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Pursuant to the amendments to the Nationality Law approved by the Parliament, descendants of Sephardic Jews must meet the following cumulative requirements to obtain Portuguese nationality:
a) They must provide evidence that they belong to a Sephardic Jewish community of Portuguese origin, supported by objective and verifiable indicators of their connection to Portugal, such as family names, language family, direct or collateral ancestry; and
b) They must have been lawfully living in Portugal for at least three years, consecutive or otherwise.
The descendants of Sephardic Jews who applied for Portuguese nationality after 1 September 2022 (date of entry into force of Decree Law 26/2022, of 18 March 2022, that amended article 24A of the Regulation on Portuguese Nationality - more information HERE) and whose applications are still pending to this date, are granted one more alternative to meet the requirements. In fact, whilst the prior wording of the law provided that applications should be supported by certificates or other documents demonstrating:
a) Ownership transmitted mortis causa, of rights in rem over real estate located in Portugal, other personal rights of use, or shares in Portuguese-based commercial or cooperative companies; OR
b) Regular travels to Portugal over the course of the applicant's life, as proof of an effective and lasting connection to the country.
With the enactment of the amendments approved, applicants may now submit and ground their application whenever they:
- Hold a Portuguese residence permit for more than one year.
Entry into force of the proposed changes to the Portuguese Nationality Law
One must bear in mind that these changes will only come into force one month after they are published in the Diário da República (Official Gazette of the Republic of Portugal), following their enactment by the President.
The President is expected to enact the draft law within 20 days of receiving it (which has not occurred yet).