The measure does not come into effect immediately and requires further voting and bureaucratic procedures.
A transitional regime for immigrants who were unable to enter with the expression of interest and already have a Social Security number was approved in its first phase today (11) . The bill is from the Liberal Initiative (IL) and is the first step in a long bureaucratic process, and is not an automatic one.
The Social Democratic Party (PSD), the Socialist Party (PS), the Left Bloc (BE), the CD-PP and the Livre party voted in favor of the proposal. The Animals and Nature Party (PAN) abstained. The votes against were from Chega and the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP).
IL considers that the end of the expressions of interest, which came into effect in less than 24 hours, frustrated the expectations of those who were in the process of submitting an expression of interest. The procedure involves requesting several documents, such as tax number and Social Security registration, for example.
"The Liberal Initiative considers that this transitional regime is insufficient and unfair, as it does not include all people who, in the legitimate expectation of regularizing their stay in national territory through an expression of interest, had already regularized their situation with social security, with a view to completing the 12 months indicated in paragraph 6 of article 88 of Law no. 23/2007, of July 4, and are already integrated and stabilized in the Portuguese social and economic fabric", it highlights in the text approved today. The bill is only valid for those who were already in the country before June 3 and with the NISS assigned, and is not valid for those who do not have the NISS or who are thinking of coming to Portugal.
The text is not clear about the necessary contribution period to be covered. The press office of the IL parliamentary group confirmed that there is no minimum contribution period. "There is no minimum. People also did not know that the law was going to change," explains an official source from the party.
The measure approved today will not come into effect immediately. The bill will be sent to the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees, where it will be analyzed and voted on again. At this stage, the text may also undergo changes before being put to a general and final vote. After the necessary approvals in Parliament, it must be approved by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
The next step is publication in the Official Gazette (DRE). However, in practice, it will still take longer to become effective. It will be up to the Government to implement the measure in practice, such as the system through which immigrants will be able to apply for a residence permit.
According to lawyer Rodolpho Sousa, an immigration specialist, "it is not known how it will be applied, what procedure will be adopted, whether these people or similar will be allowed to express their interest". According to the professional, "not even the expression of interest itself was a guarantee of having a title, but rather the beginning of a process, let alone just having a NISS".
Even with this first step, Rodolpho asks for caution. "There is indeed a light at the end of the tunnel for immigrants who were in limbo with the end of the expression of interest and were already in Portugal with the NISS, it remains to be seen what the procedure will be like, which will possibly come with a regulatory decree or some internal ordinance", he concludes.