Poorer families promised 80% of an electric car, Moscow consulate rejects nomads, nurseries advised against added sugar
Low-income families are promised 80% of an electric car costing up to €16,000; on Reddit people ask where to find the rest
On 28 October, during the parliamentary debate on the draft 2027 budget, the Minister for the Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, announced a new subsidy: the state will pay up to 80% of the price of an electric car for low-income families and expects it to cover about 20,000 cars. According to Jornal de Negócios, the car must cost no more than €16,000 before VAT; the family pays the rest and the VAT itself. The standard electric car grant, open to everyone, will also continue: €50 million is set aside for it in 2027. In June a €10 million round was used up within a few hours.
On Reddit the news was mostly met with mockery. The first question people asked was where a family with no money would find its share and the VAT, or even the whole amount if the car has to be paid for before the subsidy arrives.
“How will this work? A low-income family buys a €30,000 electric car and then applies for the help? Yeah, right.”
r/portugal28.10.2026
Others write that the money would be better spent on the metro, trains and housing, and suspect the subsidy will go to people whose income is low only on paper.
“Spend 50 million on cars ✅ Spend 48 million on the Lisbon metro circular line, which would make life easier for more than 100,000 people ❌”
r/portugal28.10.2026
“Shall we hold a contest for who earns the least? Or a contest for who earns the least on paper, because they get the rest cash in hand?”
r/portugal28.10.2026
Who will count as low-income and how to apply have not been announced yet. Earlier electric car grants were run by the Fundo Ambiental (Environmental Fund).
Moscow consulate turns down nomads working for Russian firms and, since autumn, sole traders in Georgia and Armenia
In a chat about the digital nomad visa, someone posted a refusal from the Portuguese consulate in Moscow. As far as they could tell from the translation, they were refused because they do IT development for a Russian company, which in the consulate's view would breach sanctions.
“They are refusing me because I'm involved in IT development for a Russian company, which would breach sanctions.”
digitalnomadportugal29.10.2026
Others in the chat replied that such refusals have become routine: since the start of 2026 the Moscow consulate has turned down almost everyone who works for a Russian employer. Since the end of September, they say, refusals have also gone to people registered as sole traders in Georgia or Armenia with clients in the UAE or the US: the refusals cite Article 5 of the regulation and mention moving money out of the country and circumventing sanctions. Nobody in the chat had seen an approval in such cases.
“Unfortunately, yes — since the new year Moscow slaps it on pretty much everyone with a Russian employer.”
digitalnomadportugal29.10.2026
“I've got three refusals in hand: Georgian sole trader and UAE, Armenian sole trader and UAE, Georgian and US — all with nonsense references to Article 5 of the regulation.”
digitalnomadportugal29.10.2026
Another applicant, who had applied in June, asked what to do: the consulate had sent a request for more documents with no attachment and no explanation of what to provide. The advice was to write to the consulate and ask them to send the attachment.
DGS advises no added sugar for under-twos; mothers argue whether to demand this of nurseries or bring food from home
In September the Direção-Geral da Saúde (Directorate-General of Health, DGS) issued its first food guidelines for nurseries and other settings for children under three. For food cooked at nurseries, it advises no added salt for children under one and no added sugar for children under two, and it advises against chocolate milk, rice drinks, sweetened porridge, popcorn and crisps. These are recommendations, not law.
On Reddit a mother described how she got her nursery to drop a sweetened milk porridge: for a whole year she brought her own, then filed a written complaint citing the WHO and the DGS. The porridge was replaced, but her relations with the staff and other parents went sour. Many replied that changing the food for everyone is not a parent's business: if you don't like the menu, bring your own or find another nursery.
“Wanting all the little ones to eat hummus and changing other people's children's diet does look like fanaticism, yes. So either give in or choose another school.”
r/MaternidadePT28.10.2026
Others took her side: nurseries should teach children to eat healthily, and the new DGS guidelines give parents an argument when talking to the head. A paediatrician who joined the discussion advises taking what works from the menu, bringing the rest from home and avoiding rows. But not every nursery allows food from home: at the one another mother described, it is banned because of children with allergies, though the staff agreed not to give her son sugar.
