EN 
PT 
On April 20, 2018, the 8th amendment to the Nationality Law, Law 37/81, was approved by the Portuguese Parliament and is pending promulgation by the President of the Republic, to enter into force the day after its publication.
I will now briefly comment on all the changes brought about by this new amendment to the rule.
Requirement of 2 years of legal residence of one of the foreign parents of the child born in Portugal, at the time of birth, for the child to be considered a natural-born Portuguese citizen - Art. 1, no. 1, al. f), no. 4
The length of residence required by one of the foreign parents for a child born in Portugal to be considered Portuguese was reduced from 5 to 2 years. The requirement for legal residence was maintained.
It has also been defined how this legal residence will be proven by showing the identification document, namely the residence permit, of the father or mother at the time of the child's birth registration.
Acquisition of nationality for restrictive adoptees - Arts. 5 and 29
Restricted adoption was a form of adoption that was in force until November 2015. In a restricted adoption, the adoptee's family ties with their biological family are maintained. Those adopted restrictively, under the terms of the law, continue to be considered children of their biological parents.
Acquisition of nationality by adoption was only possible for full adoptees. In full adoption, the adoptee's family ties with their biological family are extinguished, and they become the adopter's child once and for all.
Until then, restrictive adoptees were not entitled to acquire nationality from their adoptive parents, only full adoptees. Now any adoptee acquires Portuguese nationality, by mere effect of the law, as long as the adoption took place as a minor by court decision.
Extinction of opposition to acquisition of nationality by virtue of adoption
The possibility of legal action to oppose the acquisition of nationality by adoption has been removed from Portuguese nationality law.
Portuguese nationality in these cases will now be definitively acquired by the mere effect of the law. Previously, despite the understanding that it was acquired by the mere effect of the law, there was an inconsistency in requiring a statement of grounds for opposition, in particular an effective link to the Portuguese community, and in the susceptibility of possible opposition action.
Requirement of 5 years of legal residence for naturalization of an adult - Art. 6(1)(b)
The necessary period of residence in Portugal was reduced from 6 to 5 years to acquire Portuguese nationality by naturalization. The requirement for legal residence was maintained.
Naturalization of a minor, born in Portugal, child of illegal immigrants - Art. 6, no. 2, al. a)
Minors born in Portugal are entitled to naturalization even if their parents reside illegally in Portugal, provided that at least one of them has been resident for 5 years.
Until then, the period of residence referred to had to be legal.
Naturalization of a minor, born in Portugal, who has completed one cycle of basic education or secondary education - Art. 6(2)(b)
Minors are entitled to naturalization after completing any cycle of basic education or after completing secondary education.
Basic education in Portugal is divided into three cycles:
1st Cycle: 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Years
2nd Cycle: 5th and 6th Years
3rd Cycle: 7th, 8th and 9th Years
Secondary education consists of: 10th grade, 11th grade and 12th grade.
Until then, minors had to complete the first cycle of basic education in Portugal to be entitled to the nationality by naturalization provided for in this provision; now it is enough to complete any of the cycles of basic education or secondary education.
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Subjective right to naturalization for those born in Portugal, illegal residents for 5 years, children of illegal immigrants - Art. 6, no. 5
Previously, could naturalization may be granted to children born in Portugal to foreigners who have remained illegally in Portugal for the 10 years immediately preceding the application.
With the new changes, those born in Portugal, resident for 5 years, even if illegal, and children of foreigners resident in Portugal at the time of their birth, even if illegal, will be entitled naturalization.
It should be noted that naturalization is no longer a discretionary concession, based on the convenience of the government, and has become a real subjective right. Until then, even if the requirements set out in the law were met, the granting of this nationality by naturalization could be denied. Now, once the requirements have been met, the government has a duty to grant nationality.
Possibility of naturalization for ascendants of born Portuguese, resident for 5 years, even if illegal - Art. 6, no. 8
This is a new legal provision that allows nationality to be granted to the ascendants of an original Portuguese citizen who have been resident in any capacity, even illegally, for five years, provided that they are biological parents and that the ancestry was established at the time of the birth. This means that a father who recognizes the paternity of his Portuguese child only after the birth will not be able to naturalize under these terms.
This granting of nationality is at the discretion of the government, which, even if the legal requirements are met, can choose not to grant it.
