Portugal News

July 23, 2026 — The Government will discuss today, in the Council of Ministers, a proposal for the reform of administrative and tax justice that foresees the creation of specialized courts for immigration and international protection.

According to details, this will end the concentration, in Lisbon, of legal proceedings against the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA). The measure stems from the National Plan for the Integration of Immigrants, which has been under preparation since the beginning of the year and should be presented by the end of the summer.

London, 21 July 2026 — A growing number of Labour MPs are urging the UK government to reconsider controversial proposals that would extend the standard route to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) from five years to ten years for many migrants already living in the UK.

The Supreme Court upholds most of the Immigration Regulations, but introduces corrections on issues related to the protection of minors or family unity.

Madrid, July 18, 2026 — The Spanish Supreme Court issued a ruling on Monday modifying the assessment of criminal records for foreign nationals seeking to reside or work in Spain. The Administrative Chamber of the High Court resolved several amendments to the Immigration Regulations , which the government implemented through a royal decree last November.

These measures apply to those entering Portugal without a visa.

Lisbon July 17, 2026 — Two doors that allowed visa-free immigration were closed by Parliament this morning, July 17th: the possibility of regularization through a minor child in the territory and via a vocational training course. With the abstention of Chega, the ruling party obtained the necessary votes for the final approval of the text , in this last session before the recess.

Lisbon, July 17, 2026 — Portugal’s Parliament has approved changes to the TVDE law. Drivers will now need functional knowledge of Portuguese, at least 50 hours of training and a pass mark of 27 correct answers out of 30 in the final exam.

The maximum age of TVDE vehicles will increase from seven to 10 years, and to 12 years for electric vehicles. Vehicles must display a permanent anti-fraud identification sticker issued by the IMT.

The existing fence between the British colony and the Spanish city of La Línea de la Concepción will cease to exist. The historic agreement "opens a new era" between Europe and Gibraltar.

The agreement, reached this year, ten years after the referendum that approved Brexit (the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union), was signed in the early afternoon in Brussels.

Lisbon July 14, 2026 — A special team of 28 administrative judges has advanced or concluded around one-fifth of the immigration cases filed against Portugal’s Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum, AIMA.

The task force began work in April to deal with roughly 124,000 delayed proceedings involving residence permits, appointments, family reunification and other immigration matters. One-fifth of that total represents approximately 25,000 court files.

The goal is to prevent immigrants from having to visit Social Security offices twice to obtain their NISS (Social Security Identification Number)

Lisbon, July 14, 2026 — Starting at the end of this month, immigrants who go to the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) will automatically receive their Social Security Identification Number (NISS).

London July 13, 2026 — The UK Home Office is reportedly considering a significant compromise over its proposed immigration reforms, potentially allowing some migrants who arrived in Britain from 2021 onwards to qualify for indefinite leave to remain after five years rather than waiting ten years.

The court has also refused to suspend the government’s extraordinary regularisation decree, allowing the process to continue while legal challenges from Valencia and Aragón are considered.

Madrid, July 13, 2026 — Spain’s Supreme Court has decided not to refer legal questions concerning the country’s extraordinary migrant regularisation programme to the Court of Justice of the European Union at this stage.