Family law and inheritance: Portugal and Norway compared for a Norwegian family

Marriage, divorce and death are where a Norwegian in Portugal meets rules that look familiar and work differently: property is shared during the marriage rather than split at the end, divorce needs no separation year, and children's reserved shares have no cap. Both codes side by side, and where a will can choose.

Updated 19 September 2026Facts checked against official sources (listed at the end)

Marriage and what belongs to whom

	Portugal	Norway
Default regime	Community of acquisitions (comunhão de adquiridos, Civil Code art. 1717.º): what either spouse earns or buys during the marriage is common; what each owned before, or inherits, stays separate	Felleseie (Marriage Act § 58): each spouse owns and manages their own property during the marriage, but at divorce or death the couple’s total net wealth is divided equally
Keeping assets apart	a prenuptial agreement before a notary or the registry (convenção antenupcial) choosing separation or full community; separation is compulsory if a spouse is 60 or older or no preliminary process was run (art. 1720.º)	skjevdeling (§ 59): property brought into the marriage, inherited or received as a gift can be kept out of the division; særeie by marriage contract (§ 42)
Debts	common debts answer on common property; personal debts on personal property first	each spouse’s debts are deducted from their share before the split
Same-sex marriage	since 2010	since 2009

A Norwegian couple married in Norway who settle in Portugal keep their Norwegian regime for the marriage itself — for marriages since 29 January 2019, Portugal applies the EU matrimonial-property regulation, which lets spouses choose the law of a nationality or a residence and otherwise points to the first common habitual residence — but a Portuguese notary will ask which regime governs when they buy a house, and the answer decides whose signature is needed to sell it. The marriage registration page explains transcription of a Norwegian marriage into the Portuguese registry.

Acquisitions shared in Portugal by default; everything split equally at the end in Norway, minus what each brought in
Divorce by consent at the civil registry in Portugal; one year of separation before divorce in Norway
Two thirds reserved for spouse and children in Portugal; two thirds for children, capped at 15 G each, and 4 G minimum for the spouse in Norway
No inheritance tax in Norway since 2014; 10 % stamp duty in Portugal outside the direct line

Divorce

Portugal: spouses who agree divorce at the civil registry (conservatória), with the agreements on the family home, maintenance, pets and — where there are minor children — parental responsibilities, which the public prosecutor reviews; no court, no waiting period (Civil Code art. 1775.º). Without agreement the divorce goes to the family court on grounds that include one year of de facto separation. Norway: a spouse may ask the county governor for a separation at any time and for divorce after one year of separation (Marriage Act § 21), or after two years of living apart (§ 22); divorces go through the county governor unless children’s arrangements or property are disputed, when the district court decides. Mediation is compulsory in Norway for couples with children under 16 before separation or divorce (§ 26); in Portugal the registry process requires the parental agreement itself, checked by the public prosecutor.

Inheritance: who gets what

Portugal (Civil Code art. 2133.º and 2157.º–2159.º): the spouse and the children inherit first, in equal shares (the spouse never less than a quarter); the spouse, descendants and ascendants are forced heirs — together the spouse and children are entitled to two thirds of the estate, a spouse alone to half, and only the remaining third (the quota disponível) can be left by will to anyone. There is no inheritance tax; transfers of Portuguese assets carry 10 % stamp duty, from which spouse, descendants and ascendants are exempt.

Norway (Inheritance Act 2019): the spouse takes a quarter when there are children, with a minimum of 4 G (NOK 546 196 in 2026), half when there are only parents or siblings, with a minimum of 6 G, and everything otherwise (§ 8–9); the children’s forced share is two thirds of the estate but never more than 15 G (NOK 2 048 235) per child (§ 50) — a cap that lets wealthy Norwegians leave most of a large estate by will, something Portuguese law does not allow. The surviving spouse may keep the estate undivided (uskifte) for life. Norway abolished inheritance tax on 1 January 2014.

Choosing the law: the EU Succession Regulation

Regulation 650/2012 applies in Portugal (not in Norway) to deaths since 17 August 2015: the succession of a person habitually resident in Portugal is governed by Portuguese law unless the person chose the law of their nationality in a will (art. 22). A Norwegian resident in Portugal can therefore choose Norwegian law for the whole estate — capped forced shares, uskifte — and a Portuguese notary will apply it. Portuguese tax is unaffected: stamp duty follows the assets and the heirs, not the law chosen. Norway, for its part, applies its own conflict rules to Norwegian assets and residents; a Norwegian will drawn for Norwegian property remains valid there.

Children

Parental responsibility is joint after divorce in both countries. Maintenance decisions circulate under the 2007 Hague Child Support Convention, which both countries apply; cross-border custody under the 1996 Hague Convention and, for abduction, the 1980 Hague Convention. A Norwegian court’s custody order is recognised in Portugal without re-litigation on the merits.

Steps for a Norwegian family settling in Portugal

Marriage transcribed

Norwegian marriage certificate, apostilled and translated, transcribed at the civil registry; the regime noted.

Regime decided before buying

Who signs the deed and how the property is held depends on the regime; spouses may designate or change the applicable law by agreement under Regulation 2016/1103, art. 22.

Will

A Portuguese public will choosing Norwegian law where the capped forced shares or uskifte matter; a separate Norwegian will for Norwegian assets if desired, without contradiction.

Tax mapping

Portuguese assets: 10 % stamp duty outside the direct line. Norwegian assets: no inheritance tax, but capital gains on later sale.

Our family-law partners draft prenuptial agreements, wills under the Succession Regulation and divorce agreements for Norwegian residents, and handle the registry filings. Ask for a family-law consultation.

Questions

We married in Norway without a contract. What regime applies to a house we buy in Lisbon?

Your Norwegian regime — felleseie — continues to govern the marriage; the Portuguese registry records the house in both names as the deed states. At divorce a Norwegian court, or a Portuguese court applying Norwegian law, would divide the total net wealth equally. A written statement of the regime helps the notary and avoids later disputes.

Can I disinherit a child under Norwegian law while living in Portugal?

Not entirely: Norwegian law reserves two thirds up to 15 G per child. But with a will choosing Norwegian law, everything above that cap is free — whereas under Portuguese law the child's reserved share has no cap.

Does Portugal tax an inheritance from my parents in Norway?

No. Portuguese stamp duty applies to assets located in Portugal; Norwegian assets inherited by a Portuguese resident are outside it, and Norway has had no inheritance tax since 2014.

Sources and official references

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