Portuguese nationality law Residency :
Time Counting
Portuguese nationality law Residency:
Time Counting
Last Saturday, February 24th, the President of Portugal promulgated the amendments in the Nationality Law.
• Effective Date:
While these changes have not taken effect yet, their publication is expected in the next 5 working days.
If this happens by February 29th, the changes will come into effect on March 1st.
If the publication occurs only on March 1st, the effective date will be April 1st.
• Residency Time Counting:
One of the key modifications involves redefining the commencement of the 5-year residency requirement for citizenship, starting from the date of application. This encompasses the duration spent in the residence approval process.
In other words, for the purpose of counting residency time, from the effective date of the nationality law, the period since the application for temporary residence is also considered.
This change is relevant due to the well-known delays in the Immigration Services in Portugal (formerly the Foreigners and Borders Services – SEF and currently the Agency for Integration, Migrations, and Asylum – AIMA) in granting residence permits, reflecting the government’s recognition of the negative impact of these delays on applicants.
• Important Notes:
It is important to note that the wording of the law, mentioning “residence permit,” may lead to different interpretations, which will need to be clarified by Regulation.
In our view, the term “residence permit” could be more appropriately replaced with “permission/authorization to reside”, as these represent different concepts in the process of foreigners’ regularization.
We believe that the legislator was referring to the moment of applying for residence authorization and not the permit itself.
Current legislation establishes that the application for permission/authorization to reside can be made by the interested party or their legal representative and must be submitted to AIMA, without prejudice to the provisions of special regimes [Bilateral or Multilateral Agreements, International Conventions, Mobility Agreements, or Protocols and Memorandum of Understanding concluded between Portugal and Third States].
Portuguese nationality law Residency – Time Counting
- Golden Visa:
In the context of the Golden Visa Program, there are some important nuances. Despite being an online procedure on an official platform, it has a distinct component compared to Expression of Interest processes.
This program involves an online “Request” phase, followed by an Admission Notification and subsequently a Notification for Scheduling an appointment at the Immigration Service. This process culminates in a face-to-face visit, during which the applicant “completes” their application to obtain a residence permit.
Our interpretation, aligned with the corrective purpose of the recent amendments, suggests that the relevant moment to start counting the 5 years is with the payment of the analysis fee when submitting the Golden Visa application online.
These foundations support this interpretation:
I. Legal requirements regarding investment and absence of criminal records are met at the application stage;
II. At this stage, a process number is assigned to the application;
III. The online platform of Immigration Services itself indicates that its function is to register the application for the Residence Title for the Investment Regime (ARI) and corresponding Family Reunification;
IV. The proof of payment of the analysis fee explicitly mentions “RESIDENCE TITLE ACT. INVESTMENT” (title for Golden Visa);
V. The platform designates the form as a “request” (application).
However, we will have to wait for regulations to clarify this point.
o Expression of Interest:
Regarding expressions of interest, we consider that the relevant moment would be the submission of this Expression, done online on a platform designated for this purpose.
This interpretation is supported by the literal provision of the law, which associates the submission of an Expression of Interest with the application for residence authorization, as can be seen in Article 81, paragraph 6 of Law No. 23/2007, of July 4, in its current wording, as well as in Articles 88, paragraph 2, and 89, paragraph 2 of the same diploma.
DISCLAIMER:
The information provided in this text does not constitute the provision of personalized legal advice, nor does it take into account any specific case; Please contact us for additional clarification.
We believe that this information will be useful for understanding the recent changes to the Nationality Law. If you have any doubts or need assistance with registration, do not hesitate to contact our team.
Portuguese nationality law Residency:
Time Counting
