MEA order may give relief to those who took Portuguese citizenship

IN A move that could provide relief for peoplefromerstwhileportugueseterritories in India (Goa and Daman & Diu), whose Indian passports were revoked after acquiring Portuguese citizenship, the Ministry of External Affairs has instructed passport authorities in the country to mandatorily issue a “revocation order”.

Officials said the revocation order could pave the way for such individuals to apply for Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI), with an MEA memorandum dated April 4 stating that the Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to accept “‘revocation certificate’ as an alternative document in lieu of ‘surrender certificate’ in case of Indian nationals hailing from the erstwhile Portuguese territories in India, who have acquired Portuguese nationality as per Portuguese Nationality Law...”

A ‘surrender certificate’ issued by passport-issuing authorities has so far been a requirement for those who want to apply for OCI cards. After a November 30, 2022 MEA memorandum, authorities began revoking the passports of people from Goa, who had acquired Portuguese citizenship, for “suppressing material information” about acquiring foreign nationality. Passport authorities then stopped handing out surrender certificates to such people, thereby rendering them ineligible to obtain an OCI card.

In the April 4 memorandum, the MEA said the MHA would now accept revocation certificate in lieu of surrender certificate, and instructed passport authorities to mandatorily issue revocation orders.

OCI is an immigration status authorising a foreign citizen of Indian origin to live and work in India for an indefinite period.

According to Portuguese law, Portugal offers those born in Goa before December 19, 1961 – the day Goa was liberated from Portuguese rule – and two future generations the option of registering as Portuguese citizens. Since a Portuguese passport provides the holder visa-free entry to several countries, including the UK and the EU, many in Goa in the last few decades have been transcribing their births in the Central Registry in Lisbon and acquiring Portuguese citizenship to avail employment and educational opportunities available overseas.

The issue has gained prominence in the past year when authorities stopped giving out surrender certificates, rendering many Goans ineligible for OCI, causing considerable anxiety among people in the coastal state. Earlier this month, two people from Goa filed petitions in the High Court of Bombay at Goa after their Indian passports were revoked by the regional passport office, Panaji. The petitioners denied suppressing any material information and submitted that they had renewed their Indian passports after transcribing their births in Portugal as it was a prerequisite to apply for a Portuguese citizenship card and Portuguese passport.

In response to a question raised by South Goa MP Francisco Sardinha during the Lok Sabha session in February, the MEA said that the regional passport office (RPO), Panaji, received more than 2,000 applications in the last three years for surrender of Indian passports after acquisition of Portuguese nationality. Out of these, 114 passports have been revoked by the RPO, it said.