What are duodécimos and how do they work?
Duodécimos are a way of receiving the holiday and Christmas bonuses split across the 12 months of the year, instead of as two lump sums.
TL;DR
Duodécimos are the holiday and Christmas bonuses received split across the 12 months of the year, added to each salary, instead of two lump sums. As each bonus equals one month of salary, a twelfth is your salary divided by 12. You always receive 14 salaries a year, so the annual total is exactly the same in every option (0%, 50% or 100% in duodécimos): only the spread across the months changes. At 100% your monthly pay rises, but you do not receive the large bonuses in June and December. Social Security and IRS apply to the same annual total; only the month-to-month withholding can vary. Receiving in duodécimos requires an agreement with your employer.
What are duodécimos?
In Portugal you earn 14 "salaries" a year: the 12 monthly salaries, plus the holiday bonus (subsídio de férias) and the Christmas bonus (subsídio de Natal). Each bonus equals one month of pay12.
By default each bonus is paid in full: Christmas by 15 December and the holiday bonus before the holiday period. Receiving them in duodécimos is the alternative: instead of those two large payments, you receive a twelfth of each bonus (the bonus divided by 12) added to each monthly salary.
Receiving in duodécimos is not automatic: it requires a written agreement between worker and employer.
How the monthly duodécimo is worked out
The calculation is simple, because each bonus is exactly one month of salary:
- A twelfth of a bonus = salary ÷ 12.
- With both bonuses fully in duodécimos, you receive two twelfths a month: the holiday bonus's plus the Christmas bonus's, i.e. salary × 2 ÷ 12.
- At 50%, you receive half in duodécimos and the other half as a single payment.
On a salary of €1,500, a twelfth of each bonus is €125. At 100% that adds €250 a month (€125 + €125), and monthly pay rises from €1,500 to €1,750.
The annual total is always the same
This is the part most people get wrong. Duodécimos do not make you receive more or less over the year. You always receive 14 salaries, whichever option you pick:
- At 0%: you get the monthly salary plus both full bonuses in June and December.
- At 50%: you get a slightly higher monthly pay plus half of each bonus as a single payment.
- At 100%: you get a higher monthly pay and forgo the two large payments.
The annual sum is identical in all three options. The difference is purely cash-flow: either higher, steadier monthly income, or two big top-ups mid-year and at year-end.
Worked example: a €1,500 salary
On a base salary of €1,500 a month, you receive €21,000 a year (14 × €1,500) in every option:
- 0% in duodécimos: €1,500 a month, plus two full €1,500 bonuses (June and December).
- 50%: €1,625 a month (€125 more), plus €750 of each bonus as a single payment.
- 100%: €1,750 a month (€250 more) and no large bonus payment.
In all three cases the yearly total is €21,000. Run your own case in the duodécimos calculator.
Duodécimos and IRS
A common worry is whether duodécimos pay more IRS. Over the whole year, no: IRS applies to the same income, and Social Security (11%) does too.
What can change is the month-to-month withholding. A bonus paid in full is withheld on its own (it is not added to the month's salary for the withholding table). A duodécimo, by contrast, is added to the salary and can push the month's income into a higher withholding band, withholding a little more each month. That effect is only withholding (an advance): the reconciliation happens in the annual return, where the tax due is the same. To understand that side, see the withholding calculator.
In full or in duodécimos: which to choose?
Since the total amount is the same, the choice is about managing your money:
- In duodécimos if you prefer higher, steadier monthly income through the year.
- In full if you prefer two big top-ups (for the summer holidays and for Christmas) and can manage the months without that addition.
To see what each bonus is worth and how it is calculated, use the holiday and Christmas pay calculator.
Common mistakes
Thinking you receive more in duodécimos
The annual total is exactly the same in all three options, because you always receive 14 salaries. Duodécimos only change the spread across the months, not the amount you receive over the year.
Thinking duodécimos lower the year's IRS
Over the year, the IRS is the same: it applies to the same income. What can change is the month-to-month withholding, because the duodécimo is added to the salary and can fall in a higher withholding band. It is always reconciled in the annual return.
Assuming you can just ask to be paid in duodécimos
By default the bonuses are paid in full (Christmas by 15 December, holiday before the holidays). Receiving in duodécimos requires a written agreement with your employer.
Frequently asked questions
What are duodécimos?
How are duodécimos calculated?
Do I receive more money in duodécimos?
Do duodécimos pay more IRS?
Is it worth receiving bonuses in duodécimos?
Related reading & calculators
Sources
- 1.Código do Trabalho, Art. 264.º, holiday bonus (one month of pay) — Diário da República · retrieved 7 Jun 2026
- 2.Código do Trabalho, Art. 263.º, Christmas bonus (one month of pay, by 15 December) — Diário da República · retrieved 7 Jun 2026
Author / Reviewed by
Author
Thorben Rasmus Idel
Founder & writer
Co-founder of Calculadora Capital. Writes the methodology and verifies the math behind every page.
Reviewed by
Nahar Geva
Co-founder & reviewer
Co-founder of Calculadora Capital. Reviews the methodology and verifies the math behind every page.
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