Portuguese passport - worsening, yes or no?

At the beginning of 2015, the new Citizenship Law came into force in Portugal. The amendment allows the descendants of Spanish and Portuguese deportees in Spain from Spain and about five years after Portugal to receive citizenship from the state. The new citizenship law is intended to correct the historical injustice caused to Jews expelled from the country, and the Portuguese legislature recognizes the natural rights of expelled children. With the entry into force of the new citizenship law in Portugal, tens of thousands of Israelis began applying for citizenship.

Shortly after the first Israelis began to receive Portuguese citizenship, thousands more began to apply for citizenship. It is important to note that citizenship from Portugal entitles them also to issue a Portuguese passport, which is a direct entry ticket to the European Union. Portugal is a member of the European Union, its residents receive many benefits, and an Israeli who receives citizenship from the state can enjoy many advantages such as free or nominal education, the possibility of working in the European Union,

The worsening of Jews seeking Portuguese citizenship - true or not?

There have recently been claims by several sources that the Portuguese government has begun to toughen the demands for citizenship. According to the application - which does not reflect reality, due to a large number of requests for Portuguese citizenship, the legislature decided to tighten the checks and demand definite proof of the connection to the descendants of the deportees. There is no real aggravation on the part of the Portuguese legislator, and the conditions for obtaining the Portuguese passport have hardly changed.

The authorities in Portugal have issued only guidelines to refine eligibility procedures. It is worth knowing that the Portuguese authorities authorized the heads of the Jewish communities in the country to examine the applications for citizenship, and now the Portuguese legislature has slightly sharpened the procedures and added demand for more careful examination of the family tree. In fact, when applying for a professional and leading company specializing in Spanish and Portuguese citizenship, the company's team includes genealogists whose job it is to collect information about relatives, and the request includes a detailed pedigree. Therefore, there is no real argument that the Portuguese government began to worsen with the descendants of the deportees who wish to receive citizenship from the state, and there is no need to stress or fear that the dream of the Portuguese passport is getting farther away.

Process for examining eligibility for citizenship from Portugal

As soon as the new citizenship law in Portugal came into force, many began to submit an application to the relevant authorities in Portugal to exercise their entitlement to citizenship and then a Portuguese passport. The large Jewish communities in Portugal, Lisbon, the capital and Porto, were authorized to review the requests. During the examination, the documents that were attached to the application were examined, and the level of examination at the beginning was relatively superficial. The procedures of the examination have now been sharpened, and the heads of the Jewish communities are required to examine more thoroughly the blood connection and verify the authenticity of details in the family tree. Therefore, this is a technical clarification only, and not a change in the law and the requirements for exercising eligibility.

For Israelis who wish to receive citizenship from Portugal, there is no difference between the existing situation and the previous one. It is worthwhile to take advantage of the opportunity shared by many - a European passport that offers many significant benefits.