Thousands Of Goans Are Giving Up Indian Citizenship To Get Portugese Passports And A New Life

Accused of verbally abusing against a minor Goa girl, who was reportedly knocked down by Padmashree awardee Remo Fernandes' son Jonah on December 1, 2015, the police found out that Remo is  now officially a foreign national. But Remo, who denied the charge, isn't the only Goan to do so. Goa residents have been rushing to obtain Portuguese nationality by surrendering their Indian passports in order to find jobs in Europe, especially in the UK. 

This year itself, up to August, an average of nine Goans a day surrendered their Indian passports, and due to India's lack of dual citizenship, also their Indian citizenship.

Firstly, why is Portugal giving Goans passports?

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Under Portuguese law, those born in Portuguese colonies before their liberation - in Goa, that would be 1961 - continue to be Portuguese, provided their births are registered in Portugal. Their descendants, up to the third generation, are also eligible for Portuguese passports, which is an incentive for even senior citizens who are otherwise not interested in moving, to get their names registered at the Conservatoria dos Registos Centrais (Central Registry of Births) in Lisbon. 

The power of a Portugese passport

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A Portuguese passport entails visa-free entry to 172 countries, and easier access to high-paying employment. Many Goans, who now hold a Portuguese passport, get better paid than other Indian nationals abroad. A Portuguese passport consultant estimates there are over two lakh Goans living in Goa, who have got their births transcribed in the Conservatoria dos Registos Centrais (Central Registry of Births) in Lisbon.

In October, the Times of India reported that Portugal isn't the final destination - its just the stopover.  Portugal's economy has been in the doldrums - their real goal is to enter the UK. Portuguese passports mean an entry into the European Union (EU), of which Portugal became a member in 1986. This translates to visa-free travel across more than 170 countries . 

As early as August this year, Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar had raised the issue with the External Affairs Ministry.  "They are migrating not because there are no job opportunities here...It is a mentality to cross over the country borders. We need to change their mentality," Parsekar told the State Legislative Assembly.

"I feel that people spend hours together outside the consulate to get the passport. They are in a hurry to lose the citizenship of their country. This is sad," the Chief Minister said. 

How many Goans exactly are becoming Portugese? 

A data of ECI has revealed that 2,200 people have changed their nationality in Goa in the financial year 2012-13, which means an average six people a day.

January to August 2015: 2,158 people gave up their Indian passports to get Portuguese at the regional passport office in Panaji, after acquiring Portuguese passports.  2014 only saw 1,660  passport surrenders. 

A report released by the University of Oxford in July this year noted that "the only group larger than 10,000 with a common EU country of citizenship and a common non-EU country of birth is India-born Portuguese citizens. This group accounted for just over 20,000 UK residents in the first quarter of 2015".

Who are these people? 

Among those applying for Portuguese passports in Goa, about 70% are between 18 and 35 years of age, say consultants. Many queue up outside the magnificent Consulado Geral De Portugal—the Portuguese consulate in Panaji - soon after college; others notch up some work ex in India or the Gulf before doing so. The religion-wise break up of those applying is 70% Catholic, 20% Muslim and 10% Hindu (as per Census data, Hindus in Goa constitute about 65%, Christians 25%, and Muslims 8% of the population).

A changing trend, says regional passport officer Agnelo Fernandes, is that Goans migrating with Portuguese passports are no longer single males, but entire families. As a result, there's been a big spurt in the number of minors with Portuguese passports.