The newly submitted legislation proposes the implementation of the revised nationality regime for future applications, with a notable exception for naturalization procedures already pending as of the future publication date of the law, provided they were initiated after June 19, 2025. This date marks when the program of the XXV Constitutional Government was enabled.
According to the diploma, the government acknowledges that since the electoral period, the winning coalition had intended to impose stricter requirements on the Portuguese nationality regime to ensure a genuine connection to the national community.
At that time, it became apparent to citizens and immigrants alike that substantial modifications would include expanded and intensified temporal and material requirements for naturalization. Following the parliament’s approval of the executive’s program, there was a surge in applications for nationality acquisition by naturalization, as noted in the legislative proposal.
The government perceives these applications as last-minute attempts to take advantage of the outgoing regime’s permissive requirements, which included a five-year residency in Portugal for citizenship eligibility.
The new legislation mandates a minimum regular residence authorization period of seven years for citizens from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) and ten years for others, enforcing much stricter regulations.
This “abusive and late recourse” is anticipated by the legislation by basing it on the “enabling of the Government’s Program.”
The program, as described in the proposal, is a principally political document with significant publicity, to which the Constitution attaches important legal consequences, beginning with the government assuming full responsibilities.
