What is the Taxa Social Única (TSU)?

What is the Taxa Social Única (TSU)?

The Taxa Social Única (TSU) is the mandatory contribution to Social Security on salaries in Portugal. It is what funds the system: retirement pensions, unemployment benefit, sickness benefit, parental leave and the other social benefits.

It is called "única" (single) because it merges into one rate what used to be several separate contributions. But, despite the name, it is not paid by one person only: it splits into two parts, one from the employee and one from the employer¹.

How much is the TSU in Portugal?

In the general regime for employees (trabalhadores por conta de outrem, the most common case), the combined TSU rate is 34.75% of the gross salary, split like this²:

The employee's part (11%) is deducted on the payslip, every month. The employer's part (23.75%) does not come out of the salary: the company pays it separately, but it still counts as a Social Security contribution for that worker.

Who pays the Taxa Social Única?

Both pay, in different parts:

• The employee bears the 11%, deducted on the payslip.
• The employer bears the 23.75%, a cost that does not appear on the employee's payslip.

In practice it is the company that remits both parts to Social Security: it withholds the 11% from the salary and adds its own 23.75%. That is why, when talking about the cost of an employee to the company, the starting point is not the gross salary but the gross plus the 23.75%.

What does the TSU apply to?

The rates apply to all remuneration that counts as the contribution base: the base salary and, importantly, the holiday and Christmas subsídios. There is no ceiling in the general regime, unlike in some countries, so the percentage is the same on high salaries.

There are, however, exempt items that this simple calculation does not consider, such as the meal allowance within the legal limits and expense allowances (ajudas de custo). These are exceptions with their own rules.

Worked example: a €1,000 salary

Take a gross salary of €1,000 a month, paid 14 times (with the subsídios). Per month:

1. Employee (11%): pays €110.
2. Employer (23.75%): pays €237.50.
3. Total to Social Security: €347.50 (34.75% of the salary).
4. Cost of the worker to the company: €1,000 + €237.50 = €1,237.50 a month.

Over the year (14 payments), the employee pays €1,540, the company pays €3,325 and Social Security receives €4,865. Run it with your own salary in the Taxa Social Única calculator.

What is the difference between the TSU and IRS?

This is the most common confusion on the payslip, where two deductions of different natures appear:

• The TSU (11%) is a Social Security contribution. It is a fixed percentage of the gross and entitles you to benefits (pension, unemployment, sickness).
• IRS is the income tax. It is not fixed: it depends on how much you earn, the bracket and your family situation (dependants, joint taxation, deductions).

Having more dependants or more deductions lowers IRS, but does not change the 11% TSU. To see the combined effect of both deductions on what reaches your account, read how net salary is calculated and use the net salary calculator.

Is the 34.75% rate the same for everyone?

No. The 34.75% is the rate of the general regime for employees. There are regimes with their own rates that this explanation does not cover:

• The self-employed (recibos verdes): a different rate and contribution base.
• Members of statutory bodies (managers, directors): specific rates.
• Domestic service, non-profit entities (IPSS) and other situations.
• Temporary exemptions, for example support for hiring young first-job seekers or the long-term unemployed.

For the most common case, the employee in the general regime, the simple rule holds: 11% from the employee, 23.75% from the employer, 34.75% in total.