President hasn’t read nationality law yet, has concerns about foreigners law

The president of Portugal said on Sunday that he would review the nationality law soon, raised doubts about the law on foreigners, and requested a preventive review of the proposed revision by the Constitutional Court (TC).

“I will read the nationality law once parliament votes on it in September. Until then, I will follow my usual procedure: after the vote and upon its arrival in Belém, I will examine whether any issues of unconstitutionality or political problems exist, and if they do, I will take action. If everything is in order, I will sign it”, he said.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who was speaking to journalists in Marvão, in the district of Portalegre, on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the Marvão International Music Festival, preferred to withhold comment on the reaction of the parties after sending the law on foreigners to the Constitutional Court.

When journalists asked about his doubts regarding the law, the president explained that “several entities” had raised questions, which aligned with his own concerns.

“They are there [in the document sent to the Constitutional Court], they are in my explanation, and they correspond to the doubts that various entities raised, and therefore it is good that there is legal certainty. The Constitutional Court prefers prevention over cure; it will look at it and say whether it is justified, and legal certainty will be established”, he said.

“Because in our system, otherwise, what happens is that, if there are doubts, any court can at any time raise that doubt and then it goes up to the Constitutional Court, and it is there, much later and with possible differences of opinion, that the court of first instance rules”, he added.

The president preferred to withhold comment on the health services that were closed this weekend, emphasising that he is monitoring developments in this area.

On Thursday, he submitted to the Constitutional Court the parliamentary decree amending the legal regime governing the entry, stay, departure, and removal of foreigners from the national territory, which the PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP approved.

He also requested a preventive review of the constitutionality of the rules on the right to family reunification and the conditions for its exercise, on the deadline for the assessment of applications by the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) and the right of appeal.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also asked the Constitutional Court to act urgently, setting a deadline of 15 days for it to rule on the decree that parliament approved, with votes in favour from the PSD, CDS-PP and Chega, abstention from the IL, and votes against from the PS, Livre, PCP, BE, PAN and JPP.