Chega Wants Passport Revocation for Recent Citizens Convicted of Heinous Crimes

Settle in Portugal long enough and you quickly learn how cherished citizenship can be: it opens an entire continent without border checks, lets you vote in local elections and, for many expatriates, represents an emotional milestone after years of paperwork. This week the government signalled that the passport may also become easier to lose for a narrow group of people convicted of extremely serious crimes.

A new tool in the criminal-justice toolbox

Minister of the Presidency António Leitão Amaro announced that judges will soon be able to apply loss of nationality as an additional sentence for naturalised citizens who receive at least five years of effective prison time for offences such as terrorism, espionage, treason, homicide, rape or other acts of extreme violence. The measure forms part of a broader package of changes to Portugal’s Nationality Law that the Council of Ministers has agreed to send to parliament.

Who could actually be stripped of a passport?

The proposal targets people who acquired Portuguese citizenship less than a decade ago. It leaves birth-right citizens untouched and, according to a senior official, will be placed exclusively inside the Nationality Law rather than the Penal Code. That distinction matters: prosecutors would still demand a standard criminal conviction first; only after a judge issues a prison term of five years or more could the same court decide whether revoking nationality is proportionate.

Why the date of the crime matters more than the verdict

Under the draft wording, the decisive moment is the criminal act itself. In practice, someone who commits an eligible offence seven years after naturalisation could face denaturalisation even if the verdict arrives after the ten-year mark. Constitutional lawyers note that the Portuguese Basic Law forbids creating stateless individuals, so the sanction would only apply if the person holds—or can reasonably reclaim—another nationality.

European context and domestic politics

Several EU countries, including France and the United Kingdom, already allow denaturalisation in terrorism cases. Lisbon’s centre-right coalition argues it needs comparable leverage to deter crimes “that strike at the heart of the Republic.” The largest opposition party has complained that the proposal risks creating two classes of citizens, while human-rights NGOs warn of potential discrimination if the rule is applied unevenly across ethnic communities.

What happens next

The Nationality Law amendments must clear parliament, where coalition parties hold a slim majority but may still adjust the text during committee hearings. If approved, the government expects the rules to enter force early next year, giving courts a brand-new, if controversial, sentence at their disposal.

Bottom line for foreign residents

For the vast majority of naturalised citizens—professionals, retirees, digital nomads, and the children of long-time immigrants—the change will remain a distant theoretical risk. Still, the development underlines just how closely Portugal now links citizenship privileges to civic responsibility and reminds newcomers that legal reforms do not end once the passport is issued.