News from afpop

Good afternoon to you all and no, the weekend hasn’t arrived early. This is an additional Member Briefing for this week, specifically on the issue of Residency validity and new immigrant rules. We are sending this early as we receive many calls from Members about their Residencies and we didn’t want to wait until Friday to send this information to you. There is also information on the proposals regarding citizenship and if these issues don’t concern you then please ignore this e-mail, and the usual Friday Briefing will be sent to you all.

The reason we are sending this now is that Members might see this information in the press or on social media and think that these rules are now in force. They are not and as always, we are waiting for the actual law to be passed and published before we confirm the rules for you. 

The team is monitoring this every day and as soon as there is confirmation on any of these issues we will pass it to Members and there will be an article in the August edition of UPDATE magazine with the up-to-date information.

Residency validity extension

A decree has been approved to extend the validity of Residency permits until 15^th of October 2025. The communication from the Council of Ministers only mentions Residency permits and not visas. However as soon as the law is published, we will indeed confirm that this validity extension also includes visas, as has always been the case in the past. 

It was also announced that a digital platform for requesting renewal of Residency is soon to be made available by AIMA. We will keep a close eye on that platform and inform Members as soon as it is ready.

New immigration and nationality rules

Members may have seen in the press that the Portuguese Council of Ministers has approved several legislative proposals concerning nationality, immigration and the creation of a new border police unit. They highlighted a significant increase in the strictness of requirements for both gaining Portuguese nationality and obtaining Residency in Portugal. It is important to remember that these are still only proposals, and they will need to be approved by the Parliament. Once that has happened and a law has been published, we will inform Members further through an article in our UPDATE Magazine.

Below you will find some of the significant proposals:

Key changes to the nationality law

The new nationality proposal emphasises a more stringent requirement for effective connection to the national community, demanding a genuine, robust, and lasting link to Portugal. 

Nationality by descent for foreign Residents: 

• Children born in Portugal to foreign parents can only acquire Portuguese nationality if one of their parents has had legal Residency for at least three years and explicitly express the wish for their child to be Portuguese

Nationality for foreign Residents: 

• Citizens from Portuguese-speaking countries (CPLP) will now need seven years of legal Residency before applying for nationality

• Citizens from other countries will require ten years of legal Residency

• The clock for this period starts from the date the Residency permit is obtained

• Knowledge of Portuguese language and culture is mandatory

• Applicants must demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the duties and rights of Portuguese citizens and the country's political organisation, proven through tests

Key changes to the immigration law

Amendments to the immigration law primarily affect family reunification, job-seeking visas and entries for CPLP citizens.

Job-seeking visas without a pre-existing contract/promise of employment:

• These visas will now only be available to highly qualified individuals

Family reunification:

• A two-year period of legal Residency is required before this right can be exercised

• Requests for family reunification for adults already in Portugal are restricted to minors, adults must apply from outside Portugal and be subject to approval by Portuguese authorities

• Proof of adequate accommodation and sufficient means of subsistence is required

• Measures for family reunification, including language learning and compulsory education for minors, must be foreseen

Creation of the National Unit for Foreigners and Borders (UNEF)

Also approved was the proposal to establish a National Unit for Foreigners and Borders (Unidade Nacional de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras) within the PSP. This aims to restore a dedicated border police force to control and inspect entries.

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