The amendment to article 15 of the Nationality Law approved in Parliament and published in the Official Gazette last month is valid from today. In this way, thousands of immigrants are now able to apply for Portuguese citizenship.
With this change, the so-called “years lost” by immigrants are now counted.
The Law requires a candidate for citizenship to live legally for five years in Portugal to be entitled to citizenship.
Immigrants who entered the country from 2019 onwards as tourists and requested an expression of interest may have taken two to three years to secure this provisional authorization. And when they reach five years of residence, the previous waiting time was ignored, but now it becomes valid as a legal deadline.
According to the change signed by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the time will be counted from the receipt of the expression of interest.