My parents are currently living in Portugal on a D7 Visa and are likely to become Portuguese citizens in 2027. My sister and I are both adults in our early 30s. We've made several trips to visit our parents and we are both studying Portuguese. Is there a method for me and my sister to apply for Portuguese citizenship after our parents become citizens? If so, what would that process look like?
As your parents are applying for citizenship on the basis of permanent residence based on a residence permit, you are not eligible to acquire nationality by filiation. However, you can apply for citizenship if you have been resident in Portugal on a residence permit for five years, or alternatively, wait for your parents' citizenship, apply for a certificate of residence for a family member of an EU citizen, and after five years of residence in Portugal, apply for citizenship.
The Portugal Passive Income Visa – also known as a D7 Visa – provides residency status to non-EU / EEA / Swiss citizens, including retirees, who intend to relocate to Portugal and are in receipt of a reasonable and regular passive income. After residing in Portugal for five years as a D7 visa holder, individuals can apply for a Portuguese permanent residence permit, which allows them to live and work in Portugal indefinitely. D7 Visa holders can also apply to become Portuguese citizens after five years of residency. As for Family Reunification with children fully aged (18 years old or more), the law allows it, if they meet the following conditions: they depend on the couple or one of the partners; they are single; they are studying in an education entity in Portugal.
After 5 years of legal residency, it is possible to apply for Portuguese citizenship by naturalization, however, the adult children of such applicants do not benefit from any right regarding such citizenship. Only minor children might access Portuguese citizenship after the acquisition by their parents, when fulfilling some conditions. Adult children must have their own period of 5 years of legal residency.
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