Portuguese Citizenship / Nationality
According to the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, Portuguese nationality is granted to all those who are recognized as such by law or by international convention.
The nationality is regulated by Law No. 37/81 of October 3rd. This law emphasized the principle of jus sanguinis (right of blood). However, the amendment introduced to this law in 2006, by Organic Law No. 2/2006 of April 17th, revalued the jus soli (right of soil) principle by considering as Portuguese citizens by origin all those born in Portugal when the foreign parent was also born in Portuguese territory.
How to get the Portugal Citizenship?
1. Nationality by Origin
The right of blood constitutes the main rule for granting nationality, and its effects are retroactive to the date of birth of the individual requesting Portuguese status. A person whose parents are Portuguese nationals born in Portugal is considered Portuguese provided that their birth is registered with the Civil Registry Office.
If the parents are Portuguese nationals born abroad, the individual, to be recognized as Portuguese, must prove that one of the parents is a Portuguese citizen and that the paternal or maternal link was established during minority, and declare that they want to be Portuguese by registering their birth in the Portuguese Civil Registry through the Consulates—if living abroad—or through the Central Registry Office—if residing in Portugal. If the applicant is a minor, the proof and procedure are the responsibility of whoever holds parental authority.
If the parents, Portuguese nationals born abroad, acquired nationality through naturalization, the individual must also, to be recognized as Portuguese, prove that one of the parents was a Portuguese citizen at the date of their birth.
In addition to the principle of ancestry, nationality can be granted to individuals born in Portuguese territory, children of foreign parents who have resided in Portugal for at least two years. This condition does not apply if the child’s parents are in Portugal on official service of a foreign country.
Nationality can also be requested by stateless persons who were born in Portuguese territory and can prove they do not possess their parents’ nationality.
It should be emphasized that original nationality is transmitted to children of legal age. Additionally, depending on the nationality law of the foreign applicant’s country of origin, it is possible for them to retain their original foreign nationality, thus holding two nationalities (commonly known as “dual citizenship”).
2. Nationality by Acquisition (Derived)
In addition to original nationality, another way to become a Portuguese citizen is to acquire derived nationality through naturalization, with rules established in Article 12 of the Nationality Law.
The following may acquire Portuguese nationality through naturalization:
- A foreigner married to or in a civil partnership with a Portuguese national for at least three years
- A minor foreigner whose parents have acquired Portuguese nationality
- A foreigner who, having been Portuguese, lost nationality through a declaration by someone who exercised parental authority over them
- A foreigner fully adopted by a Portuguese national by a court decision that became final before the current Nationality Law came into force
- A foreign woman married to a Portuguese national before the current Nationality Law came into force
- Until 2017, foreign grandchildren of Portuguese citizens whose parents did not have Portuguese nationality; currently, grandchildren of Portuguese citizens born abroad have the right to original nationality provided they meet certain requirements
In any of the above cases, the naturalizing foreigner must prove an effective connection with the Portuguese community and must not have committed a crime punishable by imprisonment of more than three years under Portuguese law. Furthermore, the Portuguese State may oppose the acquisition if the foreigner has performed public functions or provided non-mandatory military service in foreign states. It should be emphasized that this is a subjective right, pending the merit decision of the Portuguese government.
It is important to note that derived nationality, unlike original nationality, is not transferable to children of legal age. Additionally, depending on the national laws of the foreigner requesting Portuguese derived nationality, it is possible that they may lose their original foreign nationality.
3. Citizens of Former Portuguese Colonies
Descendants of Portuguese citizens native to territories that became independent after 1975 benefit from specific legal provisions addressing their situation in relation to Portugal. It’s worth noting that until Law No. 37/81 of October 3, 1981, the basic principle of Portuguese nationality was jus soli (right of soil). According to this principle, with some exceptions (such as the loss of Portuguese nationality for those born in former African overseas territories, covered by Decree-Law No. 308-A of June 24, 1975), any person born in Portuguese territory (including Portuguese Overseas territories) had the right to original Portuguese nationality.
From 1981 onwards, the basic principle of Portuguese nationality changed to jus sanguinis (right of blood), which remains in effect today.
3.1. Indian Territories
The former Portuguese State of India (Goa, Daman, Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli), unlike other Portuguese colonies of the time, was considered an effective extension of the Portuguese national territory according to the Portuguese Constitution of 1911. Therefore, people born in the Portuguese State of India theoretically enjoyed full Portuguese citizenship, as they were never subject to the Political, Civil and Criminal Statute of Indigenous Peoples.
Consequently, through the Civil Code of 1867 (or Seabra Code) and Law No. 2098 of July 29, 1959, natives of the former Portuguese State of India have guaranteed the right to original Portuguese nationality up to the second-degree descendant of a Portuguese citizen (grandchild). The Portuguese State of India ceased to exist de facto in 1961 with its invasion by the Indian army, but was only formally (de jure) dissolved in 1975 when the Indian occupation was recognized by the Portuguese government. Therefore, some authors argue that people born between 1961 and 1975 in the former Portuguese State of India can be considered native Portuguese (or of origin), because Portugal only relinquished its sovereignty over these Indian territories in 1975.
However, despite the explicit law, a serious obstacle in these cases is proving individuals’ place of birth through birth records, as a large part of Goa’s civil registries were lost during the Indian forces’ invasions in 1961. Consequently, these civil records were not properly integrated into Portugal’s central civil registry.
3.2 Macau
The Portuguese territory of Macau was handed over to China on December 20, 1999, becoming a special administrative region. However, only those born in Macau until 1981 were considered Portuguese by origin. According to Law No. 37/81 of October 3, from 1981 onwards, for someone born in Macau to obtain original Portuguese nationality, they must be a child of a Portuguese father or mother. All children of a father or mother with Portuguese nationality, born in Macau (now as foreign territory) after December 20, 1999, also have the right to Portuguese nationality. It is also worth noting that the Chinese government does not recognize dual nationality.
3.3 East Timor
On April 25, 1976, East Timor ceased to be considered Portuguese territory under the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, thus eliminating the connecting element that guaranteed the acquisition of Portuguese nationality to those born in Timor. However, due to the unilateral declaration of Timorese independence by FRETILIN on November 28, 1975, and the consequent Indonesian invasion of East Timor on December 7, 1975, Portugal continued to be recognized as the administering power by the United Nations until the date of East Timor’s effective independence on May 20, 2002. That is, between 1976 and 2002, Timor was considered a territory under Portuguese administration but occupied by Indonesia. The provisions of Decree-Law No. 308-A/75 of June 24, 1975, were never applied in Timor.
Therefore, Law No. 2098 of July 29, 1959, stipulates that all those born in Timor, children of a Portuguese father or mother, stateless persons, those of unknown nationality, unknown parents, or even foreigners, provided they were not in the service of their respective State, until April 25, 1976, are citizens of Portuguese nationality. Between 1976 and the date of effective independence (May 20, 2002), only those born in Timor who are children of a Portuguese father or mother are considered citizens of Portuguese nationality. After independence, children of a father or mother with Portuguese nationality, born in East Timor (now as foreign territory), continue to have the right to original Portuguese nationality.
