Portugal Business structure
Sales consulting in Portugal: self-employed or a company?
Your job title alone does not determine the right structure. Consider how you work, ongoing costs and your plans to move before deciding. These are the points to prepare for your business: Sales consulting.
Let’s discuss your project
A few details to understand your business and the next step.
Bertrand Jayol receives your enquiry for an initial assessment. Referral to the partner is considered with your agreement. Privacy
01 / Your business
How you earn shapes the questions to ask
- Reviewing sales processes and customer portfolios.
- Preparing offers, sales material and outreach plans.
- Supporting sales teams and reviewing the pipeline.
Choosing a business structure
| Consideration | Self-employed activity | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Organisation | Business carried on in your name; identify the applicable registration steps. | A separate entity; define ownership and management. |
| Administration | Understand the regime applying to your work and the returns required. | Allow for incorporation and organised accounting with a certified accountant. |
| Decision | Consider simplicity and the way your business will operate. | Consider ownership, organisation and recurring costs. |
There is no universal answer based only on your profession or turnover. These points prepare a discussion, not a personalised tax calculation.
Make scope and attribution understandable
Take one market-development assignment and specify the outputs: customer interviews, target-account list, sales script or team training. If you negotiate, define what you can commit to on the client's behalf. A sales target should be distinguished from a revenue guarantee.
For variable fees, describe the baseline, qualifying sale, cancellations and measurement period. The agreement can then connect sales reports to your invoice. Gather a sample assignment, the approval workflow and software used. Have any specific intermediary activity reviewed before including it, particularly if the work goes beyond advising the customer's own sales team.
02 / Next steps for your project
Questions to prepare your application
- Do you advise the team or negotiate for the client?
- Is any part of your fee linked to completed sales?
- Which countries and customer types do the assignments target?
Portugal
Before you incorporate
Registering as self-employed and incorporating a company are different routes. The choice depends on how your business actually operates. A Portuguese company alone does not determine your tax residence or the treatment of every source of income.
Information to gather
- Your country of residence and where you actually work.
- A description of the services or products you sell.
- Whether your customers are businesses or individuals, and their countries.
- Any shareholders, existing business structure and your planned timing.
Sources and references
Content reviewed on