Portugal to End File Lock: Government Announces Immediate Revocation of Expressions of Interest for Residence Permits, Introducing Transitional Regime for Ongoing Applications
This is one of 42 measures introduced by the Government on Monday to address the migratory flow and pending processes at AIMA.
According to Luís Montenegro, the expression of interest will be immediately revoked through a decree law presented to the Belém Palace today. However, “it may be followed by a parliamentary review” if required by the Assembly of the Republic. The Government states that this new measure will enable the “permanent correction of irregular entries” into national territory.
“We will present the decree to the President of the Republic today and await its approval so that this procedure can be abolished with its promulgation and entry into force,” the Prime Minister announced during the program presentation. Luís Montenegro emphasized that the expression of interest “facilitates the entry of immigrants” and therefore “will end today.”
“We are going to put an end to a process where 400,000 pending applications symbolize a lack of capacity and care,” emphasized the Prime Minister.
To expedite the priority processes at AIMA, the Government announced the hiring of 45 visa analysts for the General Directorate of Consular Affairs and Portuguese Communities to strengthen the consulates. This is part of a broader strategy to enhance AIMA’s effectiveness.
The Government plans to create a mission structure with additional human, material, and financial resources through “extraordinary hiring measures” to address the over 400,000 pending regularization requests. This will include hiring more AIMA employees, inspectors from the former SEF (now part of the Judiciary Police), and other temporarily recruited specialists.
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