Compare · Portugal vs Vietnam
Portugal vs Vietnam for Australians leaving home
Portugal and Vietnam run the same headline regime, worldwide tax, so the decision turns on the details underneath: what each one does to capital gains, dividends and the Australian income you keep.
The treaty position splits them: Vietnam has a full Australian tax treaty (tie-breaker plus withholding capped at 15% on unfranked dividends), while Portugal has none, no safety net if both countries claim you.
Vietnam is the cheaper place to live day to day, roughly 40% of Sydney's basket against Portugal's 65% (indicative, ex-rent), which can outweigh a thinner tax saving over a full household budget.
Personalise this, enter your numbers once and every figure below becomes yours: “your estimated income tax: $14,200”, not “0, 22%”. Open the Country Comparison tool →
| 2 destinations | PortugalPortugal | VietnamVietnam |
|---|---|---|
| Tax | ||
| Regime | worldwide, taxes worldwide income | worldwide, taxes worldwide income |
| Income tax on salary | Progressive 13, 48% plus solidarity surcharge above €80k. A €100k salary pays roughly 37% effective, Portugal is not a low-tax country for salaries. | Progressive 5, 35% on worldwide employment income; the 35% band starts around A$58k/year equivalent, high earners hit the top rate fast. |
| Capital gains | 28% flat on share gains (option to aggregate at progressive rates). Short-term gains on assets held <365 days must be aggregated at progressive rates for high earners. (28% typical) | Securities: 0.1% of gross sale proceeds (final), cheap if you win, painful if you sell at a loss. Private company stakes: 20% on the gain. Property: 2% of proceeds. (0% typical) |
| Dividends | 28% flat on dividends and interest, wherever sourced, with no AU treaty relief. | Flat 5% on dividends and bank interest, one of the lowest investment-income rates anywhere. |
| Interest | Taxed locally around 28% | Taxed locally around 5% |
| Crypto | Crypto held under 365 days is taxed at 28% on disposal; gains on crypto held longer than 365 days are exempt for individuals. Crypto-to-crypto swaps are generally not taxing events. Professional trading is business income at progressive rates. | Crypto sits in a legal grey zone: not recognised as an asset or payment means, with a regulatory framework legislated to take effect from 2026 (pilot exchanges, expected transaction taxes). Today, taxation of personal crypto gains is untested in practice. |
| Australia tax treaty | No, full 30% / 10% withholding, no tie-breaker | Yes, AU withholding capped at 15% dividends / 10% interest, tie-breaker available |
| Social security | Employees pay 11% social security; the self-employed pay ~21.4% on a discounted base. Not included in the calculation above, budget for it. | Compulsory social insurance applies to employees on Vietnamese labour contracts (foreigners included, ~10.5% employee side, capped); remote workers for foreign employers are outside it. |
| Visa | ||
| Best pathways |
|
|
| Visa ease | 7/10 | 4/10 |
| Family on visas | Dependants covered on main pathways | Dependants covered on main pathways |
| Fastest timeline | ~4 months on the quickest pathway | ~0 months on the quickest pathway |
| Money | ||
| Rent (family home, monthly) | $4,200/mo | $2,200/mo |
| Rent (couple, monthly) | $2,600/mo | $1,200/mo |
| International school (per child/yr) | $18,000 | $20,000 |
| Health cover (family/yr) | $4,500 | $4,500 |
| Cost of living vs Sydney | 65% of Sydney (ex-rent) | 40% of Sydney (ex-rent) |
| Relocation one-off | ~$22,000 | ~$12,000 |
| Flights home (return, pp) | $2,600 | $1,200 |
| Life | ||
| Timezone vs AEST | 9h behind | 3h behind |
| Flight from Sydney | ~26 hours | ~9 hours |
| English | 6/10 | 4/10 |
| Safety | 9/10 | 8/10 |
| Healthcare | 7/10 | 5/10 |
| Schooling | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Climate | Mild Atlantic climate, warm dry summers, wet 15°C winters in poorly heated homes. | HCMC: hot year-round with a May, November wet season; Hanoi adds a genuinely cold, damp winter. |
Costs, rates and visa figures are country-module data marked indicative until individually verified; FX and rental markets move constantly.
Honest downsides, side by side
Every destination hub on this site carries its downsides in the open. Here are both lists together, because the right question is rarely “which is better?” and usually “which set of problems would you rather live with?”
Portugal
- No Australia tax treaty: a contested residency year can leave the same income fully taxed in both countries with only messy unilateral credits between you and double tax.
- NHR is gone for new arrivals, the 20% IFICI successor is narrow, and most Australians will face full progressive rates up to 48% plus 28% on investments.
- Salaries and bureaucracy are Southern European: local pay is low, AIMA appointment backlogs are real, and everything official takes months.
- It is the single worst time zone on this list for keeping Australian clients, 9, 10 hours behind AEST means your overlap is their evening.
- Winter housing is genuinely cold and damp; central heating is the exception, not the rule.
Vietnam
- No digital nomad visa and no retirement visa: unless you have a job, a company or a Vietnamese spouse, there is no compliant way to live here long-term.
- The 35% top band arrives at a low threshold, a good Australian salary earned as a Vietnamese resident is taxed harder than in Australia.
- Banking and moving money is bureaucratic: the dong is not freely convertible and repatriating funds requires documentation.
- Healthcare below international-clinic level is poor; anything serious means Bangkok or Singapore.
- Air quality in Hanoi ranks among the world's worst several months a year.
Make this comparison yours
The table above shows the general figures. Enter your income and family once and the tax rows become your numbers, “your estimated income tax in Lisbon: $14,200”, not a range.