Presumption of knowledge of the Portuguese language for nationals of Portuguese-speaking countries - Art. 6, no. 9
Before the amendment, the presumption of knowledge of the Portuguese language for nationals of Portuguese-speaking countries for naturalization processes only occurred after 5 years of residence in Portugal; with the amendment, this requirement will be waived.
Opposition to the acquisition of nationality by marriage or stable union on the grounds that there is no effective link to the Portuguese community when there are common children of the couple with original Portuguese nationality - Art. 9, no. 2
In the Portuguese Nationality Regulation, annexed to Decree-Law no. 237-A/2006, the Central Registry Office already provided for a presumption of an effective link to the Portuguese community when the applicant was a native of a Portuguese-speaking country and had Portuguese-born children from the marriage or union on which the declaration was based. In this case, the registry office could not refer the case to the Public Prosecutor's Office on the grounds of a lack of effective links, but if the Public Prosecutor's Office received the case for other reasons, there was nothing to stop it from objecting on the grounds that there was no effective link to the Portuguese community.
The addition to Article 9 has determined, once and for all, that no action can be brought against the acquisition of nationality through marriage or stable union on the grounds that there are no ties to the Portuguese community if there are Portuguese-born children from the relationship.
It is clear that the legislator intended to uphold the principle of the family's unity of nationality.
Definition of legal residence time limits - Art. 15
This is an extremely important change, which has settled the controversy that existed in relation to the counting of periods of legal residence for the purposes of attribution and acquisition of nationality.
The controversy was precisely over whether the required legal residence periods had to be uninterrupted.
It was explained that for the purposes of counting periods of legal residence, all periods of legal residence in Portugal, whether consecutive or interpolated, are added together, provided that they have elapsed within a maximum interval of 15 years.
Automatic reacquisition of Portuguese nationality by women by marriage who lost it under the previous law, Law 2.098/1959, and whose loss has not been definitively registered - Art. 30
Under the previous law, until 1981, a Portuguese woman who married a foreign national automatically lost her Portuguese nationality.
Before the new amendment, the reacquisition of Portuguese nationality in these cases only occurred through a declaration. Now it will happen automatically in cases where the definitive record of the loss of Portuguese nationality has not been drawn up.
Nullity of the attribution, acquisition or loss of Portuguese nationality based on false documents or false declarations - Arts. 12-A and 12-B
In order to combat the countless falsifications of documents and declarations that have occurred in the context of Portuguese nationality processes, the legislature decided to impose a rule that sought to prevent people from obtaining Portuguese nationality by fraudulent means.
With an eye to the principle of preventing statelessness, the legislator determined that, even in cases of documentary or declaratory fraud, the nullity of a nationality process that results in the statelessness of the person concerned will not be known.
The legislator also sought to preserve those who had acquired nationality in good faith, with no intention of presenting false documents, and those who had obtained Portuguese nationality at least 10 years ago, determining that in these cases, even if fraud were found, such individuals could not have the nullity of their nationality process known.
Modification of the conviction that prevents the acquisition of nationality by naturalization and substantiates an action to oppose the acquisition of nationality by effect of will - Arts. 6(1)(d) and 9(1)(b)
Such a conviction is no longer based on the abstract framework that a mere conviction for a crime punishable in the abstract by a prison sentence with a maximum of three years or more would constitute a binding reason that would automatically prevent the acquisition of Portuguese nationality, regardless of the actual sentence imposed, but on the actual conviction of a prison sentence of three years or more.
Conclusions
This amendment eases several of the requirements for obtaining Portuguese nationality. From these changes, we can see a notable concern on the part of the legislator to apply constitutional and international principles relating to the attribution and acquisition of nationality, in particular the principle of the unity of nationality within the family.
Dr. Aldo Andrade, Lawyer and Genealogical Researcher
Portuguese-Brazilian lawyer, registered with the Portuguese Bar Association, under No. 57.455P, and with the Brazilian Bar Association, Federal District Section, under No. 54.095, graduated from UniCEUB in 2014, with a postgraduate degree in Registries and Notaries from ISCET, with expertise in Portuguese Nationality Law. Genealogical researcher, specializing in locating records of Portuguese ancestors. Works in the areas of Portuguese Nationality Law, Foreigners' Law and Family Law. Fluent in English.
