Good morning and welcome to PORTUGAL DECODED. The left delayed the nationality law vote until September. But the right will still push for immigration reform before summer recess. Here's the lowdown.
Thanks so much for all of the great info! I really appreciate the mix of immigration law/politics and the cultural events. I was in Portugal for a few days last month with a group of US high school students and can’t wait to return on my own.
Thanks for these posts. Very informative! Why do we always say “far right Chega” but never “far left PCP?” Should the reader be able to decide where a party resides on the spectrum?
Thanks for your message! I usually refer to PCP as the Communists, which I find helps give readers a quick sense of where they stand ideologically. That said, I try to be consistent and fair across the board, and I'm always open to rethinking the language I use if it helps readers better understand the political landscape.
Not an easy task! Chega is not a national socialist party, but certainly not just a right leaning party either. Some would label it ultra right, others conservative, and some perhaps may say that Chega is not conservative enough. Adjectives add our opinions don’t they!? I’m more inclined to just say PCP and Chega. Let the reader decide, if its news vs opinion pieces. Not easy to strip ourselves out of our words. I don’t envy you!
You're absolutely right that labeling political parties is rarely straightforward. As a political scientist myself, I fully recognize the complexity and the importance of precision in these matters. That said, in the case of Chega and PCP, the labels are relatively uncontroversial in both academic and media contexts. These two parties are consistently described as "far-right" (or, more broadly, "radical right") and "communist" respectively in the Portuguese press and scholarly research. A recent example is Vicente Valentim’s book, which offers a clear analysis along these lines: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Normalization-Radical-Right-Political-Democratization/dp/0198926715. Of course, all labels carry a degree of interpretation, but in this case, I believe they reflect a broad consensus rather than individual editorial judgment. Thanks for engaging so thoughtfully, I really appreciate it!
Sorry for my ignorance in this matter, but I want to make sure I properly understand the terminology. When you speak of "naturalization", does that mean obtaining citizenship in Portugal, or simply receiving a residency permit? And when for the chart that shows the number of applications currently under review, are those applications for citizenship or residency? I think naturalization = citizenship, but I want to make sure. Thanks!
Yes, this entire issue is about citizenship via ‘naturalization’, not temporary or permanent resident status. But those seeking the periodic renewals of their temporary resident permits have a whole other world of hurt to contend with, too.
I'm in that group, waiting for months now for the chance to renew my temporary residency permit. I try not to get too discouraged, but progress on that front has been very slow.
Hopefully you’re already aware of the risk of travelling to Portugal via other Schengen countries first when re-entering the Schengen Area, with an expired Temp Residency permit/card? If you’re within the 90 days after expiry, you might be lucky and be allowed back into Portugal. But longer than that and there’s a high risk you’ll be considered in breech of Schengen’s 90-out-of-180-past-days for tourist visa-waiver, and potentially deported back to your country of citizenship. A totally obnoxious situation that the PT govt doesn’t give a fuck about; their periodic ‘blanket resident permit extensions’ aren’t recognised in any other Schengen country.
Definitely aware of the situation. So far, 2025 has been the year of non-Schengen travel, with a couple of domestic trips (Madeira is stunning), a trip to the UK, and an upcoming trip to Ireland.
Thanks so much for all of the great info! I really appreciate the mix of immigration law/politics and the cultural events. I was in Portugal for a few days last month with a group of US high school students and can’t wait to return on my own.
Thanks for these posts. Very informative! Why do we always say “far right Chega” but never “far left PCP?” Should the reader be able to decide where a party resides on the spectrum?
Thanks for your message! I usually refer to PCP as the Communists, which I find helps give readers a quick sense of where they stand ideologically. That said, I try to be consistent and fair across the board, and I'm always open to rethinking the language I use if it helps readers better understand the political landscape.
Not an easy task! Chega is not a national socialist party, but certainly not just a right leaning party either. Some would label it ultra right, others conservative, and some perhaps may say that Chega is not conservative enough. Adjectives add our opinions don’t they!? I’m more inclined to just say PCP and Chega. Let the reader decide, if its news vs opinion pieces. Not easy to strip ourselves out of our words. I don’t envy you!
You're absolutely right that labeling political parties is rarely straightforward. As a political scientist myself, I fully recognize the complexity and the importance of precision in these matters. That said, in the case of Chega and PCP, the labels are relatively uncontroversial in both academic and media contexts. These two parties are consistently described as "far-right" (or, more broadly, "radical right") and "communist" respectively in the Portuguese press and scholarly research. A recent example is Vicente Valentim’s book, which offers a clear analysis along these lines: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Normalization-Radical-Right-Political-Democratization/dp/0198926715. Of course, all labels carry a degree of interpretation, but in this case, I believe they reflect a broad consensus rather than individual editorial judgment. Thanks for engaging so thoughtfully, I really appreciate it!
I wonder if the “academic and media contexts” are the best contexts?! I recognize that many expats are left of me on the spectrum!
Sorry for my ignorance in this matter, but I want to make sure I properly understand the terminology. When you speak of "naturalization", does that mean obtaining citizenship in Portugal, or simply receiving a residency permit? And when for the chart that shows the number of applications currently under review, are those applications for citizenship or residency? I think naturalization = citizenship, but I want to make sure. Thanks!
Yes, this entire issue is about citizenship via ‘naturalization’, not temporary or permanent resident status. But those seeking the periodic renewals of their temporary resident permits have a whole other world of hurt to contend with, too.
I'm in that group, waiting for months now for the chance to renew my temporary residency permit. I try not to get too discouraged, but progress on that front has been very slow.
Hopefully you’re already aware of the risk of travelling to Portugal via other Schengen countries first when re-entering the Schengen Area, with an expired Temp Residency permit/card? If you’re within the 90 days after expiry, you might be lucky and be allowed back into Portugal. But longer than that and there’s a high risk you’ll be considered in breech of Schengen’s 90-out-of-180-past-days for tourist visa-waiver, and potentially deported back to your country of citizenship. A totally obnoxious situation that the PT govt doesn’t give a fuck about; their periodic ‘blanket resident permit extensions’ aren’t recognised in any other Schengen country.
Definitely aware of the situation. So far, 2025 has been the year of non-Schengen travel, with a couple of domestic trips (Madeira is stunning), a trip to the UK, and an upcoming trip to Ireland.