Portugal’s nationality law, as it was finally enacted
Ten years for most applicants, seven for EU and CPLP nationals. What survived the Constitutional Court, what did not, and what none of it changes about your residency.
Parliament approved a stricter Nationality Law in November 2025. It was suspended on Constitutional Court review, revised, and promulgated on 3 May 2026. It has applied since 19 May 2026, and applications lodged before that date are decided under the old rules.
- 19 May 2026The law in force, the day after publication
- 7 yearsResidence for EU and CPLP nationals
- 10 yearsResidence for every other nationality
- 4 yearsResidence for stateless persons
Three stages, and only the last one is the law
Most of what was written about this reform describes a version that never took effect. The sequence matters, because the text that binds you is the third one.
A longer path, and a deeper one.
The approved text doubled the general residence requirement for naturalisation from five years to ten, added a seven year track for EU and CPLP nationals, and tightened the tests on language, culture, civic knowledge and criminal record. It also raised the bar for children born in Portugal to foreign parents.
Diário da República, Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026The first version did not survive intact.
The decree went to the Constitutional Court on preventive review. In Acórdão n.º 1133/2025 the Court declared provisions unconstitutional, and the text was revised to address that before it could be promulgated. What reached the statute book is the corrected version, not the one the November headlines described.
Presidência da República, promulgation of Decree n.º 48/XVIILive since 19 May 2026.
The President promulgated the decree on 3 May 2026. It was published as Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026 on 18 May and took effect the following day. Anything already lodged with the authorities by then is judged under the old rules.
Diário da República, Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026What the law now requires
The operative provisions, as enacted. Anything you read from before May 2026 may describe a different text.
- Residence required for naturalisation
- Seven years of legal residence for EU and CPLP nationals, ten years for everyone else, and four years for stateless persons. Previously five years across the board
- How the years are counted
- Article 15(3) aggregates periods of legal residence, consecutive or not, provided they fall inside an outer window of six years for stateless persons, nine for CPLP and EU nationals and twelve for other nationalities
- Language, culture and civics
- Proof by test or certificate of sufficient knowledge of the Portuguese language and culture, the country’s history and national symbols, plus fundamental rights and democratic principles. CPLP nationals are presumed to meet the language condition unless a lack of Portuguese is manifest
- Criminal record
- No final conviction to effective imprisonment of more than three years for terrorism, violent crime or related offences
- Children born in Portugal
- Original nationality by declaration where one parent has been legally resident for at least five years at the time of birth. A naturalisation route covers minors born here who are enrolled in and regularly attending compulsory schooling, on the same five year parental residence test
- Applications already pending
- Administrative procedures pending on 19 May 2026 are decided under the previous version of Law 37/81, under the transitional rule in Article 7(2)
- Loss of nationality as a penalty
- Not part of this law. It sits in a separate decree amending the Penal Code, which was still before the Constitutional Court on preventive review when the nationality law was promulgated
If you hold a Golden Visa, this is a timeline change and nothing else
The ARI is a residency permit and this law governs naturalisation. Your permit, your renewals and the stay requirement of seven days in the first year and fourteen days per two year renewal period are unaffected. What changed is how long you hold residency before a passport becomes possible, and for most nationalities that is now ten years rather than five.
Common questions
The ones we answer on almost every call, and the ones the market most often gets wrong.
Is the new law actually in force?
Yes. It was promulgated on 3 May 2026, published as Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026 on 18 May, and took effect on 19 May 2026. The earlier suspension during Constitutional Court review is over.
I applied before 19 May 2026. Which rules apply to me?
The previous version of Law 37/81. Article 7(2) states that administrative procedures pending at entry into force are decided under the earlier wording, so a file already lodged is not recalculated against the ten year rule.
Does this change my residence permit or my Golden Visa?
No. The law governs naturalisation, not residency. Your permit, your renewal cycle and the ARI stay requirement, seven days in the first year and fourteen days per renewal period, is untouched. What moved is the passport timeline.
Can Portuguese nationality now be taken away over a criminal conviction?
Not under this law. Loss of nationality as an accessory penalty was carried in a separate decree amending the Penal Code, which was still before the Constitutional Court on preventive review when the nationality law was promulgated. The nationality law deals with criminal record on the way in, barring applicants convicted to more than three years of effective imprisonment for terrorism, violent crime or related offences.
Do Portuguese-speaking applicants still have a shorter path?
Yes. CPLP nationals sit on the seven year track alongside EU nationals, and they are presumed to satisfy the language requirement unless a lack of Portuguese is manifest.
Talk to us
We advise founders, investors and executives on both sides of this: the tax position and the residency route, together rather than separately.
Book a call with Fernando
Fifteen or thirty minutes, by Microsoft Teams. Fernando Ferreira, General Partner at Ventures.eu.
