Portugal is racing to approve a sixth legal amendment in two years to its foreigner law, this time to authorise the operation of new EU-mandated reception and screening centres before the bloc’s rules take effect on 12 June. The centres are already built and staffed, but the government’s draft decree—published on Friday—still lacks parliamentary approval, leaving Lisbon out of step with the rest of the EU as it prepares to implement the new screening regime.
Under the EU pact agreed in May, all member states must operate reception facilities where asylum seekers and irregular migrants are held for up to seven days while their identities, vulnerabilities and onward routes are assessed. Portugal’s centres in Lisbon, Porto and Faro are ready, but the legal framework to detain people—how long, under what conditions, and with what judicial oversight—has not yet cleared the Assembly of the Republic. Justice Minister António Costa e Silva told reporters on Friday that the bill would be fast-tracked through the summer session to avoid infringement proceedings.
The urgency reflects broader European shifts. On Wednesday, EU interior ministers reached a political accord on offshore return centres in third countries, a model Italy is already piloting with Albania, and Switzerland confirmed on Thursday that it will apply the same rules despite not being an EU member. Spain’s *El País* described the moment as “Europe enters the era of deportations,” while *La Vanguardia* reported that the bloc is preparing to open centres in North Africa and the Balkans to process rejected asylum seekers before they reach European soil.
Portugal’s delay is partly technical: the screening centres fall under the 2024 Foreigners Law, which has already been amended five times since 2024, most recently to tighten family reunification rules. The sixth change would add a new chapter on “reception and identification,” including provisions for legal aid, medical screening and the right to challenge detention within 48 hours. Ombudsman Maria Lúcia Amaral warned on Friday that without clear time limits, Portugal risks violating the European Convention on Human Rights.
Political analysts see the haste as a sign of Lisbon’s desire to position itself as a constructive partner ahead of the EU’s June 26–27 summit in Brussels, where leaders will review progress on the migration pact. “The centres are symbolic,” said migration expert Rui Tavares. “They show we can host EU solidarity measures without compromising our humanitarian standards.” Yet with far-right deputies already criticising the bill for being too lenient, the government must also navigate a razor-thin majority in parliament.
If the amendment fails, Portugal would be the only EU country unable to apply the screening rules from 12 June, potentially triggering infringement proceedings and complicating its presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2027. The Assembly is expected to vote before the summer recess on 18 July.