OPORTO, Portugal, December 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
The Jewish Community of Oporto is already evaluating the applications of people claiming to be descendants of Portuguese Sephardic Jews and for this reason wish to obtain Portuguese nationality.
According to the Regulation of the Nationality Law, which will be approved in the coming weeks, the applicant for Portuguese Nationality must first obtain a Certificate from the Portuguese Jewish Community which attests to his/her ties to a Sephardic Jewish Community of Portuguese origin. A request for this Certificate must be addressed to the Jewish Community of Oporto or to the Jewish Community of Lisbon.
From 15th December 2014, the Jewish Community of Oporto is ready to receive requests from descendants of Portuguese Sephardic Jews who wish to obtain a certificate issued by the Portuguese Jewish Community attesting this status. The requests should be addressed by digital means to the following email address: portuguesenationality@comunidade-israelita-porto.org, together with the all of the supporting documentary evidence as may required for a proper evaluation of the matter and decision. Evidence of the applicant's family history of connection to a Sephardic Community of Portuguese origin may be direct and circumstantial. For more information please visit the official website of the Jewish Community of Oporto.
On July 3, 2013, the Portuguese Parliament approved the bill, amending the Nationality Law that allows descendants of Portuguese Sephardic Jews to apply for Portuguese nationality. The bill was introduced by Maria de Belem Roseira (President of the Socialist Party) and was approved unanimously in the Portuguese Parliament.
Now the Regulation of the Nationality Law is finished. It may take days or weeks to get published but the candidates certification needs to start now, for the majority of cases will take a long time.
