Country guide · Portugal

Portuguese citizenship through a parent: registering your birth as a Portuguese citizen’s child

Michael Soucek·Last reviewed October 2026

Educational information only — not legal advice. Always verify with the relevant authority, consulate or registry office.

Yes, you can get Portuguese citizenship through your parents, and it is the most direct route Portugal has. If your mother or father is Portuguese, you are Portuguese of origin as soon as your birth is entered in the Portuguese civil register, or once you declare that you want to be Portuguese. You do not have to live in Portugal, sit a language test or prove ties to the country. The 2026 nationality reform, which made the grandchild route much harder, left this route as it was.

The short answer

  • Who qualifies: anyone born outside Portugal to a Portuguese mother or father (Article 1(1)(c) of the Nationality Law).
  • How: your birth is registered in the Portuguese civil register, or you sign a declaration that you want to be Portuguese. Parents do it for a minor; adults do it themselves.
  • No tests: no residence, language, culture, civics or ties requirement.
  • Fee: free for minors, €175 for an adult.
  • Result: nationality of origin, effective from your birth, which you can pass to your own children. Portugal lets you keep your other citizenship.

What the law says: Article 1(1)(c)

Portugal’s Nationality Law (Lei 37/81) was last amended by Lei Orgânica 1/2026, in force since 19 May 2026. Article 1(1)(c) makes Portuguese of origin the children of a Portuguese mother or Portuguese father born abroad, if their birth is entered in the Portuguese civil register or if they declare that they want to be Portuguese.

Two other articles finish the picture. Article 11 says that attribution of Portuguese nationality takes effect from birth, so you are treated as having been Portuguese all along, without affecting legal relationships you formed under your other nationality. Article 21(4) says that nationality under this route is proved by the entries on the Portuguese birth record made when your birth was registered, or by the registration of your declaration.

The 2026 reform rewrote Article 1(3), which now ties the grandchild route of Article 1(1)(d) to the integration requirements of Article 6: Portuguese language, culture, history and civics, a commitment to democratic principles and a clean criminal and security record. Article 1(3) does not mention Article 1(1)(c). Children of a Portuguese citizen therefore face none of those requirements. If you are a grandchild, read the guide to Portuguese citizenship for grandchildren instead.

What your parent must have

Portuguese nationality. Article 1(1)(c) speaks of a Portuguese mother or father. It does not require the parent to be Portuguese of origin, so a parent who is Portuguese by any route counts. What matters is that you are the child of a Portuguese citizen in the eyes of the law.

A parent who only became Portuguese after you were born. Here the timing and the type of nationality decide the route:

  • If your parent was attributed nationality of origin later in life, for example by registering as the child or grandchild of a Portuguese citizen, Article 11 makes it effective from their own birth. You can then claim as their child. This is the standard parent-first strategy for great-grandchildren of Portuguese emigrants.
  • If your parent acquired nationality by naturalisation, for example after living in Portugal, the specific route for children is Article 2: minor children of a parent who acquires Portuguese nationality can also acquire it by declaration. That gives acquired, not original, nationality, and it is for minors. If you were born after your parent naturalised, ask the IRN or your consulate how your case is treated.

A parent who lost Portuguese nationality. Under the law in force before 3 October 1981 (Lei 2098 of 1959), a Portuguese citizen who voluntarily took another nationality lost Portuguese nationality. If your parent naturalised abroad before that date, check what their Portuguese birth record shows. Article 31 of today’s law lets people who lost nationality that way regain it, automatically if the loss was never definitively registered, or by declaration if it was. How that affects your own claim is a question for the IRN or a Portuguese lawyer.

A legally established parent–child relationship. Article 14 says that, as a rule, only filiation established while you were a minor counts for nationality. If your paternity or maternity was established only after you turned 18, it counts only for nationality of origin, only if it was established through court proceedings, and only if you request nationality within three years of that court decision becoming final. Most applicants have a birth certificate naming the Portuguese parent from birth, so this rarely comes up, but it matters for late recognitions.

Minors and adults: who files, and how

Children under 18

For a child, the parents (or other legal representatives) register the birth and sign the nationality declaration on the child’s behalf. A representative can act under a power of attorney. The government’s service pages say that a baby under one year old can be registered online when at least one parent is Portuguese, and the first Citizen Card (Cartão de Cidadão) is free until the child’s first birthday. From age one, the parents must register the birth and make the nationality request in person, at a Portuguese consulate or a registry office in Portugal, because the registry has to check the case. Registration is free.

Adults

An adult makes the declaration that they want to be Portuguese themselves. You sign it in front of the registry officer when you hand it in, or have your signature certified if you send it by post. Since the 2026 reform, a declaration made at a Portuguese consulate must be made by you in person (Article 17); the only exception is a proven long-term or permanent physical inability to attend when no consular officer can come to you. The IRN fee for the attribution of nationality to an adult is €175.

Documents you need

The Ministry of Justice’s list for children of a Portuguese citizen born abroad is short:

  • Your identity document.
  • Your birth certificate, legalised by apostille or by a Portuguese consulate, with a certified Portuguese translation if it is not in Portuguese. A photocopy of the full (long-form) certificate is preferred, so ask for the version that names both parents.
  • Your Portuguese parent’s birth certificate. You can skip it if you give the Portuguese registry office (conservatória), year and record number of their birth record.
  • The signed nationality declaration, on the official form. Adults sign it themselves; for a minor, the parents or legal representatives sign.

