Guarantor vs Deposit in Portugal: Fiador or Caução? (2026)

Almost every Portuguese lease negotiation reaches the same question: how should the landlord secure the rent — with money upfront, or with another person's signature? Portuguese law offers two standard instruments. The caução (security deposit) is a sum the tenant pays at the start of the lease, held by the landlord to cover unpaid rent or damage and returned at the end. The fiador (guarantor) is a third party — often a parent or relative — who promises to answer for the tenant's obligations if the tenant does not pay.

The choice matters to both sides. For tenants, it decides how much cash they need upfront and whether they must ask someone to take on personal risk. For landlords, it defines how far their protection reaches when something goes wrong.

The deposit (caução) — Art. 1076º of the Civil Code. The deposit is capped at 2 months' rent for all residential leases, regardless of duration (Art. 1076º CC, amended by Lei 24-D/2022). The same rule caps advance rent at 2 months. The deposit must be returned at the end of the lease, minus legitimate deductions for unpaid amounts or damage beyond normal wear and tear. A clause demanding more than 2 months is void in the excess — the tenant can lawfully refuse to pay it.

The guarantee (fiança) — Arts. 627º to 654º of the Civil Code. Under Art. 627º CC, the guarantor personally guarantees the satisfaction of the tenant's obligations, answering with their own assets. The fiança follows the terms agreed in the clause: it can cover rent only or all lease obligations, and it lasts for the period the parties define — which is why the clause should expressly state whether the guarantee extends to renewal periods. By default the guarantor enjoys the excussion benefit (Art. 638º CC) — the right to demand that the landlord pursue the tenant's assets first — but professional contracts routinely waive it, making the guarantor a "principal payer".

Both instruments protect against the same core risk: unpaid rent. When rent is late, Art. 1041º CC additionally entitles the landlord to an indemnity of 20% of the overdue amount — a debt that a deposit can absorb and a guarantor can be made to answer for.

Here is how the two compare in practice:

A worked example. Rent is €1,000 per month. The maximum deposit is €2,000 (Art. 1076º). If the tenant stops paying and the dispute drags on, the deposit absorbs about two months of debt and is then exhausted — anything beyond it must be recovered from the tenant. A guarantor, by contrast, can be held liable for the accumulated debt under the agreed terms — four or five months of unpaid rent plus the Art. 1041º indemnity — which is exactly the scenario that worries landlords most.

When to use which. The deposit is the baseline: simple, immediate, and standard in virtually every lease. A guarantor adds real value when the tenant has no Portuguese income history — students, new arrivals, first-time renters. Many landlords sensibly combine both: the deposit handles small, fast claims; the fiança backs the larger tail risk. Combining them is lawful — the Art. 1076º cap applies to the deposit, not to the guarantee.

CompliantLease captures guarantors directly in the lease wizard — full identification, the scope of the guarantee, and compliant clause text with the legal citations — and automatically validates the deposit against the Art. 1076º two-month cap, warning you before a non-compliant amount reaches the contract. Deposit and fiança terms appear side by side in the review step, so both parties see exactly how the lease is secured before anyone signs.