VITHALDAS HEGDE
Former Telaulim sarpanch Francisco Zacarias Goes finds him self trapped in an unusual legal lim bo. A holder of a Portuguese pass port and an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, Goes now wishes to re claim his Indian citizenship. But con flicting legal requirements in India and Portugal have left him caught in a bureaucratic deadlock. Portuguese authorities are reluc tant to accept the renunciation of citizenship since it could temporar ily leave an individual “stateless”. Indian authorities, meanwhile, insist that citizenship cannot be restored until documentary proof of renun ciation of the applicant’s foreign nationality is submitted, as required under the prescribed procedure.
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Speaking to O Heraldo, Goes said he applied to reacquire Indian cit izenship in 2023. “I completed all the required formalities including payment of the prescribed fees, and my application was approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). But when I approached the Portu guese authorities in Lisbon to re nounce my Portuguese citizenship, I was asked to submit the Indian passport. I cannot do so because my Indian passport had expired in 2012. I had obtained Portuguese citizenship in 2009 while working abroad,” he said. Goes said he has been caught in this impasse for the past three years.”The Portuguese government has now given me a deadline to sub mit documentary proof of my Indian nationality by July 31, 2026, failing which my application will be ar chived as abandoned,” he said. The Portuguese authorities require a certified copy of a valid Indian pass port or proof of Indian nationality before processing an application to renounce Portuguese citizenship.
However, the Ministry of Home Af fairs will restore Indian citizenship only after an applicant has renounced foreign citizenship and furnished proof of such renunciation. The result is a legal stalemate: Por tugal wants proof of Indian national ity before permitting renunciation, while India requires proof of renun ciation before restoring citizenship. Director of the Goa NRI Com mission Anthony D’Souza, who has been assisting Goans on citizen ship-related issues, said the prob lem is not confined to a single indi vidual and could affect a handful of others seeking to restore Indian cit izenship after acquiring Portuguese nationality. He said the Goa NRI Commission has taken up the mat ter and is trying to assist Goes, who has already completed the required formalities and paid the prescribed fees to the Ministry of Home Affairs for the restoration of his In dian citizenship. A senior government official, however, said only a small number of people have encountered such difficulties. Ac cording to the official, the problem largely stems from their failure to surrender Indian citizenship after acquir ing Portuguese nationality, as mandated under Indian law.
