Portugal might grant citizenship to stateless people after 3 years of residency under new proposal

Lisbon : Portugal’s green political party, Livre, has proposed to grant Portuguese nationality to stateless people who have been residing in Portugal for at least three years, provided they have sufficient knowledge of the Portuguese language and don’t pose a risk to national security.

The bill proposed by Livre is set to be discussed in the Parliament today, January 30, Schengen.News reports.

Individuals born in Portuguese territory as well as on board a ship flying the Portuguese flag or an aircraft registered in national territory be considered Portuguese, provided they do not have another nationality.

Based on the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the law affects people born in the former colonies who reached Portugal during the wars of independence as well as those who failed to retain Portuguese nationality and children and young people who arrived in this country without documentation and in many cases unaccompanied by adults.

The director of the Legal Department of the Portuguese Council for Refugees, Cláudia Pedrosa, told Jornal de Noticias that the identified stateless people entering Portugal come from Palestine, Iraq, and Western Sahara.

Every individual has the right to have a nationality and that the absence of this link has a serious and lasting impact on people, who are often subject to serious human rights violations.

In 2023, the Parliament of Portugal adopted a law that introduces the definition of a stateless person and recognises that stateless persons are entitled to a travel document and statelessness status.

Several parts of the Asylum Act and Immigration Act were updated through Law No. 41/2023. However, further legislation must be approved to create a process for determining statelessness, safeguards for applicants as well as the rights granted upon recognition of statelessness status.

Under Law No. 37/81 provided in the Official Gazette, “new-born children who have been exposed in Portuguese territory shall be presumed to have been born in Portuguese territory, unless there is proof to the contrary.”

The same emphasises that the government of Portugal shall grant nationality by naturalisation to minors born in this country, children of foreigners aged 16 who fulfil some requirements, among them have one of the parents Portugal residents for at least five years, one of the parents has a legal residence in Portugal and the minor has attended at least one year of pre-school or basic, secondary or vocational education.