on October 8, 2020

The 4 main requirements for Portuguese nationality by Sephardim

on October 8, 2020

Os 4 principais requisitos para a nacionalidade portuguesa pelos sefarditas

A frequent question for anyone who wants to apply for Portuguese nationality by the Sephardim is about the necessary requirements. Contrary to what some people still believe, it takes more than having Sephardic surnames or Jewish customs in the family, for example. We made a list with 4 main requirements for those who want to win the red passport:

1. Identify the Sephardic ancestor with documents

This is undoubtedly the first requirement: know who your Sephardic ancestor is and document all generations up to him or her. Start at home, with information from your parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.

2. You must be of legal age

Only people aged 18 or over they can apply for Portuguese nationality by Sephardim. You may ask yourself: “But what about my underage children, are they not entitled? "

Yes, underage children are entitled, but must wait for the father or mother to complete the process before filing the application as a child of a Portuguese citizen. In other words, it is a different process, in which you will have to meet some requirements demanded by the Portuguese government.

3. Certification by an authorized Israeli community

The Portuguese government determined that only two Israeli communities can analyze the genealogical study of the candidate for this type of nationality. They are the Israeli Community of Lisbon (CIL) and the Israeli Community of Porto (CIP). In possession of this document, it is possible to file the application itself with the Conservatory, the civil registration body in Portugal.

4. Criminal background

It is necessary that the candidate for Portuguese nationality by the Sephardim has not been sentenced to 3 years or more in all countries where you have lived since you were 16 years old.

After meeting all these requirements, it is time to collect some more personal documents and file the application with the Conservatory. The whole process takes an average of 2 years.

To learn more, watch our video:

Find out if you are a Sephardic Jew descent

You can find out if you have Sephardic ancestry. To do this, you just have to correctly answer all the fields on our pre-analysis form. There are no costs associated with completing the form.