A group of foreigners residing in Portugal have filed a formal complaint with the Ombudsman against the Portuguese State concerning changes to the Nationality Law, according to the newspaper Expresso.
The group is represented by ten lawyers, and the case dates back to May, when a group of hundreds of investors, mostly holders of Residence Permits for Investment in Portugal, also called ARI and golden visas, decided to denounce the State due to legislative changes.
The movement grew to 1,260 signatories, who have now formalised the complaint.
Madalena Monteiro, founding partner of Liberty Legal, told the weekly newspaper of the Impresa group: “There are still more people who should join the complaint, after it has now entered the Ombudsman's office. We are already preparing a second round. It has been hell for people.” Monteiro says she has been receiving daily requests from investors of various nationalities who want to proceed with legal action.
The documents, submitted this Wednesday, also included proposals to amend the law, according to ECO News. A general concern is the number of years required to obtain nationality, as the group believes the text enacted by the President of the Republic “jeopardises the rights and legitimate expectations of thousands of applicants and holders.”
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Poor souls! Laws on nationality and citizenship are subject to change. It's Portugal's prerogative to do so. Deal with it, rather than complaining!
It's not right that a foreigner on payment of money can suddenly acquire Portuguese nationality. Nearly all of term will struggle to put a sentence together in Portuguese. A dog born in a stable doesn't suddenly become a horse, any more than a foreigner becomes Portuguese simply on payment of money.
Acquisition of Portuguese nationality needs to be tightened significantly further and only awarded in exceptional circumstances. I write this as a resident foreigner here myself.
By Billy Bissett from Porto on 29 Jun 2026, 07:17
Hi, changes to D7 visa holders too; we are 23/24 months thru our visa- when we applied, savings were enough, now we need an INCOME AND a NISS number. Gave up all we owned in UK to buy our home in Portugal, now unlikely our 3-5 year part of visa will be granted. Typically we can get no info from AIMA and social security and Loja won't help. We are supposed to receive our AIMA appointment and have access to their portal this month, but so far NO communication from them!
By Diane Fotheringham from Porto on 29 Jun 2026, 15:39
What an uninformed comment from the above poster.
Whether you can buy citizenship or not is not in question.
You could, that is a Portuguese law.
One may have invested a significant portion of their savings and locked it up for 5 years.
Now they have to lock it up for 10? You think this is insignificant?
Wouldn't it have been more equitable to grandfather that made that investment, and the new rules apply going forward?
This is going to cost Portugal money.
The Golden Visa is no longer as attractive as it once was.
Money will be leaving the country and not coming in as fast.
Maybe becoming a permanent resident is a better option, than citizenship.
To say it is no big deal , just deal with it in my opinion is just ignorant.
By j from Algarve on 01 Jul 2026, 10:30
Portuguese law has never allowed anyone to buy citizenship. The "Golden Visa" grants residency to investors, who must document their clean criminal backgrounds and legal source of funds. Portuguese law allows residents to apply for citizenship after several years of legal residency, which takes several more years, but the outcome depends on fulfilling all requirements: clean criminal background, proof of language skills, etc. "Golden Visa" people don't get any special treatment, except for being sent to the back of the line by the smirking Leitão Amaro.
By resident in limbo from Lisbon on 08 Jul 2026, 16:28