Nationality law approved in Portugal

Nationality law approved in Portugal
Reading time: 2 minutes
Published: 23rd November 2020, 5:32pm
Updated: 19th March 2021, 6:09pm

Any child born in Portugal whose parents are foreign and living in Portuguese territory is now legally eligible to be a Portuguese citizen.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Portugal’s President, has approved a new nationality law, which enables children of immigrants who have been living here for at least one year to have Portuguese nationality at birth, even if they have been living here with no documents, or if one of their parents is legally resident in Portuguese territory.

With regard to the approved law, the changes are connected to Articles 3, nº 4 and 5, and aim to ensure that couples without children have fair access conditions to Portuguese nationality.

Those born in Portugal to foreign nationals resident in the territory already did qualify for citizenship, as long as one of the progenitors was a resident in the country for two or more years, but the new law reduces this time-frame to one year.

Also according to Law 37/81, “A foreigner who has been married to a Portuguese citizen for more than three years can obtain Portuguese nationality by means of a marriage declaration.” This also includes marriages in Portugal under common law.

This legal amendment is the latest major feather added to the Portuguese Golden Visa’s scheme as it makes it the only programme in the EU that enables a person born in Portugal subject to jus soli.

Also according to Portuguese law, there are three routes to acquiring Portuguese citizenship with Golden Visa residence, and all of them are at the top compared to other European countries offering the Golden visa residence programme - learn more about acquiring citizenship through Golden Visa here.

It becomes important to mention that Portugal is on track to become a United States E1 and E2 treaty country, and if everything goes right, this treaty will allow new Portuguese citizens to live and work in the US. Read more about how Portugal - USA relations are strong and have a great future ahead.


Read also:

Life Post Covid-19: Choose Portugal for its best RCBI & Retirement programmes

Residency VS. Citizenship by Investment: What’s the best option?

Portugal-born immigrant children may become Portuguese as long as one of the parents is resident

What are the running costs of a house in Portugal?

Non-Resident investors chose Portugal for property buying

26th November 2020
Before the capital's Golden Visa scheme could come to an end , Chinese…
19th November 2020
David and Gary spent a day with CNBC and The Worldfolio  to talk…

Comprar uma propriedade em Portugall

A Portugal Homes possui profissionais muito experientes e conhecedores, que trabalham com alguns dos promotores mais reconhecidos em Portugal . A nossa vasta experiência permite-nos guiá-lo pelas melhores opções de investimento.

Seja casa de férias ou uma propriedade para investimento, selecionamos as melhores propriedades para o seu perfil e tratamos de todo o processo do início ao fim. Mesmo após a venda! Os nossos serviços de pós-venda assumem a responsabilidade de mobilar a seu gosto, manter a propriedade na sua ausência, dar apoio ao arrendamento, no caso de querer arrendar e muito mais!

Para saber mais sobre Residentes Não Habituais em Portugal e sobre os nossos serviços pós-venda, preencha o formulário abaixo.

Thanks to Andreia Leite for the comprehensive and timely updates on the construction progress of the new development we purchased!

Investidor dos EUA

Very helpful. Work with his heart. Mark is a very nice advisor. 

Investidor de Marrocos

Tudo correu lindamente. Consegui esclarecer todas as minhas questões. 

Investidor da Turquia

Ryan was an excellent real estate agent, he really steered me in the right direction based on what I said was important to me. Living in another country, I wasn't as familiar with the city as he is. Where I thought I wanted to live and what I truly wanted were not the same. He took the time to listen and figure out the best spot for me, and we are very happy with it - far more than we would have been elsewhere.

Investidor dos EUA

A experiência geral foi ótima desde o acompanhamento até o pós-venda. Gostaria de agradecer especialmente ao Sr. Simon, à Sra. Francisca e à Sra. Mariana.

Investidor dos EAU

George Hobson é um jovem agradável, conhecido como conhecedor, experiente, trabalhador, honesto e disciplinado; Senti-me muito confortável em fazer facilmente o meu investimento.

Cliente dos Emirados Árabes Unidos