Luís Montenegro's government has enough votes to finalize its proposal, supported by Chega and the Liberal Initiative. Petitioners accuse the government of violating the "principle of equality."
A group of citizens is asking, in a public petition , that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa not enact the Government's proposed law that restricts the entry and stay of immigrants in the country.
In the letter, the petitioners accuse the Government of violating the "principle of equality" with the proposal, which "establishes disproportionate and unjustified differences between holders of different types of residence permits, especially with regard to family reunification."
Furthermore, they also accuse the government of favoring "the 'highly qualified' or 'strategic interest' regimes to the detriment of other legally established residents," creating "an exclusionary and utilitarian immigration model." This criticism is related to the change in the work-seeking visa, which will now be exclusive to highly qualified professionals.
Regarding family reunification, both those considered highly skilled workers and those with a golden visa will be exempt from the strictest changes , such as the requirement of two years of residency with authorization for spouse reunification.
"The new barriers to family reunification, disguised as procedural requirements and differences between residence permits, represent an unacceptable setback in terms of fundamental rights. The protection of the family, and especially of children, requires the State to take measures that facilitate—and not obstruct—family life. The right to family reunification cannot be relativized by the interests of migration management," the petition states.
"Given the gravity of the legislative proposal in question, and the strong possibility of its approval in Parliament , we urge Your Excellency to exercise your constitutional prerogatives and submit the legislation for preventive review of its constitutionality to the Constitutional Court (Article 278 of the Portuguese Constitution). This is not just a legal appeal . It is an ethical appeal. Because human rights are not negotiable. Because democracy is weakened when exclusion is legitimized," concludes the text of the petition, which, to date, has 682 signatures.