The Oporto Jewish Community said it has seen an increase in requests by Britsh Jews for naturalisation following the United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union.
About 300 British Jews descended from Portuguese Sephardic Jews have requested Portuguese nationality from the Oporto Jewish Community, compared to just five before the British Referendum on European Union membership on June 23.
The Oporto Jewish community is one of two groups certified by the Portuguese government to vet applications for citizenship under a 2013 law offering nationality to descendants of Sephardic Jews.
The law was designed to correct historical wrongs applied to Portugal’s Jews in the 16th century when they were expelled from the country or forcibly converted to the Catholic Church.
The significant Jewish community in Lisbon has not seen an increase in requests for citizenship by British nationals, of the 1,090 requests received, few are from the United Kingdom but a spokesperson said that some may have dual nationality and have applied using a non-British passport.
Only a handful of applications have been approved since the law was ratified last year and despite media reports stating an influx of applications from British Jews, the reality is that only a few are seeking a second EU passport in order to remain EU citizens if the UK leaves the Union.
