of coverage in each be combined, so someone short of the normal requirement may still qualify for a partial US or Portuguese benefit.
The tax question is separate
Keeping the payment does not settle who taxes it. The treaty lets the United States tax the benefits it pays, and whether Portugal may also tax them is disputed among advisers: see does Portugal tax US Social Security benefits and does Portugal have a tax treaty with the US.
Tell the Social Security Administration your new address before you leave and confirm how you will be paid. For a disability benefit, a non citizen spouse or a survivor claim, ask the agency directly, because the rules for those cases are narrower than the general one above.
Sources
- US Social Security Administration, Your Payments While You Are Outside the United States, publication 05-10137, April 2026 edition, read in the Internet Archive capture of 10 September 2026 because ssa.gov refuses automated requests (citizens may continue to receive payments abroad, restricted countries, 30 day rule, foreign work test at 45 hours, up to 85 percent of benefits taxable, Medicare), accessed .
- US Social Security Administration, POMS RS 02650.001 and RS 02650.040 (Treasury restrictions on Cuba and North Korea; Social Security restricted countries), accessed .
- US Social Security Administration, POMS RS 02610.001 (the alien nonpayment provisions do not apply to US citizens), accessed .
- Medicare.gov, travel outside the US (Medicare usually does not cover health care outside the United States, you pay all costs in most cases, drug plans do not cover prescriptions bought abroad), accessed .
- US Social Security Administration, POMS GN 01727.001, overview of the totalization agreement with Portugal (effective 1 August 1989, removes dual coverage, allows partial benefits on combined coverage), accessed .
- US Internal Revenue Service, United States and Portugal income tax convention, article 20(1)(b) (social security benefits paid by one country may be taxed by that country), accessed .
Facts in this answer last verified .
Read the full guide
- Portugal income tax for digital nomads in 2026: tax residency, the IRS brackets and what you actually pay
Digital nomads pay Portuguese tax once resident. The 183 day and habitual home tests, the 2026 IRS brackets, D8 and IFICI facts, and worked take home examples.