The changes to the foreigners' law were approved in Parliament this Wednesday, with votes from the PSD, Chega and CDS, abstention from the Liberal Initiative and rejection from the entire left.
Family reunification becomes more difficult, and a police force is created to expel undocumented immigrants. During the session, there was widespread criticism of the lack of mandatory opinions and the government's haste.
The PS even tried, at the last minute, to have the law removed from the voting script, but the appeal fell on deaf ears.
With the anti-immigration package approved this Wednesday (16) by the Portuguese parliament , the lives of thousands of immigrants who live, or plan to live in the country, have been affected. The new set of laws affects all immigrants in general, but may have a greater impact on Brazilians.
The package, which was proposed by the center-right Democratic Alliance government and approved by the far-right Portuguese party "Chega", brings four main changes to the Foreigners Law that directly affect Brazilians, namely:
- Residence permit : Eliminates the possibility of a tourist without a prior visa requesting a residence permit in Portuguese territory, even if they are from the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP).
- Family reunification : Restricts requests for family regularization to couples who can prove that they lived together in their country of origin.
- Family Regularization : Limits requests for family regularization to immigrants who have held a residence permit for at least two years. Brazilians have already appealed to the president before.
- Work visa : Decide to grant a six-month work search visa only to professionals considered qualified by the government.
The most restrictive of the changes, and the one that directly impacts Brazilians, is the first, as it tears up the agreement that allows bilateral mobility within the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).
The new package fails to fulfill the promise made by the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, who said he would open the CPLP channel for the regularization of Brazilians without visas, who enter as tourists, as has always been the case.
The expression of interest was the most popular regularization measure among Brazilians in Portugal, and the CPLP channel was a compensation measure provided for in an agreement signed between the bloc's countries, which the Portuguese government is now reneging on. It was terminated by the Portuguese government about 13 months ago.
Having been approved by the Portuguese Parliament, the package now needs to be analyzed and sanctioned within 20 days by the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who can request a review of the work by the Constitutional Court.