Portuguese Citizenship in 2026: How to Get a Passport and Whether Investment Qualifies
Contents
Portuguese citizenship cannot be bought: Portugal has no citizenship-by-investment programme. Citizenship is granted by descent, through marriage or a civil union with a Portuguese citizen, or by naturalisation. Since 19 May 2026 naturalisation requires 10 years of legal residence, or 7 years for EU citizens and nationals of Portuguese-speaking countries.
What changed in 2026
On 18 May 2026 Portugal published Organic Law No. 1/2026, amending the Nationality Law (Law No. 37/81). It has applied since the following day, 19 May 2026.
- Longer residence for naturalisation: 10 years for most foreign nationals, 7 years for EU citizens and nationals of countries where Portuguese is an official language (art. 6(1)(b)). It used to be 5 years.
- Years add up, within a window: all periods of legal residence count, continuous or not, if they fall within 12 years (9 years for EU citizens and Portuguese-speaking countries), art. 15(3).
- More requirements: a test or certificate in Portuguese language and culture, history and national symbols, knowledge of citizens' rights and duties and of how the state is organised, a solemn declaration of adherence to the rule of law, and the means to support yourself (art. 6(1)).
- The Sephardic route is closed: the law repealed art. 6(7), which allowed descendants of Portuguese Sephardic Jews to naturalise without the residence requirement (art. 5 of the 2026 law).
- Pending applications keep the old rules: procedures started before 19 May 2026 are decided under the previous wording of the law (art. 7(2)).
Portuguese citizenship by investment
There is no such programme. Investment in Portugal gives you a residence permit; citizenship then comes through standard naturalisation.
The main investment route is the Golden Visa (ARI): from EUR 250,000 in support of the arts and national heritage, or from EUR 500,000 in investment funds, research or a business. Buying a home has not qualified since 7 October 2023. You need to spend 7 days in Portugal in the first year and 14 days in each following 2-year period.
Years with an ARI card count as legal residence. After 5 years you can apply for permanent residence, and after 10 years for citizenship, provided you meet the other legal requirements, including the language and culture test.
If you plan to relocate, the passive income visa (D7) and the digital nomad visa (D8) lead to the same 10-year milestone.
All routes to citizenship
| Route | Time | Key conditions | Law 37/81 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naturalisation by residence | 10 years (7 for EU and Portuguese-speaking countries) | legal residence permit, test, clean record, means of support | art. 6(1) |
| Marriage to a Portuguese citizen | married for more than 3 years | declaration made during the marriage | art. 3(1) |
| Civil union (união de facto) | union of more than 3 years | union recognised by a Portuguese court | art. 3(3) |
| Children of a citizen born abroad | — | birth registered in Portugal or a declaration | art. 1(1)(c) |
| Grandchildren of a citizen by origin | — | effective ties to the Portuguese community and naturalisation requirements, including the test | art. 1(1)(d) and 1(3) |
| Great-grandchildren of a citizen by origin | 5 years of legal residence | naturalisation without the 10-year requirement | art. 6(8) |
| Birth in Portugal | a parent legally resident for at least 5 years at the time of birth | declaration | art. 1(1)(f) |
| Sephardic descendants | — | closed since 19 May 2026 | art. 6(7) repealed |
Naturalisation: legal requirements
Article 6 of Law 37/81 lists conditions that must all be met on the date of application:
- being of age under Portuguese law;
- 10 years of legal residence in Portugal (7 for EU citizens and Portuguese-speaking countries);
- knowledge of Portuguese language and culture, history and national symbols, proven by a test or certificate;
- knowledge of citizens' fundamental rights and duties and of Portugal's political organisation;
- a solemn declaration of adherence to the principles of the democratic rule of law;
- no final sentence of more than 3 years' actual imprisonment for terrorism, violent crime, organised crime, crimes against state security or aiding illegal immigration;
- no threat to Portugal's security or defence;
- not subject to UN or EU restrictive measures;
- the means to support yourself.
The test format and filing procedure are set by the Nationality Regulation (Decree-Law No. 237-A/2006). The 2026 law gave the government 90 days from publication to update it (art. 4). Before filing we check which version of the regulation IRN applies on the application date.
How the 10 years are counted
Only legal residence counts: time with a valid residence permit or another status the law recognises. Periods can be added together if there were gaps, but they must all fall within a 12-year window (9 years for EU citizens and Portuguese-speaking countries).
The 2026 law repealed the rule that counted time from the date of the residence permit application (former art. 15(4)). If you applied for citizenship before 19 May 2026, your application is decided under the previous rules.
Marriage and civil union
A foreign national married to a Portuguese citizen for more than 3 years can acquire citizenship by a declaration made during the marriage. A civil union needs the same 3 years, but a Portuguese court must recognise the union first.
The Public Prosecutor can oppose such an acquisition if the applicant has no effective ties to the Portuguese community (art. 9). This ground cannot be used if the marriage or union has lasted more than 6 years or the couple has children who are Portuguese citizens.
Children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren
- Children of a Portuguese citizen born abroad are citizens by origin if their birth is registered in Portugal or they declare that they want to be Portuguese.
- Grandchildren of a citizen by origin who has not lost citizenship acquire it by declaration. They need effective ties to the Portuguese community and must meet the naturalisation requirements, including the language and culture test.
- Great-grandchildren can naturalise after 5 years of legal residence in Portugal, without the 10-year requirement.
Fees and filing
Applications are handled by IRN (Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado); naturalisation is granted by the Minister of Justice (art. 7). Fees under the IRN tariff:
- EUR 250 — naturalisation or acquisition by declaration (marriage, union) for an adult;
- EUR 200 — for a minor.
Naturalisation is free for children born in Portugal, stateless persons and children in state care (art. 6(12)).
You need criminal record certificates from Portugal and from your countries of birth and nationality and every country you lived in after the age of criminal responsibility (art. 6(11)).
Dual citizenship
Portugal does not require you to give up your current citizenship: Portuguese citizenship is lost only by your own declaration (art. 8). Your home country's rules apply separately:
- India: a citizen who voluntarily acquires another country's citizenship ceases to be an Indian citizen (Citizenship Act 1955, s. 9). Former Indian citizens can apply for an OCI card;
- Russia allows a second citizenship but requires notifying the Ministry of Internal Affairs within 60 days (Federal Law No. 138-FZ, art. 11(6));
- Kazakhstan does not recognise another citizenship held by its citizens.
To find out which route to a Portuguese passport suits your family, send us a request: a lawyer will review your case and estimate the timeline.
Sources
- Organic Law No. 1/2026 of 18 May — amendments and the full republished text of Nationality Law No. 37/81 (Diário da República).
- Organic Law No. 1/2024 — previous wording of art. 6(7) (Sephardic descendants).
- IRN, Custos dos serviços — nationality fees (Regulamento Emolumentar dos Registos e Notariado, art. 18).
- The Citizenship Act, 1955, section 9.
- Russian Federal Law No. 138-FZ of 28.04.2023 on Citizenship, art. 11.
- egov.kz — on dual citizenship.
Checked against primary sources on 26 October 2026.
