Portuguese nationality for Goans: How to apply for Goan minor children

This post essentially seeks to inform Goans on the requirements of parents whose birth is already registered in Portugal and who subsequently wish to register the birth of their minor children. The age of Minors,(for the sake of registration) is not very clear although the general feedback obtained from the consulate in Goa suggests that it is upto the age of twelve. Prior confirmation of this is advised from the Portuguese consulate in Goa.The telephone number of the Portuguese consulate in Goa is 2421525.

Considering that minors are children below the age of twelve, (for the Portuguese authorities), the following needs to be understood while registering the birth of minors. First up, minors do not have to pay any fees for claiming their Portuguese nationality whereas everybody above twelve years and born after 19.12.1961 need to pay Rs 14,083 as nationality fees. This in itself is a saving. More the children below 12, more is the saving. So if your children are nearing the age of twelve and you are in possession of the relevant documents with an aim to register your children, then all you need to do is rush for the registration. Unless of course the Goan compulsive habit of being "succegado" allows you to be squandering some money for nothing's sake.

Another advantage of registering minor children is that you do not need their Indian passport right away. At least not untill the birth is registered. You will however need it at the time of preparing their Bilhete de Identidade. But at the time of applying for Portuguese nationality the Indian passport is not a requirement. The identity of the child is ascertained through the birth certificate which clearly mentions the names of the parents which need to conform with the details of the parents on their  "Assento de Nascimento"( birth certificate registration in Portugal) and the 'Assento de Casamento (  marriage registration done in Portugal).

The documents required to register the birth of a child in Portugal are as follows

1. Birth certificate of both parents - to be obtained from the sub-registrar in Goa
2. Birth certificate of the child - to be obtained from the sub-registrar in Goa
3. Assento de Nascimento - of the parent whose birth is registered in Portugal.
4. Assento de Casamento - of the parents marriage registered in Portugal.
5. Indian passport of both parents for Identification
6. Bilhete de Identidade of parent registered in Portugal - for identification

Please note that

A. No photographs of anyone are required at this stage.
B. Only item No 1, and 2 need to be attested with Notary, collector and Home department
C. Clear legible copies of Item No 3, and 6 are required  to be submitted without any attestations
D. Item No 5. and 6. are required in original only, to present and are verified and returned.
E. Both parents are required to be present at the time of registration of birth of the child and single parent is not acceptable (in Goa).
F. Physical presence of the child is not required.
G. No prior appointment is required to apply for a minor childs birth and one can directly go to the Portuguese's Goa consulate in the morning and stand in the queue for the token number with all the papers ready in your possession
H. There is no requirement of residence certificate, nor election card, nor ration card of anyone

Do ensure that you carry a black pen to sign the papers which are prepared by the consulate staff to process your childs nationality. Do not sign with a blue pen. Even if the staff attending to you, fails to draw your attention, please note that you should sign only in black pen . Else your application will not be processed although it may be accepted by oversight. However upon locating the flaw, you will be recalled for the ordeal all over again. If one of the parent is not available for the repeat call, your application will simply hang in balance. If the parent goes abroad during this period, the long wait will be due to a pointless blunder. So do ensure that you sign with a black pen (the form gets read by the computer and hence the requirement)

After the first visit and signing of the papers, the Portuguese consul apparently ratifies the papers before reverting them back to the consulate staff who in turn contact you over the telephone to come again and sign the papers after the consuls attestation.

Hopefully within a period of 3-4 months, your childs birth should be registered in Portugal. Good Luck!

For all posts related to obtaining the Portuguese passport for Goans, the continuous free help dossier is at this label.Click here!

May we Goans shed our tag of being the crabs we have doggedly been this far! This free help is an attempt towards the erosion of that bitter truth.

Viva Goencar!

By Goacom Blog