Portugal Nationality Law Changes 2026: What to Check Before Applying

An American or a Briton who wants to apply for Portuguese citizenship now applies under article 6 of the Nationality Law as rewritten by Organic Law 1/2026, in force since 19 May 2026. The conditions are set out in nine lettered points, a) to i), with 10 years of legal residence for nationals of countries other than the Portuguese-speaking countries and the EU member states.

This guide sets out what the law text says, what the Regulamento and the IRN pages we read still show, and what to check before you file. It rests on the consolidated Nationality Law, Organic Law 1/2026 and the consolidated Regulamento on the Diário da República, and on IRN pages, all read on 18 October 2026. The latest change it states is Organic Law 1/2026 of 18 May 2026, with a rectification declaration dated the same day, listed on the Nationality Law page. It is not legal advice, and the registry that receives your file decides what it accepts.

What did Organic Law 1/2026 change?

The law amends articles 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12-B, 12-C, 14 to 19 and 25 of Law 37/81, and its article 5 repeals several paragraphs (paragraphs 5, 7 and 13 of article 6; points b) and d) of paragraph 1 and paragraphs 3 and 4 of article 9; paragraph 4 of article 12-B; article 13; and paragraph 4 of article 15). The Diário da República marks it “Em vigor”, and its consolidated Nationality Law page lists it as the latest change, together with Declaration of Rectification 17/2026/1, both dated 18 May 2026. We did not read the text of the rectification.

For an adult who applies by residence, the part that matters is article 6, which also changes how foreign periods are counted, how a past conviction is assessed and what an applicant must prove. The next sections follow it.

What must I meet to naturalize now?

Article 6(1) says the Government grants Portuguese nationality to people who, at the time of the request, meet all of these conditions together:

The law also says the conditions are checked “no momento do pedido”, which is the day you file.

How is residence counted?

Article 15(3) says that for the residence periods in the law, the legal residence periods in Portugal are added up, “seguidos ou interpolados”, as long as they fall within a maximum interval of 6, 9 or 12 years, depending on whether the applicant is stateless, a national of a Portuguese-speaking country or of an EU member state, or a national of another country. For an American or a Briton, the group is “other countries”, so 12 years.

Article 15(2) adds that this does not affect special regimes of legal residence under international treaties or agreements binding on Portugal, in particular in the context of the European Union and the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries. We did not read how that applies to a Briton covered by the Withdrawal Agreement. Our guide to Portuguese permanent residence and the AIMA residence permit process cover the permit side.

Our consolidated Regulamento reading still shows five years of legal residence in its article 19, which no longer matches the 10 years in the law. That is a sign the Regulamento has not caught up, not a rule you can rely on.

What changed for a conviction?

Point f) now applies to an effective prison sentence of more than 3 years for the crimes it lists: terrorism, violent and especially violent crime, highly organized crime, crimes against the security of the State and aiding illegal immigration. Article 6(14) says this condition is a rebuttable presumption, and that the public prosecutor assesses it when the services ask, weighing the sentence, the type of crime, whether it was intentional or negligent, the time since the crime, any repeat offense and the concrete circumstances that confirm or deny an effective and genuine bond with the national community.

Article 6(15) lets the person apply to a court to set aside the effect when the prosecutor applies it, and article 6(16) says the handling of the request is suspended from the moment the services ask the prosecutor to assess, until the prosecutor decides or the court case ends.

Article 6(11) says the proof that there is no conviction to a prison sentence of 2 years or more, referred to in point f), is made through criminal record certificates. The IRN profile page we read for people who have lived in Portugal for 10 years says to hand in a criminal record from the countries of birth and nationality and of residence after 16, and speaks of a sentence of “3 anos ou mais” without the list of crimes. We do not know the date of that page. Where it differs from the law text, the law text is the later source we read.

What else changed that may matter to an American or a Briton?

• Marriage and de facto union. Article 3(3) says a foreigner who lives in a de facto union with a Portuguese national for more than three years on the date of the declaration may acquire nationality after a court decision recognizing the union. Article 3(4) makes acquisition on those grounds depend on none of the situations in points f) to h) of article 6(1). Article 9(2) says there is no opposition to acquisition when the marriage or the union is more than six years old or the couple has children in common with Portuguese nationality, except on the grounds of points f) to h) of article 6(1).
• Opposition. Article 9(1)(a) lists, as a ground of opposition, the absence of an effective bond to the national community, taking into account the parameters in points c) to i) of article 6(1), including a conviction for the crime of insulting national symbols. Article 10(1) says the prosecutor files the opposition within two years of the registration of the acquisition.
• Exceptions to the residence condition. Article 6(8) lets the Government waive point b) for people who are third-degree descendants in the direct line of original Portuguese nationals and who have legal residence in Portugal for at least five years. Article 6(9) allows waiving points b) and c) for foreigners who have rendered or are called to render relevant services to the Portuguese State.
• Biometrics and registration. Article 12-C says biometric data are collected to prove the identity of the applicant and to check the conditions, and article 19(2) says the registration has constitutive effects.
• Consulates. Article 17(1) says nationality declarations before Portuguese diplomatic or consular agents must be made in person by the applicant, and article 17(2) allows an exception only for a proven, prolonged or permanent physical impossibility.
• Fees. Article 6(12) says the naturalization procedure is free for the people covered by paragraphs 2, 3 and 4. It does not cover an adult who applies by residence.

What happens to a file I already filed?

Article 7(2) says that administrative procedures pending on the date the law came into force are governed by the Nationality Law in its wording before the Organic Law. The Diário da República text does not say what “pending” means for a file filed but not yet decided, so ask the registry which wording it applies to yours. For a file you file after 19 May 2026, the new wording is the one in force.

Is the Regulamento updated?

Article 4 of the Organic Law told the Government to amend the Regulamento da Nacionalidade Portuguesa within 90 days of publication, which by our count ended on 16 August 2026. On 18 October 2026, the consolidated Regulamento on the Diário da República, Decree-Law 237-A/2006, lists as its latest change Constitutional Court ruling 522/2025 of 23 July 2025, and shows nothing later. The page itself says that a consolidated version has no legal value, so this does not prove that nothing was published. We did not find a new Regulamento, portaria or form on the pages we read besides the IRN’s 2026 request form, Modelo 6.1.

The IRN page “Nacionalidade portuguesa” carries the line “Informação atualizada a 18 maio 2026”. Our guide to the citizenship by residence process covers the form, the documents and the steps in detail, and the guide to proving Portuguese for citizenship covers condition c).

What should I check before I apply?

For the whole picture, from the residence permit to the oath, start with our guide to Portuguese citizenship for Americans and Britons.

Do Americans and Britons read this differently?

The law text sorts applicants by country group: Portuguese-speaking countries, EU member states and other countries. The United States and the United Kingdom are in none of the first two groups, so the 10 years apply to both. We did not read any provision that treats Americans and Britons differently. For a Briton who moved to Portugal before the end of 2020 and holds a Withdrawal Agreement residence document, article 15(2) refers to special regimes under treaties, and we did not read how it applies, so ask the registry.

What we read, and when

We read these pages on 18 October 2026: Organic Law 1/2026 of 18 May 2026 and the consolidated Nationality Law (Law 37/81) and Regulamento da Nacionalidade Portuguesa (Decree-Law 237-A/2006) on the Diário da República, the IRN pages “Nacionalidade portuguesa” and “Como obter a nacionalidade portuguesa” (including its page for people who have lived legally in Portugal for at least 10 years), and the IRN request form Modelo 6.1. The latest change they state is Organic Law 1/2026 of 18 May 2026, in force on 19 May 2026.