To be fair, Braga used to be 5-6 months ahead of Porto, they were doing 2024 feb-march when Porto was stuck with Sep 2023 cases; but I don’t recall seeing the newer applications getting approved from Braga. I might be simply unaware of the newer ones. My thinking is there is an intentional avoidance of cases that are submitted after expression of interest till the new comes into effect. Therefore, IRNs would slow down so that they cases based on expression of interest stay in the que. Espinho and Guimarae have been outliers, let’s see if the trend will continue.
In my opinion there shouldn’t be this much level of processing difference between the IRNs, as it creates an unfair situation, as some might be lucky and some might be unlucky based on where their application is processed.
In my opinion the urgency should be finalizing all 2022 applications (given that there is no falta) and then the 2023 applications.
Do you think that if a new law comes into effect, it will kill off all “Manifestação of Interesse based” applications although all those applications were submitted way before the date of a new law? It means that the killing action must be done retroactively, right?
If a new law comes into effect which very likely means that 5 years requirement becomes 10 years requirement for non CPLP. With the same logic above, will a new law also kill all of pending application due to new introduction of physical requirement (10 years) although applications were submitted way before the date of a new law?
I would not call Espinho and Guimarãe outliers because it is nothing when comparing these two to Vila Nova de Gaia . In January, one application (via Manifestação of Interesse) was concluded by Vila Nova Gaia -applied in Jan 2025 and concluded in Jan 2026. Only 11.5 months. It is still the undisputed record by far. The guy posted his detail including his face and his passport in forums. The true outlier so far is Vila Nova de Gaia . However, there are also applications in Gaia waiting since May June 2023 and are not concluded!
I have written the Expression of Interest route before - however if it was to me, in my opinion all existing applications should be grandfathered with the current rules. Yet there is the discussion about, lack of back-end legislation for expression of interest.
Vila de Nova can be the fastest, I agree, I just mentioned the two that came to my mind first.
Anyway I believe I have written enough on this, hopefully things will speed up and we will start hearing series of approvals.
Hello everyone,
I just wanted to quickly share that my nationality application was approved today — bizarrely, on a Sunday night! I entered the GV program in late 2017, and my application process lasted almost three years.
I am tremendously grateful to this community and wish everyone success after such a long journey.
What was your process number - feel free to convert the last 2 or 3 digits to 000 to mask but pls give the year ss well. So mine would be 35xxx 2024 March
Huge congratz on your portuguese citizenship’s outcome. You totally deserve it after a so long wait.
Art 2 takes 4 years to finalise… I find it quite shocking because what happens if at the time of submitting application, kids are 15/16, but during the process they age out and are over 18 years old…
At age 18, they could apply on their own so it might not be such a big deal.
But as to your scenario the TC noted that you have to separate the conditions at the time of application and at the time of decision. Since the requirements were met at the time of application, I don’t believe it would be constitutional to deny them citizenship because of getting older while the process is worked out administratively. This would amount to a retroactive change of conditions for the child.
Of course, the TC focused on the time of decision as being critical but I don’t think that would make any difference in this scenario. The TC decision is very convoluted, so it is a lot to unpack.
Firstly, muito parabens on the citizenship approvals. It would be interesting to know how long you spent in each of the various stages. I’ve been stuck in the submitted stage for a year
Congratulations. We have now been buggering about since Feb 2018 and it looks like it will take another year. I have a Schengen visa until next April. Better get boots on and plan to get it renewed.
Do these numbers mean that by March 2024, Portugal had only ever naturalized 35 thousand people via article 6.1? Or do they reuse numbers after the processes are concluded?
I believe that’s an annual cumulative number, so Portugal had 35k applications from Jan to March in 2024. For reference, I applied in mid-Feb of last year, and my process number is 10xxx/25.
My application number is 293XX/2023, submitted in March 2023. My citizenship process was a bit dramatic. Back then, my lawyer unfortunately submitted it to the Amadora IRN. It started well, reaching Step 2 within just two months and even receiving an AIMA response in May 2023.
