Portuguese citizenship by naturalisation is open to foreign nationals who have lived in Portugal as a legal resident for at least five years and meet other eligibility requirements. This entails holding a long-term residence permit for the period spent in Portugal.

Benefits of Portuguese Citizenship by naturalisation include:

01
Eligibility to pass Portuguese nationality on to descendants
02
The rights and duties of a full citizen of Portugal such as voting, paying taxes, participating in public tenders or offers, accessing public health care, social security and pensions, as well as domestic tuition fees
03
Ability to move easily between European countries or to live, study and work in any of the EU member states
04
Portugal allows dual citizenship, so Portuguese citizens are permitted to retain their home country’s passport if their home country permits dual citizenship
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Portugal’s passport grants a visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to over 175 countries worldwide and is currently grouped in the 3rd position on the passport power ranking list
06
Portuguese citizens are not restricted in their ability to acquire real estate in Portugal

Eligibility for Portuguese Citizenship by Naturalisation


To be eligible to apply to become a Portuguese citizen by naturalisation, the applicant must have the following:

01
At least five years of residency in Portugal
02
A clean criminal record (not involved in any crime punishable by a prison sentence)
03
Knowledge of the Portuguese language at least to A2 level
04
Proof of integration into the Portuguese community
05
No tax liabilities in Portugal

Documentation required to apply for Portuguese Citizenship


An applicant is required to submit the following documents:

01
Portuguese residence permit
02
Letter addressed to the Portuguese Ministry of Justice requesting Portuguese citizenship
03
Criminal record certificate
04
Birth certificate
05
Proof of knowledge of the Portuguese language to at least A2 level on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale

Applicants will be notified if additional documents are required. If there are no requests for additional documentation, an application for Portuguese citizenship by naturalisation typically usually takes a year from submission.

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