New proposals by the Socialist Party (PS) were announced by the vice-president of the socialist bench, Pedro Delgado Alves, at the start of today’s Constitutional Affairs Committee meeting.
Shortly after, by consensus and at the suggestion of the president of the Parliamentary Group of the PSD, Hugo Soares, the discussion and voting on the nationality law review was postponed to Friday, starting at 9:00 a.m.
The PS now proposes that those born in Portugal, children of foreigners, can acquire nationality if, at the time of birth, “one of the parents legally resides in Portuguese territory for at least two years if they are citizens of a Portuguese-speaking country or the European Union, or three years in other cases.”
The initial proposal from the PS was one year, but the three-year term now advocated by the socialists is identical to the one initially supported by the PSD/CDS. However, PSD and CDS have since revised their proposals, extending this period from three to five years—marking an alignment of the Government parties with Chega.
Another change from the PS concerns the six-year period for obtaining nationality in the case of citizens from Portuguese-speaking countries or the European Union, or nine years for nationals of other countries.
In the initial formulation, the PS applied five years for nationals from Portuguese-speaking and European Union countries and seven years for others. PSD and CDS advocate seven years for citizens from Portuguese-speaking countries and the European Union, and ten years for third countries.
Regarding criminal record conditions for obtaining Portuguese nationality, changes have also been proposed by the socialist bench.
In the new version, the PS lowers the maximum prison sentence from three to two years for nationality acquisition. The Government, PSD, and CDS position this as a barrier if a citizen has been “convicted, with the finality of judicial decision, to effective imprisonment for a crime punishable under Portuguese law.”
The PS maintains a special regime for Sephardi Jews, but in the new version, the residency requirement in Portugal is extended to six years from five years.
For third-degree descendants in the direct line of Portuguese origin, the PS lowers the requirement to “legal residence in national territory for at least five years.” Previously, this period was six years.
One of the disagreements between socialists and PSD/CDS concerns transitional rules for a set of situations where the PS believes current law should still apply.
The PS initially advocated that the current law should apply until December 31, 2026, to individuals meeting the nationality attribution and acquisition requirements. In the new version, the PS agreed to shorten this transitional period to March 31, 2026.
