Portugals Constitutional Court clears contested immigration law for presidential approval

Portugal’s Constitutional Court cleared the so-called Return Law on Friday, ruling that 11 contested provisions in the immigration bill comply with European Union asylum and migration pact standards. The court’s decision, delivered in process 1150/2026, means the diploma was not struck down, and the text now moves to President António José Seguro, who has 20 days to promulgate or veto it .

The law, approved by Parliament with votes from the center-right AD coalition and the Iniciativa Liberal, accelerates the expulsion of irregular migrants. The far-right Chega abstained .

Socialist Party Secretary-General José Luís Carneiro said the PS respects the court’s ruling. “Above any discord, we respect the organs of sovereignty,” Carneiro told Lusa news agency. “We respect the Constitutional Court’s decision in full, as we have always done in the past, whether we agree or disagree” .

PSD spokesman Sebastião Bugalho called the ruling a “duty fulfilled,” arguing it validates the government’s structural immigration reform. Speaking at the PSD summer university in Castelo de Vide, Bugalho said the green light for the Return Law completes a sequence that includes the Foreigners Law, the Nationality Law, and the creation of a special foreigner and border unit within the PSP police .

Left-wing parties PCP and Livre condemned the court’s decision, with Livre urging Seguro to veto the law. Meanwhile, Chega leader André Ventura threatened to file a motion of no confidence against the government if it does not resolve the case of Luís Neves, a figure linked to ongoing political controversy. “If this situation is not resolved, we will join the president’s appeal and present a motion of no confidence on Tuesday in Parliament,” Ventura told reporters in Coimbra .

The court’s reasoning, read by Justice António José da Ascensão Ramos, stated the contested norms align with EU asylum and migration agreements, unlike a previous diploma that had raised constitutional concerns . Should Seguro veto the law, it would return to Parliament, where deputies could override the veto with a majority vote; the president could not veto it a second time .