Late yesterday afternoon the government approved the new regime for the ‘return of illegal immigrants’.
The document is open to public consultation for one months (from today), and will then go on to parliament for discussion.
At a press conference following the council of Ministers, minister for the presidency António Leitão Amaro described the new regime as the “last major piece of legislation in the reform of migration policy (…) The law we approved today is aimed at those who violate the rules; it is not directed indiscriminately,” he stressed, adding that it applies to those who “entered and are in Portugal illegally.”
So what does it entail? Expresso carries a full page article today, explaining that the law extends by nine times the ‘maximum time of detention’ of immigrants caught in an illegal situation in this country.
Right now, immigrants who enter this country illegally can only be held by authorities for 60 days, after which they must be released irrespective of the stage of their expulsion processes. As a result, almost all manage to stay within Europe (they simply leave Portugal after the 60 day limit sees them released from detention, and head north or east).
The new law increases detention to a possible maximum of 540 days (a year and a half) – meaning even with appeals against expulsion, immigrants are not left ‘free’ to use Portugal as a springboard to the rest of Europe – as the most recent arrivals in a wooden boat have managed (Expresso explains that they all used their 60 days to lodge appeals against expulsion orders – and then fled to Spain as soon as the 60 day limit kicked in because the courts were nowhere near ruling on their appeals. “Under the new law they would still be in detention,” says the paper.)
The law also does away with the current ‘first step of the expulsion process’, which involves a ‘notification’ to leave the country within 20 days. It also removes the ‘suspensive effect’ of any judicial appeals against expulsion, and tightens ‘conditions’ that allow immigrants to evade expulsion. For example, it will no longer be enough to have a child born in Portugal. “The child has to be a resident of Portugal, and have lived in this country for five years” says Expresso.
The whole thrust of these changes are for immigrants to have to prove “an effective and solid link to Portugal”, the paper adds – concluding that ‘the detention of illegal immigrants is not a priority’. “The diploma allows for alternative, efficient release measures, including financial bail and/ or the holding of immigrants’ documents (passports/ identity cards).
Finally, anyone who is forcibly removed from Portugal under the new law will not be allowed back into the country for 20 years (the current limit is set at only five years).
Source: LUSA/ Expresso
