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Change in the Foreigners Law tightens regularization in Portugal and reduces paths used by Brazilian students who arrived as tourists and sought residence authorization after enrolling in courses, especially vocational training.
Brazilian students who entered Portugal without a residence visa for study lost one of the main regularization routes in the country after the entry into force of Law No. 61/2025, which amended the Portuguese Foreigners Law.
According to information from the newspaper O Globo published last Friday (12), the amendment was approved by the Assembly of the Republic.
With stricter rules for residence authorization, the measure mainly affects foreigners who tried to transform a legal entry as tourists into regular stay through enrollment in courses.
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In the case of Brazilians, who do not need a visa for short stays in the Schengen area, the new legislation reduces the margin for regularization after arriving in Portuguese territory.
Although it does not determine the automatic expulsion of students, the law increases the legal risk for those who remain in the country without a valid residence permit or appropriate visa.
In this situation, the foreigner may be subject to removal procedures provided for in the regime of entry, stay, exit, and removal from Portugal.
Change affects route used by students without a visa
Before the legislative change, foreign students who were already in Portugal could resort to administrative paths to apply for residence authorization based on enrollment, especially in non-university level training.
This possibility has become more restricted in the new legal framework, which reinforces the requirement for a prior visa in different modes of stay in the country.
According to the Diário da República, Law No. 61/2025 amended Law No. 23/2007, the central norm on the entry, stay, exit, and removal of foreigners in Portuguese territory.
Among the modified points, the legislation now regulates visas, residence permits, family reunification, the role of AIMA, and transitional rules for administrative requests.
For students, the most sensitive point is the requirement for appropriate documentation before entering the country when the purpose is residence.
Under the new legal design, citizens of CPLP countries, a group that includes Brazil, can only apply for CPLP residence authorization in Portugal when they hold a residence visa.
In practice, this rule changes the calculation for those who traveled as tourists and, already on Portuguese territory, sought enrollment in a vocational course to start a regularization process.
With the requirement of a prior visa, the application now depends on a consular step done before the trip, and not just on the initial legal stay in the country.
Law also changes rules for families
The package approved by the Portuguese Parliament is not limited to students and also modified family reunification, an issue that affects immigrants already residing and relatives who intend to live legally in Portugal.
Under the new wording, the holder of a residence permit valid for at least two years is entitled to family reunification, although the law itself provides exceptions for some family members.
This period does not apply to minors or dependents, to the spouse or equivalent who is a parent or adopter of a minor or dependent, nor to family members of holders of specific authorizations.
There is also the possibility of reducing or waiving the period in exceptional cases, by reasoned order of the government member responsible for migration.
Another relevant point appears in the transitional rule, valid for 180 days after the law comes into force.
During this period, the holder of the right to family reunification could apply for residence for family members who were already in Portugal, provided they had entered legally and met the requirements of Article 98 of the Foreigners Law.
The change has a social impact because many foreign families organize their stay in the country around school, work, and family ties.
By linking more applications to prior possession of a visa or minimum residence periods, Portugal reduces administrative alternatives used by immigrants who were already in the territory.
Vote had support from the right
The legislative process went through successive votes in the Assembly of the Republic and gathered support from the main right-wing parties in Portugal.
On July 16, 2025, the replacement text related to Government Bill No. 3/XVII/1 and Chega’s Bill No. 61/XVII/1 was approved in a final global vote.
In that vote, PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP voted in favor, while the Liberal Initiative abstained and PS, Livre, PCP, BE, PAN, and JPP voted against.
After a veto received in August 2025, the decree returned to Parliament and went through a new review before being sent again for promulgation.
The final version was approved on September 30, 2025, sent for promulgation on October 8, promulgated on October 16, and published as Law No. 61/2025 on October 22.
This process consolidated a broader change in Portuguese migration policy, marked by the limitation of internal regularization paths.
In addition to the rules for students and families, the law reinforced regulations on visas, family requests, and the administrative actions of the Agency for Integration, Migrations, and Asylum, known by the acronym AIMA.
Brazilians become more dependent on the consulate
For Brazilians intending to study in Portugal, the central effect of the change is the need to organize their migration situation before departure.
Entry without a visa remains possible for short stays, under the rules applicable to tourists, but this condition does not equate to authorization to reside, work, or remain in the country as a long-term student.
Professional courses and other training that were previously seen as alternatives to obtain residence after arrival no longer offer the same security.
Without the appropriate visa, initial enrollment and legal stay may not be sufficient to pave the way for a residence permit.
The change also increases pressure on consulates, students, and families who depend on deadlines for enrollment, travel, and the start of classes.
Those who cannot regularize their documentation before leaving may face administrative obstacles, risk of denial, and the need to leave Portugal if they do not have a legal basis to remain.
In the case of foreign parents of resident children, the new legislation requires attention to the rules of regrouping and the exceptions provided by law.
As the family situation can be analyzed differently when involving minors, the authorization no longer depends solely on the child’s presence in the school system or the parents’ stay in Portuguese territory.
With the law in force, regularization has become more heavily dependent on the correct visa and requests submitted within the conditions provided by Portuguese legislation.
For Brazilian students, the old strategy of arriving as a tourist and trying to organize residence afterward has become more risky and less predictable.
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