With Portugal’s foreign population reaching unprecedented levels, the country’s president has signed into law a bill that will double the amount of time needed for foreigners to obtain citizenship.
The bill, which was approved in parliament last year, with the backing of the minority centre-right Social Democratic Party and far-right Chega party, will extend the period required for most foreigners to obtain citizenship from five to up to ten years.
Still, the president said in a statement late Sunday that he hoped pending applications would not be affected by the legislative change.
“That would constitute an undesirable breach of trust in the state, at the domestic and international level,” said Antonio Jose Seguro, whose presidential mandate began in March.
A massive inflow of immigrants to Portugal following the pandemic has strained the country’s housing, healthcare and public services. A record 1.5 million residents – about 15% of the total population – now come from abroad, almost triple the number in 2019, according to Portugal’s Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum.
Individuals from Brazil, Angola and other Lusophone nations will have to wait seven years to obtain citizenship instead of five, according to the law.
The move is the latest step in Portugal’s battle to reduce a significant backlog of immigration applications, including those related to its so-called golden visa programme.
The golden visa, which offers non-Europeans a fast track to residency through options including a minimum €500,000 investment in eligible funds, currently allows investors to apply for citizenship five years after enrolling in the programme.