Unlike the grandchild route, the list does not include criminal record certificates or a language certificate. Where names or surnames differ between your records and your parent’s, bring the marriage or name-change records that explain the difference. The apostille guide explains how to legalise foreign records, and the certified translation guide covers who may translate them for Portugal. If your parent’s Portuguese record is missing or hard to trace, see how to build a citizenship document chain.

Where to register the birth or file the declaration

  • At a Portuguese consulate for where you live. This is where most people abroad file, and older children and adults must attend in person.
  • By post to the Conservatória dos Registos Centrais, Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca, 198, 1099-003 Lisboa, Portugal, with the declaration signature certified.
  • In person in Portugal at the Conservatória dos Registos Centrais in Lisbon, a Balcão da Nacionalidade, any civil registry office, or CNAIM in Porto.
  • Online for babies up to one year old, or for anyone who files through a lawyer or solicitor (mandatário).

Whichever channel you use, the result is the same: a Portuguese birth record (assento de nascimento) drawn up from your foreign certificate, with your Portuguese nationality noted on it. Many people call this transcribing the birth. That record is your proof of citizenship.

After registration: Citizen Card, passport and your own children

Once your birth is in the Portuguese register you can apply for a Citizen Card and a Portuguese passport. Abroad, passports are requested at Portuguese consulates. Because your nationality is of origin and counts from birth, your own children can later register as the children of a Portuguese citizen in the same way.

Portugal allows multiple nationality, so you keep your US, Canadian, Brazilian or other citizenship. The dual citizenship by descent guide compares Portugal with countries that are stricter.

Fees and processing time

The IRN’s Registry Fees Regulation charges €175 for the attribution of Portuguese nationality to an adult (article 18, item 2.1.1). It is free for minors (article 10), and the government’s service pages describe birth registration for children as free. Your own costs for certificates, apostilles and translations come on top, and consulates may charge for separate services such as passports.

No official processing time is published. Keep copies of everything you send, and use the Ministry of Justice’s online status service to follow a filed case.

For every Portuguese route in one place, including the great-grandchild route and the closed Sephardic route, see the Portuguese citizenship by descent guide. To compare Portugal with Ireland, Italy and other countries that accept a parent or grandparent, see citizenship through grandparents and the requirements by country. Not sure which route fits your family? The free eligibility checker asks about your parents and grandparents first.

Frequently asked questions

Can you get Portuguese citizenship through your parents?

Yes. Under Article 1(1)(c) of the Nationality Law, a child born abroad to a Portuguese mother or father is Portuguese of origin once their birth is entered in the Portuguese civil register or they declare that they want to be Portuguese. There is no residence requirement and no language, culture or ties test, and the 2026 reform did not change this route. Nationality granted this way counts from your birth.

How do I get Portuguese citizenship through my parents as an adult?

By declaration. You sign the official nationality declaration in front of a registry officer when you hand it in, or have your signature certified if you post it to the Central Registry in Lisbon. At a Portuguese consulate you must make the declaration in person. You need your apostilled, translated birth certificate and your Portuguese parent’s birth certificate. The IRN fee for an adult is €175.

Is there an age limit for claiming Portuguese citizenship through a parent?

No. Article 1(1)(c) sets no age limit, so adult children can claim. Age changes the procedure, not the right: parents register a minor child, while an adult signs their own declaration and pays the €175 fee. The one age rule that matters is Article 14: as a rule, only a parent–child relationship legally established while you were a minor counts for nationality.

Does my Portuguese parent have to be alive?

The law does not say so. Article 1(1)(c) asks only that you are the child of a Portuguese mother or father, and the Ministry of Justice’s document list asks for the parent’s birth certificate, not proof that they are living. If the parent’s birth is registered in Portugal, you can name the registry office, year and record number instead of supplying the certificate.

My parent got Portuguese citizenship through their own parent. Can I claim through them?

Yes, that is the usual route for great-grandchildren of a Portuguese emigrant. A parent who claims as a grandchild becomes Portuguese of origin, and Article 11 makes that nationality effective from their birth. You can then register as the child of a Portuguese citizen under Article 1(1)(c), with no language, culture or civics test for you.

Do I need to speak Portuguese to claim citizenship through a parent?

No. The language, culture, civics and democratic-principles requirements added in 2026 apply to grandchildren under Article 1(1)(d), not to children of a Portuguese citizen. The forms and records are in Portuguese, though, and every foreign document needs a certified Portuguese translation unless it is already in Portuguese.

How long does it take to register as the child of a Portuguese citizen?

No official time is published. Neither the Ministry of Justice nor the IRN gives a processing time for registering a foreign birth or for an adult child’s declaration, and waiting times vary by consulate and by registry office. Filing a complete set of documents is the best way to avoid extra delay, and you can follow a filed case through the Ministry of Justice’s online status service.

Official sources

Checked against these sources on 29 October 2026. Consulates set their own appointment systems and may ask for extra documents in individual cases; confirm with your Portuguese consulate or the IRN before you file.