Change in law that gives Brazilians the right to Portuguese citizenship begins to take effect; see what changes – World

Brazilians residing in Portugal gained an advance in legislation to apply for Portuguese citizenship. The package of changes to Nationality Law of the European country came into effect this Monday (1st).

In the tenth amendment to Law No. 37/81, of October 3which approves the Nationality Law, one of the main changes in the package, the flexibility of the time spent in the country to apply for citizenship, should speed up the process for applicants.

Before the change, the Nationality Law required the candidate to live legally for five years in Portugal to be entitled to apply for citizenship. But the Portuguese government only counted this time from issuing the residence permit, which today takes two years or more to issue due to the large flow of applications.

The years lost in the count will be valid as a legal deadline from now on. Anyone who has demonstrated since 2019 and obtained authorization years later is able to apply for citizenship based on length of residence.

Law also includes Jews and children over 18 years old

The amendment also addresses the descendants of Sephardic Jews. Now, granting citizenship requires genealogical proof and presentation of evidence of effective connection with Portugal.

Another highlight of the Nationality Law is that the country began granting citizenship to foreign children recognized by their Portuguese parents after the age of 18, as long as there is a favorable court decision.

The package of changes was approved by the Portuguese Parliament in January this year and signed by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa shortly afterwards.