Language required for citizenship - GV

More easist is ED pro . We took all our certificate and we submitted for our citizenship 5 month before.

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As long as an institute is offering a SIGO verifiable A2 qualification, means you are eligible to apply for a permanent residency or a Citizenship in Portugal. SIGO is the only platform in Portugal which does record every sort of qualification earned within the national territory. So, it doesn’t matter where you have gotten the certificate.

If you are happy with that institute with your previous experience, you have nowhere else to look
 Good luck

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I’m happy with Lusa, can’t speak to the certificate but all the teachers we’ve had with them have been good

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I would check with your lawyers, also with the Portuguese Nationality group on facebook, they may have more experience in this


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Took classes at Lusa all the way through C1 (think that’s where I stopped). With that and tutoring in between the in person classes, I passed the CIPLE test after a year and a half of study.

Would be interested to know the answer to your question as I was under the impression only passing the CIPLE or taking a class accredited through PLA (which Lusa is not) qualify.

Anybody have experience with https://nialp.pt ?
And if passing this class counts as your A2 requirement for citizenship?

Also - does A2 ever expire? My citizenship test is years away but wanted to start early.
Thanks!

Hello! Those courses do not allow you to get the official certificate.

The only eligible ones are PLA and CIPLE A2
Both are recognized for citizenship and are lifetime valid (non expiration)

CIPLE A2 you have exam (check available slots)
On the caple website while PLA are courses you can attend at public school and qualifica centers
You can find online intensive courses you can attend via edpro with one of the official bodies

Kingo, I asked them (NIAPL) if it is official, and they said yes it is. I’ve sent the info to my PT immigration lawyers to get their perspective on it. Anyone else ever used NIAPL?

Kingo - do you have links for those two by any chance? Thanks

It s not matter of lawyers or niapl it s about laws and decree laws :
Some lawyers even don t know about the pla 


Here we go :
https://www.edpropt.org/
For intensive online courses 2 months costs 700 euros (10/2023 ) may be fees have changed since 10/2023.
Uou have to follow policy: 90% attendance, participation, Interaction
Sucess rate around 100% but 4 hours a day could be challenging and annoying espacially at the end of the courses ( 2 months) but think goals and achievement 
2 months and it s done :white_check_mark:

75 euros around

It s an exam, most of people succeed
But you have to pay the lessons and could cost 2k euros

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Speaking of decree law, please see Decree-Law No. 237-A/2006, Article 25, paragraph d. This paragraph references certificates issued by bodies other than PLA courses.

d) Certificate attesting to the completion of level A2 or higher of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, issued by public educational establishments, employment and training centres and protocol centres of the Instituto do Emprego e da Formação Profissional, I.P. (Institute for Employment and Vocational Training) (IEFP, I. P.), under Ordinance No. 1262/2009, of 15 October, as amended;

It appears to me (IANAL) that there are routes other than CIPLE and PLA for proving sufficient (A2) knowledge of Portuguese for the purpose of nationality. I’m going with Lusa School, which is “
accredited Professional Training Center
” and they issue a SIGO certificate which is adequate for the purpose of applying for nationality. (per them)

Best wishes,
Daniel.

Reference: https://files.dre.pt/StaticContent/DLei_237-A_2006_EN.pdf

thanks for this Daniel. It is the SIGO certificate that is they key if you are taking a certificate course and not planning to take the language exam. I am leaning towards LUSA’s certificate. I am tracking down a couple more legal opinions, although your interpretation (mine as well) seems to be accurate
at least until the next change (or “clarification”)

Does this mean you can just do 80 hours to prove A2, assuming you already self studied up to A1?

That could be much more manageable schedule wise.

If you find a good option for people working full time and based in US time zone please update!

I know there are different opinions on this, but let’s stick to the facts.

I’d rather move forward confidently when applying for citizenship than risk the three-year process because of a conservator’s interpretation.

They do consider IEFP, PLA, or CIPLE, and they’re more likely to approve an application if you apply with any of these official and recognized certificates.

Language proficiency is super important in a citizenship file since it’s considered by law the strongest proof of ties to the community. So, make sure your language skills meet the requirements set by the conservatory.

Regarding PLA, it’s transcribed on the SIGO platform,

I recommend taking the CIPLE exam since you’ve followed the Lusa courses. It’s just a matter of booking a seat and paying the 75 euros fee. If you pass the exam (and you will) you have the precious certificate in hands.

Remember, doubting during the nationality process can be a real pain. So, don’t take any chances. Get the CIPLE exam as a bonus, and you’ll be well on your way to citizenship.

Oh, and other routes you will end up with
2-3 k euros cost for courses, which is a lot of money (Lusa like courses)

Language courses are a a huge business in Portugal, so navigate carefully
 it s about money for a lot of private school, Nationality is more than this for applicants

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Which statements above do you consider “opinions” and what are the “facts” that contradict them?

Are you stating that a SIGO certificate issued by Lusa School is invalid for nationality?

Thanks,
Dan.

Sorry if this has already been discussed but with nearly 200 posts I can’t read the entire thread.

Does anyone know if these A2 level online courses offered by Instituto Camoes and the certificate they issue would be accepted for a citizenship application?

The advantage of this course is that it is mainly by self-study, meaning you complete the course materials each week in your own time, except for a weekly 30 minute interaction with a tutor via Skype. The course is 12 weeks and they expect you to spend approx 6 hours per week in your own time, but you get an official certificate upon completing the course.

Nope, it doesn’t count.

@TommyReine Thanks for replying. Did you want to explain further?

I agree. The ways you’ve cited are the clear ways to achieve the language requirement. I guess it just depends on how much you would want to take chances (unless you can get examples from attorneys where those certificates have worked).

Although Lusa may give you a certificate, I can’t get past the fact that you will have studied only 80 hours at of the end of A2 level vs. the required 150 hours for a PLA class.

I would not however be assuming everyone easily passes the CIPLE test after completing A2. Lusa intensive classes go quickly through grammar. We were literally learning one or two tenses per week and once that was done you moved on to the next with very little reinforcement of what you had already learned. If you have other foreign language experience, most of what they teach you’ll already understand the concepts (even if the words are completely different). What you don’t do a lot of in the Lusa intensive classes is speaking, writing or listening (other than to the teacher) and you should supplement your classes with these activities (italki or Preply for tutors to practice speaking and writing- listening to podcasts).

I was paired with a young man who lived in Porto for the speaking portion of CIPLE and he did not pass the test (he had been taking classes - not sure where).

If you don’t pass, my understanding is you cannot retake until the next testing “season” (this is unclear to me but think it means the following year). So you will want to be prepared. I can get by in three other languages latin-based languages but it was still a challenge.

Just had a reply from my lawyer re the Instituto Camoes course to say -

“ Yes, this is an acceptable one as well.

Yet, I would recommend having an email from them confirming if the certificate of participation is enough for the citizenship application in Portugal.”

Hmmm, not sure. They are bound to say yes, right?

Honestly PLA worked very well for me
And would be the best
Sucess rate is around 100%

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