Ilia Stepin

You know that moment 😅 You've just started something new and somewhere in the back of your head you hear it. "Ah shit, here we go again" Silent launch. Wrong ICP. Got users but nobody pays. Revenue flat for months. You've been here before. You're running the same patterns again anyway. Built a tool that tells you exactly which one you're in 👇

@ptsp86 @narmalny @miguel_milhao I follow all the laws and what I got? Double period in the middle. Nice

@narmalny @martbln_dev @miguel_milhao Sure. Just follow the law and everything will be alright.

Portugal just signed a new nationality law 🇵🇹 here's what changed and why it matters if you moved here trusting the rules: residency requirement for citizenship just doubled - from 5 years to 10 years for most people. no grandfathering. no transitional protections for people already in the pipeline. think about what that means for a second. someone left their country. packed their life. paid lawyers, accountants, relocation fees. signed leases. built a life here. learned the language. paid taxes, very high taxes. did everything right - under the rules that existed when they made that decision. and now the government just moved the finish line. doubled it. without saying "don't worry, you're covered." meanwhile Portugal is out here positioning itself as a digital capital Cloudflare opened an office here. Web Summit at Lisbon. companies are investing. conferences are coming. the whole pitch is "come build here, we're open, we're modern, we're the future of Europe." and then this. but here's what most people outside don't understand - and what even locals don't get: living here with just a residency permit is not the same as living here. every time locals find out you're an immigrant they ask "why do you need a passport?" they don't understand what it actually means: waiting 6 months to years(!!!) just to renew your residency permit. banks treating you like a ghost - good luck getting a mortgage, a loan, or even keeping your account open where your salary lands. basic things that every citizen takes for granted become bureaucratic nightmares that follow you everywhere. and the family reunification situation is just nightmare. I know people who came here in 2022. doing everything right. paying taxes. building a life. and still haven't reunited with their families in 2026. recently AIMA only opened family reunification slots for the first time in over 1.5 years. and while you wait - you can't leave the country. not to see your parents. not for a work trip. not for anything. because the moment your residency application is pending, you're stuck. if you leave, you risk everything. people are sitting here and years going by. not because they broke any rule. but because the system just doesn't move. and here's the part nobody is talking about: AIMA - the immigration agency, formerly SEF - processes cases for years. not months. years!! under the old 5 year rule, people were waiting 7-8 years by the time the bureaucracy finished with them. now imagine what happens with 10 years. it won't be 10 years. it will be 13, 14, 15! easily! no grandfathering. no "thank you for trusting us." just: new rules, good luck. you did everything right. followed every rule. waited every queue. paid every fee. and the government just doesn't care. that's not how you build a digital capital. and one more thing - there are people who invested €500K+ into this country through golden visas. half a million euros. because Portugal said "invest here and we'll welcome you." now the rules changed on them too. no grandfathering. just: thanks for the money, good luck waiting another decade. what does that say to the next investor looking at Portugal? @levelsio - you are living here. you know exactly what this feels like on the ground. you've been saying that Portugal is an amazing place but the system is completely broken - and people came for you for saying it. well. here we are. you have more reach than most people talking about this. would mean a lot if this got your attention 🙏

I didn’t say I can’t open bank account. But I have only caixa, others declined my documents, for what? Who knows? Just because. I can sent you email from CTT and Caixa that they declined by mortgage application and mention that only EU citizens could apply for current rules and jovem program.

I read your post. Doesn't address what I said. You can open bank accounts with residency papers, I know that for a fact. Don't need citizenship for that. Same for mortgages. Like I said before, I agree that there's no excuse for the residency process delays and keeping people stuck here for months or years. Unfortunately the public sector works quite poorly (shocker, I know) - but that's besides the issues that this law addresses

@dwjorgeb @hey_chobani Why? Make a list of professions that’s good for the country, make a fast track for them who show their interest. No, they went by populist decision and hurt a lot of valuable cases

@hey_chobani @martbln_dev You really can't without discriminating, which would make the law unconstitutional

I mentioned everything in my post. If that law didn’t exist in 2 years I could apply to get citizenship, that give me more stability in my life. My future children could have better life, without endless justification that you are an immigrant, and every time when AIMA ask you pointless documents and if you not to lucky it could just lost it and you should wait years. It’s not just about get citizenship, it’s about agreements

@martbln_dev Why do you want Portuguese citizenship, if I may ask? It can’t be because of a mortgage application.

