“I am convinced that the Constitutional Court, despite all this media pressure that seems to want to induce the court to decide in a certain way, […] will deliver a judgment of constitutional conformity to what was approved in the Assembly of the Republic,” said Luís Montenegro today at an event marking the 51st anniversary of the JSD, in Esmoriz (Ovar municipality, Aveiro district).
The Prime Minister was referring to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa sending the diploma amending the law on foreigners for preventive oversight by the Constitutional Court, which Luís Montenegro considered “a perfectly normal procedure.”
“If that [validation of constitutionality by the Constitutional Court] does not happen, the world will not end, Portugal will not end, and our drive to regulate immigration will not end either,” the PSD leader emphasized, receiving applause from PSD and JSD members, while reiterating his confidence “that it will not happen.”
Earlier, Luís Montenegro had also rejected that the Government is acting based on other parties’ agendas.
“These days, when there is so much talk, when there is so much theorizing about what we are doing, whether it’s agenda A, agenda B, more this or that way: the agenda is ours, to be very clear. It is what is in our electoral program and in the Government Program,” he stressed.
According to the PSD leader, this is the agenda “that interests the Portuguese economy and also concerns the values of humanism and dignity,” also stating that “it interests immigrants,” to whom he addressed.
“Regulated immigration is thinking, first and foremost, about the immigrants themselves. That’s why I walk the streets and am often approached with special enthusiasm, respect, adherence, and support by many immigrants,” said Luís Montenegro.
The Prime Minister stated that more young Portuguese are needed in Portugal but also “more people” in the workforce and economy.
“But make no mistake: more regulation, more rules, consequences for those who do not comply with the rules is what immigrants demand from us, those who are here in good faith, with good spirits and with their situation legalized or about to be legalized,” he emphasized.
The President of the Republic submitted on Thursday to the Constitutional Court the decree from parliament that changes the legal regime for the entry, stay, exit, and removal of foreigners from the national territory, approved by PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP.
A note published on the official website of the Presidency of the Republic states that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa “today submitted the Assembly of the Republic’s decree amending the Foreigners Law for urgent preventive constitutionality oversight by the Constitutional Court.”
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, sent the foreigners’ law to the Constitutional Court on Thursday. The head of state requested preventive oversight of the constitutionality of the rules on the right to family reunification and the conditions for its exercise.
Daniela Filipe | 17:19 – 24/07/2025
The head of state requested preventive oversight of the constitutionality of the rules on the right to family reunification and conditions for its exercise, time limits for the assessment of requests by the Agency for Integration, Migrations, and Asylum (AIMA), and the right to appeal.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also requested urgency from the Constitutional Court, setting a 15-day deadline for an urgent ruling on the decree passed in parliament with votes in favor from PSD, CDS-PP, and Chega, abstention from IL, and votes against from PS, Livre, PCP, BE, PAN, and JPP.
