This incentive aims to enhance qualifications and is applicable to both Portuguese nationals and foreign residents. The duration of the bonus corresponds to the respective study cycles, providing support for recent graduates.

Individuals who obtained their academic degrees before 2023 can also benefit from the initiative, which ensures broad coverage within the student community.

The bonus is available to all taxpayers under the age of 35, who reside in Portugal and completed their bachelor’s and/or master’s degrees in national higher education institutions. This encompasses both public and private institutions, with the provision extending to academic degrees obtained abroad, provided they are recognised in Portugal.

The support is exclusively dedicated to those who are employed under Category A, dependent work, and Category B, self-employed workers, to ensure a targeted approach with regulated tax and social security statuses.

The students and individuals eligible for the bonus stand to receive an annual salary of €697 for each year of their bachelor’s degree and €1,500 for each year of their master’s degree. Furthermore, this bonus is not limited to recent graduates, those who earned their degrees before 2023 can claim the support, provided the number of years following the award of the academic degree is less than the study cycle’s duration.

This policy was formalised on November 29, by the Council of Ministers, who approved a decree law creating a salary premium for young individuals completing higher education in Portugal. This new policy is particularly significant as the country continues to attract a growing number of international students.

Recent statistics from the Directorate-General for Education and Science revealed a record-high enrolment of 446,028 students during the 2022/23 academic year, marking an increase of three percent compared to the previous year.