“There's a new DGS guide out, we'll cite it. But it should be law, not just a recommendation.”
r/MaternidadePT29.10.2026
“I'm a paediatrician, and nursery menus are a nightmare, you're absolutely right. I usually advise taking what you can from the menu and bringing the rest from home. You can make suggestions, but better without rows — for your own peace of mind.”
r/MaternidadePT28.10.2026
“At my son's nursery you can't bring your own food because there are children in the group with egg allergies, but when I asked them not to give him sugar, they agreed.”
r/MaternidadePT28.10.2026
Missing an IRS advance payment more likely means late-payment interest than a fine; the next deadline is 20 December
In a tax chat someone asked about an IRS (income tax) advance payment they had been charged last year: they didn't notice it and didn't pay it, but later filed their annual return and paid the tax due. Do they still owe anything? Advance payments (pagamentos por conta) are made by the self-employed working on recibos verdes (self-employed receipts); the tax office works out the amount itself from the return for the year before last.
The reply was that advance payments are offset when the return is filed: they appear in the Pagamentos por conta section. A missed payment, if it is still outstanding, can be found on the Portal das Finanças under Pagamentos em Falta. Advance payments can be reduced or skipped altogether if income has fallen significantly; according to the person who replied, a fine for missing one is unlikely — late-payment interest is more likely.
“These are advance payments, and they are offset when you file your return. You can adjust how much you pay yourself, or even not pay at all, depending on your current situation (say, a big drop in turnover). As far as I understand, fines are unlikely; late-payment interest is more likely.”
myptaxes29.10.2026
Under Article 102 of the IRS Code, advance payments are made three times a year: by 20 July, 20 September and 20 December. The next deadline is 20 December.
Assentar.pt works out living costs in 308 municipalities; Reddit says its housing and electricity figures are far too low
On Reddit a man who left Lisbon because of housing costs shared a free website, assentar.pt. It gathers official data for all 308 municipalities in Portugal — IMI (property tax), the share of IRS (income tax) the municipality refunds, water, electricity, housing, the travel pass, the distance to the nearest A&E, crime — and works out what a year of living there will cost a family.
The idea was praised, but there were many complaints about the figures: prices for buying and renting, people say, are about half of what listings show, and the electricity estimate should be two to three times higher.
“Had a quick look, I like the site. My only comment: the estimated house price is much lower than what I see for sale (about half).”
r/portugal28.10.2026
“For Porto, for example, it says €380 a year for electricity — that's about €30 a month on average... That's far too little. I'd say at least double (and more likely triple).”
r/portugal28.10.2026
Another point: a municipal average hides the differences within it — one municipality can contain some of the most expensive areas in the country as well as cheap ones. So the site can be used to compare taxes, water and distances, while people in the discussion checked housing prices against listings.
“The price for a municipality on its own often tells you little. For example, the municipality of Sesimbra has the parish of Santiago (Sesimbra itself) — one of the most expensive in the country. And it has the parish of Quinta do Conde — one of the cheapest on the south bank, and life there is completely different.”
r/portugal28.10.2026
At Portuguese birthday meals out everyone pays for themselves; presents usually go only to children, up to €20–30
In a chat for mothers of toddlers someone asked for advice: a local family had invited them to a birthday meal at a restaurant and told them the price per person in advance — what do people usually give here, and how much do they spend? Members married to Portuguese people gave much the same answer: at adults' birthdays everyone pays for themselves — that is their contribution to the party — and often no presents are given at all. Children do get presents, usually a toy or clothes costing up to €20–30.
“In my husband's circle it's not the done thing to give expensive presents. For children, something up to about €20–30 (toys, clothes). For adults, people may give nothing at all and just split the bill at the restaurant.”
pequenos_PT29.10.2026
“I'm married to a Portuguese man and have been to lots of birthdays of Portuguese friends and relatives; usually everyone pays for themselves and nobody gives anything. Presents are only for children's birthdays.”
pequenos_PT29.10.2026
If turning up empty-handed feels awkward, they suggest something small: a bottle of wine, the birthday person's favourite liqueur or a home fragrance. Opinions on flowers differed: some say they are not given even at weddings, while others do give bouquets, and the women receiving them are delighted.
“It was very hard for me to get my head around, but yes. They don't even give flowers at weddings.”
pequenos_PT29.10.2026