After that, the situation in Amadora deteriorated rapidly. Due to staff retirements and an influx of applications, the IRN effectively became paralyzed around mid-2023. To put into perspective, the amadora IRN processed around ten citizenship applications over a two, three-year period. It maintained a facade of being open, while in reality, it had lapsed into a state of total dormancy. After exhausting all contact channels with relevant government departments, I felt compelled to initiate an administrative lawsuit (ação administrativa) last year. At the time, most lawyers were uninterested with my case, dismissing it as general administrative delay rather than a case of personal “urgency” (like illness or age).
Persistence, however, paid off. Within one month of the court notifying the IRN in November 2025, a sudden shift occurred. Perhaps a coincidence, or perhaps the collective pressure of multiple lawsuits. The central IRN shuttered the Amadora nationality counter and transferred the entire backlog. From that point on, my file moved to Lisbon and proceeded with steady speed toward the finish line. Throughout the litigation, I feared the lawsuit might backfire—that the IRN, would appeal to the very last end and freeze my application until a final verdict was reached, potentially prolonging my wait indefinitely. Fortunately, my anxieties proved to be unfounded.
Reflecting on the GV journey, I believe every applicant eventually encounters their own bottleneck, to varying extents, be it the initial card, renewal, or the final citizenship. While I was fortunate during the earlier stages, I ultimately met my match at the very end. It is a systemic tax on even the best-prepared candidates. Yet, in the end, we prevail.
Congratz again and many thanks for having shared your journey here.
Are you a single GV applicant? or do you still have dependents (minor/adult)? Will your dependents also apply for citizenship as well?
Many thanks. I applied as a single applicant. I don’t have children and wasn’t married at the time (I only got married this year; my spouse is an EU citizen, so he is not involved in the GV). Therefore I’m afraid I can’t offer much help to those applying with families or dependents. Best wishes!
Congratulations! it seems as if there is finally some movement in Porto. I also entered the program around late 2017, but I withdrew my initial application in 2018 from Lisbon and applied from Porto as I was told that there were delays in Lisbon. Back in those times, I was able to get my initial application getting approved in 4 months! Now that seems like a fiction..
Hopefully I should be hearing from Porto soon as I’ve waited for quite some time. It is now over 29.5 months if you start counting from the actual submission, and over 28 months if you count it from the submission date shown in the system.
Thanks. That’s exactly my situation. My spouse was the primary and got their’s in 2023 (a whole other saga … anybody else here when CAPLE was hacked and all the A2 results lost !). Our 15 year old applied immediately after, and is now 19. As long as they submit while still under 18 it’s apparently fine, but we actually don’t know how it will play out, since IRN hasn’t opened the file yet. I’m anticipating requests for all sorts of paperwork that wasn’t required for a 15 year old. The irony is that mine, coincidentally, went in 2 weeks later. As @portugalwanderer said, at 18 they can do a 6.1 application in their own right if they’ve done the time and don’t manage to get in before.
Thanks. Mine was on stage one from 02/23 (submetido) until 06/25 (em análise). I sent an impassioned letter to IRN in 06/25, which may or may not have prompted them to open the file. They replied that they were waiting for “external entities”, which they subsequently clarified was AIMA. Also received a demand on the system for lawyers’ POA and certified language certificate (both of which the lawyers swear were uploaded in 2023). Changed to stage 3 (para decisão) in 11/25 and concluded in 02/26.
I didn’t realise you’d been in for so long! I’m definitely seeing movement on the early 2023’s at ACP, with quite a few coming in just under 3 years. Hang in there.
!). Our 15 year old applied immediately after, and is now 19. As long as they submit while still under 18 it’s apparently fine, but we actually don’t know how it will play out, since IRN hasn’t opened the file yet. I’m anticipating requests for all sorts of paperwork that wasn’t required for a 15 year old. The irony is that mine, coincidentally, went in 2 weeks later. As