"The Central Archive of Porto receives between 500 and 600 emails a day with questions about the status of nationality applications . This statement comes from Isabel Almeida, director of the Central Archive of the Porto Registry Services. At an event on immigration promoted by the Bar Association (OA) , the professional explained that the workload is “far exceeding” what they can handle.
“If we responded to everyone, there certainly wouldn’t be enough workers to process the cases ,” Isabel stated. According to the director, even when they respond to requests for information, they soon receive new messages from the same person. “It often happens that we respond today and, a week, a month, or two months later, the person comes back to ask about the status of the case,” she said.
According to the conservator, the volume of cases was already high and, with the anticipated change in the law soon, it has increased even further. "Now, with this prospect of a change in the law, a huge number of requests are coming in every day ," she emphasized.
At the same time, he stated that all employees “do everything they can” to be as quick and professional as possible . "The public administration has a shortage of human resources, and that makes it impossible. Even if I didn’t sleep and was there 24 hours a day, always working, it wouldn’t be possible, " he exemplified.
One of the reasons that led the government to change the law is precisely to reduce the flow of applications, especially those based on length of residence. When approved again, it will be necessary to prove seven years of residency with a residence permit to be eligible for the application — a rule valid for citizens of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP). For others, the required time will be ten years"