Yes, I know for a fact my lawyers represent several clients who have received their passport after GV. I asked this recently, as this is important to me.
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Somehow, I suspect it would reflect very, very badly on your citizenship application if you didnât hang onto it.
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Would you happen to know what the relative âstrengthâ of their connections to Portugal were? GV only, regular visits longer than the minimum (e.g. summers in Portugal), lived in Pt for part of the residence period? Since the early days of the program were investments in property, would be considered a more significant tie since they may have been in country more often/ longer than the minimum? Thanks!
Yes, ties to the community is not a requirement. My lawyers confirmed their clients who got their passport after GV stayed a couple of weeks per year, on holidays.
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Interesting article that just came out about this: https://www.imidaily.com/europe/some-portugal-golden-visa-investors-arent-getting-citizenship-in-year-5-despite-meeting-presence-requirements/
Not a lot of hard evidence, more like âanecdataâ but still worth a look.
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Interesting article, but it seems to be outdated by 12 days 
Hereâs the most recent bit of good news regarding the updated regulations:
"The Portuguese Government had finally updated the regulation, regarding the updated made to the national law in November 2020. For almost two years, processes have been waiting for the regulations to be updated in order to the changes approved in 2020 to be put in force.
From the recent updated regulations, we would like to highlight two aspects:
It is finally establishing the process for the inscription of newborns babies, born in Portugal, and sons of foreigners with any type of residency in Portugal; and
It is clearly established that any type of residency in Portugal (including the Golden Visa), after 5 years of being issued, can request the Portuguese Nationality."
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Why is it just sons of foreigners? What if itâs a daughter?
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Honestly this is great news!
Thank you Tommy.
These points were actually in discussion 2 years ago, but did not get âtranscribedâ into law.
The most important one was the removal of the clause âties to the Portuguese communityâ this clause was very problematic for GV holders applying for a Nationality and left a lot of room for the Judge/inspector to interpret as they see fit.
The article mentions something about it, but does not outright mention itâs removalâŠI hope some legal amendments to the law come out very soon.
Regardless, itâs good news that the issue is being addressed.
Regards,
Bisho
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Itâs obviously some poor translation from PT to EN.
I am pretty sure the original says âos filhosâ, which simply means âchildrenâ as well as âsonsâ in Portuguese.
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The âimidailyâ article refers to previous situation before 18 March 2022 where the regulations were not yet updated to reflect the Nationality Law 2020.
Anyone applying for citizenship after 18 March 2022 will be just fine. 
That is interesting - itâs been in the pipeline for so long!
Iâve just taken a look through the updates to the Regulation (which comes into force on 15 April 2022) and compared it to the original Regulation from 2006. The main provisions for citizenship (at least, the relevant provisions for this Group) are Articles 19, 56 and 25, and this is my summary / take on it:
Residency requirement - changed from 6 years to 5 years
Art 19(1)(b) and 19(2)(b) - updated to (finally) reflect the Nationality Law 37/81 - changes the requirement for 6 years legal residency to 5 years. Hurrah! Already been done in practice, but good to get the Regulation changed.
âEffective connection to national communityâ
Art 56(5)(d) - a new provision - they now positively assume that you have an effective link to the community if you have âlegally resided in the territory of Portugal in the 5 years immediately preceding the request [i.e. application for citizenship]â.
My reading of this is that there is now an assumption you have an effective link if you have held (and complied with) a residency visa for over 5 years. That doesnât mean it canât be challenged, but the onus is on the Public Prosecutor to actively prove you havenât got an effective link (and actively object), rather than you proving you do have an effective link.
Art 56(6) - a new provision - how to prove âeffective connectionâ & language
This new provision simply advises / confirms that your legal residence + language skills are proven under Art 25âŠ
Art 25 - Proving Residency & language skills
A lot of new provisions have been added to this Art 25 (all around language skills), but getting your Portuguese language to the official A2 level is basically what is required - and passing the exam to get the certificate to prove that.
Art 25(1) - residency - this provision hasnât been changed by the updated Regulation and doesnât say much; just that SEF may issue a document confirming your residency. I suspect this is more if there are concerns about you and national security SEF may step in to advise about the validity of your residency; otherwise, your Residency Visa should be enough (I think).
In case anyone is interested, here are the 2 documents (original and amended Regulation)
Original Regulation from 2006: https://web.archive.org/web/20191204204219/http://www.pgdlisboa.pt/leis/lei_mostra_articulado.php?nid=895&tabela=leis&so_miolo=
Amended/Updated Regulation (effective, mid-April 2022): https://dre.pt/dre/legislacao-consolidada/decreto-lei/2006-34442175-180718705
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Thanks, this makes the position much clearer.
The public prosecutor can file a lawsuit within a year of the date of registration of acquisition of the nationality to object on grounds of an ineffective connection. I doubt they would take the trouble. I guess there will be more data points in a year or so.
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I would imagine each lawyer will have a different level of comfort of how strong of a case is necessary to show depending on ties to Portugal. The more ties they can show, the easier it is to make the case for citizenship.
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I think they are right⊠That sounds similar to what I have heard - if I do recall right, the law now details out how one can be considered having ties to Portugal - owning a property was one of them⊠A rent contract might be bare minimum for the connection, but if you donât have an address for residency I wonât be surprised if it becomes an excuse for rejection of your citizenship application.
Hi @vipkapoor , i hope you are fine.
Yes, if you invest through hotel property restoration and apply for the portuguese golden visa you are able to apply for portuguese citizenship as long as you comply with the required criteria.
best,
Alexander
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Hi, yes you have to have the residency until you get your citizenship. Otherwise the linkage breaks and you donât want that.
You can still get the citizenship even if you are not living in Portugal. As long as you / the lawyer provide connections of you and Portugal. Living in Portugal, even partly, is the easiest ties you can show.
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My lawyer recommended the same (keep my GV investment and address until citizenship is approved), although it doesnât seem to be a clear cut requirement.
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