@PaiCheco01 @ariange1o Please read cases from here onlyinportugal.com And you understand it’s not only public services inefficiency

@martbln_dev @ariange1o To be fair, your problem is bureaucratic and public services inefficiency, which extends to other administrative services or health, for example. It is not a legislative issue. Yes, we want people like you here, but we can't allow for this mass immigration anymore.

@ariange1o @dwjorgeb How the fuck you think it’s fine if your next salary is not got to your bank account? How the fuck you think it’s fine if you should sit years in country, not leave it, to visit your family or for work, just because AIMA process your documents years?

@ariange1o @dwjorgeb Looks like you both can’t read the post

@j4mbodotcom What were other options?

@martbln_dev I'm so glad I decided not to do it a few years ago. I'm sorry for the people who got rug pulled.

@ptsp86 It’s starting looks like a dictatorship. So your profession would be shitposting on X, government gave your that job

@martbln_dev Immigration must be controlled with an iron fist. Manage the country like a company. How many engineers, how many doctors, how many mechanics. Efficient, without parasites.

@tgagovidigal You answered on your own question. Retroactive applications! But for them who lived here 4 years, 11 months with residency and didn’t applied to citizenship, they should wait 5 more years, do you think it’s fair?

@martbln_dev And you know for sure the law provisions retroactive application? It is my understanding that the President assured process already running wouldn't be affected. So it seems you just spreading wrong information.

@ptsp86 What if I already have a family? Or I should leave them and married on your womans? I guess this way you will blame me even more 🤣

@martbln_dev I didn't say that; it is simply a rational system that respects the cultural metric of a deeper integration into the understanding of nation, homeland, and old customs

I don’t care what happens in America. Why you mention it? 😄 So you blaming immigrants that they suck the resources that needed to bring back your emigrants? It goes more interesting with your every reply🤣 Don’t you think if your government continue to do such moves that affect on country only delay the moment of return emigrants?

@martbln_dev No, man. Is it not like that in America? How long does it take to get citizenship in that country? And yes, they do suck up resources. What you fail to understand is that Portugal needs its own emigrants, the priority should be to create the conditions for them to return.

@mathias_gilson @levelsio

@levelsio @martbln_dev watching expat and portuguese fight in the comments is pure gold 😂

@scesilva @grok can you please show what nationalities got Portuguese citizenship in 2025, government did a report about that recently

@martbln_dev That is a completely different matter that should and must be dealt with respect, processes for residency cannot drag and cause harm to who wishes to apply.Too many citizenships were granted to who only wanted the passport and that process had to be cut from the bottom to stop it

@ptsp86 So you selling your womans for the passport? 🤣

@martbln_dev That said, do what you have to do, and move home. That's should be every man's main goal. Or else, marry a Portuguese woman and then yes, get your legal pathway to citizenship. But this is my opinion alone.

So people who get passport suck the resources? What about children of immigrants? They started their life here, they going to be part of the country, they going to speak in Portuguese much better than even we can. From your opinion immigrants only should give their time as resources and nothing get back?

@martbln_dev Your only reason to live here should be to help the economy and your own professional goals, we don't need foreigns to suck the resources, we have our own people, very capable, qualified, those should be our priority nr1.

Do you really think if worrying that I can’t get my salary just because bank decided to close my account can help me? Or I should sit in the country and can’t leave it a year when I wait extension of my residency? Why all of you who support that law have only one option? “Want only passport, go back!” Maybe I want to live here, but feel as a normal person, and want to make life of other people better? All the things, that I mentioned in the post not about begging you give me passport and I leave next day. They are about make reasonable decisions and do not make people life just complex for nothing.

@martbln_dev Citizenship is a consequence,l of being integrated on a country’s society, not a goal on its own. If it’s seen as a goal, go back.

@ptsp86 Can you explain why I shouldn’t? But without chega bullshit, try to explain why it’s good for Portugal when people with expertise and knowledge don’t good enough to get passport and live their life without worrying things I mentioned in the post?

@martbln_dev You shouldn't be able to acquire nationality, ever. Permit is fine. Maybe a different and more flexible permit for those who create business and wealthy to the country and its people. The rest can just fucking go..

@punk9059 Where shouldn’t 😄

Thinking about a Europe move. Where should we go?

@hey_chobani So why not to save that part from a collateral damage? If the country really need that, or wait, that’s just a populism, and no one thinks about to make something good

@martbln_dev I think it was a necessary emergency measure and I understand why Portugal did it. The hard-working, tax-paying and respectful immigrants are unfortunate collateral damage. However, I have no problems getting a mortgage or bank account with just my residency; no passport needed.