In an opinion released today, the group, which brings together all former High Commissioners for Immigration and other experts, suggests to the Government a "compromise between the different perspectives at stake, increasing the period of legal residence in Portugal from five to six years before submitting an application for naturalization."

The government's proposed law, which will be voted on in September, proposes increasing the current five years (counted from arrival, not residence permit) to seven years for Portuguese-speaking citizens and ten years for others.

For the members of the Immigration Consensus, which is organizing a colloquium on the topic at the University of Lisbon on Monday, "access to nationality, for the right reasons, allows for stability and security in the country of residence and contributes to investment in long-term integration and inclusion."

According to the authors of the opinion, "the request for Portuguese nationality presupposes—and does not dispense with—a conscious and absolute respect on the part of the applicant for the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, as well as for the rule of law and the conventions and other key legal instruments to which Portugal is a signatory."

Compromise

Acknowledging that Portuguese society is divided on the issue of immigration, the group aims to "seek compromises and common ground between the different political and partisan positions present, striving for balance, common sense, and, of course, respect for the fundamental principles of a democratic society, structured on respect for the rule of law."

Access to nationality should not be, they warn, "seen as an instrumental option for other purposes, such as those arising from holding a passport from a Schengen country," but rather a "very important step in the process of integration and inclusion for many immigrants who effectively wish to integrate into the national political community."

Therefore, "sufficient knowledge of the Portuguese language and the civic and coexistence principles stemming from the Portuguese Constitution should constitute reinforced requirements for the granting of nationality through naturalization," the authors argue.

"Portugal, as a community of citizens, should view positively that someone, fulfilling all the legal requirements, wishes to join this community, assuming the resulting duties and rights," the authors argue, admitting that the recent election results contributed to "pressure for a restrictive review of the current law," the text states.

For the authors, the separation of deadlines for Portuguese-speaking and non-Portuguese-speaking people, as set out in the government's proposal, "violates the principles of equality and non-discrimination."

Alongside nationality, the authors advocate for "guarantees to be given to immigrant citizens who have a viable alternative to applying for nationality if they wish to remain in Portugal, namely through the efficient and appropriate renewal of their Residence Permit."

Language learning

The signatories advocate for strengthening the Institute of Registries and Notaries and for "ensuring access to Portuguese language learning for all non-Lusophone immigrants," "strengthening formal and informal education, and certification."

At the same time, "a national test should be introduced for those over 18 years of age to demonstrate knowledge of civic and coexistence principles stemming from the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic," similar to similar models that exist in Spain and the United Kingdom (the "Life in UK Test").

The authors also call for transparency from the State to combat disinformation, with the annual publication of a "national report on the processes of granting and acquiring Portuguese nationality, with data disaggregated by access method, sociodemographic profile, and service response times."

Regarding the loss of nationality for citizens naturalized less than ten years ago as an additional sanction after a crime, proposed by the Government, the authors of the report argue that the initiative should be overseen by the Constitutional Court.

Access to nationality "is an issue that should merit broad consensus in Portuguese society and not be either a weapon of political warfare or a factor in exacerbating the polarization and social fracture that we have been witnessing among us," the authors conclude.

Created in mid-June, this group includes four former high commissioners, former Secretary of State Catarina Marcelino, researchers Lucinda Fonseca and Catarina Reis Oliveira, and association leaders Eugénia Quaresma, director of the Portuguese Catholic Association of Migrations and Paulo Mendes, president of the Association of Immigrants of the Azores.