Portugal’s parliament has enacted a significant amendment to its nationality law, allowing residents to begin the five-year naturalization period from the date they submit their residency application, rather than from the approval date. This change effectively reduces the time required to obtain citizenship, addressing previous delays caused by administrative backlogs. Under the former system, the naturalization clock started upon approval of the residence permit, leading to extended waiting periods due to processing delays. The new legislation ensures that the naturalization timeline aligns more closely with applicants’ expectations, potentially shortening the path to citizenship by several years.
