In a reform filled with new restrictions and longer waiting times, one change finally goes in favour of immigrants.
Portugal’s new Nationality Law 2025 introduces a simple but powerful promise:
Once you have been a Portuguese citizen for ten years, your nationality can never be revoked — as long as it was obtained in good faith.
It’s called the “Consolidation of Nationality” (Consolidação da Nacionalidade) — and it could become one of the most reassuring legal protections ever written for Portugal’s immigrant community.
1. A decade to peace of mind
For years, many naturalised citizens lived with a quiet fear — that a government audit or a minor error from the past could one day put their citizenship at risk.
The new Article 12-B changes that.
After ten years of good-faith possession of Portuguese nationality, it becomes permanent and untouchable.
Here’s what the law says:
“Portuguese nationality, once acquired or granted, cannot be annulled or revoked when ten years have passed since its acquisition or attribution, provided the person has held it in good faith and in an effective manner.”
That single sentence transforms the meaning of belonging.
2. Why this matters
This clause ends the uncertainty that shadowed many immigrants.
Under the old framework, even years after naturalisation, nationality could technically be annulled if new information surfaced — even if it wasn’t the citizen’s fault.
Now, Portugal recognises that a decade of honest citizenship is proof enough of loyalty, contribution and identity.
After ten years of paying taxes, raising families, speaking Portuguese, and living within the community — your nationality becomes yours forever.
No more reopening of files.
No more sleepless nights fearing administrative reviews.
3. How the rule works
- The protection applies to all citizens who acquire or are granted Portuguese nationality, including those who became citizens before this law enters into force.
- The ten-year period starts from the date of acquisition or attribution — the day your nationality was officially approved.
- The only exceptions apply to cases of proven fraud or bad faith in obtaining nationality, or to very specific criminal penalties under the Penal Code (for example, serious crimes against the State).
In practice, it creates a citizenship statute of limitations — after ten years, your nationality becomes untouchable.
4. A law that finally gives back something to immigrants
Most parts of the 2025 reform made the road to citizenship harder — extending residency from five to seven or ten years, removing the Sephardic route, and adding economic requirements.
But this clause does the opposite: it gives something back.
It tells every immigrant,
“If you’ve been Portuguese in good faith for ten years — no one can ever take that away.”
It’s a message of dignity and trust, something that the immigrant community in Portugal has long deserved.
5. A balance between control and compassion
This article also shows that Portugal’s lawmakers tried to balance two forces — political pressure for control, and the human need for certainty.
While the reform raises the bar for new applicants, it also raises the shield for those who have already proved their belonging.
It’s as if the law says:
“We may have made it harder to become Portuguese — but once you are, we’ll protect you as one of our own.”
6. Why this article might inspire hope beyond Portugal
Legal certainty after ten years of citizenship is rare in Europe.
Few countries explicitly write into law that nationality cannot be revoked after a fixed period.
Portugal’s move could become a model — especially for nations where naturalised citizens live under perpetual review.
For immigrants worldwide, this law whispers a rare promise:
that citizenship can be final, stable, and free from fear.
After ten years of good-faith citizenship, your nationality in Portugal becomes permanent and irrevocable.
In a reform that tightened so many doors, this article quietly opened one — not to entry, but to peace.
For thousands who have already made Portugal home, it is a long-overdue message of gratitude:
You’ve given ten years of your life to this country — now, it gives you forever in return.
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