Immigration law in Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau's immigration framework is fragmented across the Constitution, the foreign passport and visa regime, ECOWAS instruments, nationality legislation and refugee law. Article 28 of the Constitution generally gives foreigners and stateless people equal rights and duties subject to reciprocity, while excluding political rights, public functions and other rights reserved by law. The Direcção Geral de Migração e Fronteiras handles entry and departure controls, immigration control, visa and residence extensions and administrative expulsion. The Ministério do Interior is associated with residence visas in available guidance, while embassies and consulates normally handle entry-visa applications. Visa categories include transit, tourism, temporary, residence, courtesy, official and diplomatic visas. Available secondary guidance describes transit visas as allowing four days and one entry, tourism visas as allowing 60 days with up to two extensions, and temporary visas as allowing 180 days or the duration of a mission or contract, with use within 90 days. A residence visa is intended for a lasting stay. Diplomatic, official and courtesy visas are described as valid for 60 days with multiple entry. However, the official embassy information available for Lisbon lists periods of 30, 45, 90 or 180 days and one, two or multiple entries, so the current category, validity and fee must be confirmed with the responsible mission or authority for the specific application. A typical entry assessment considers a valid passport or travel document, the appropriate visa or an applicable bilateral or international exemption, sufficient means of support, the absence of an entry ban and evidence matching the purpose of travel. Depending on the case, this can include an invitation, employment or service contract, study evidence or business documentation. A valid residence permit can remove the need for an entry visa in situations covered by the applicable rules. Guinea-Bissau's authorities and the relevant embassy or consulate should confirm the current document list before travel because a complete, centrally published checklist was not verified. Guinea-Bissau is an ECOWAS member. Under the ECOWAS free-movement protocols, citizens of Community states generally have visa-free entry and rights to seek or take employment and reside, subject to public order, public security and public health restrictions. A residence card or permit may still be required from the national immigration authority for a longer stay. Civil-service employment is generally excluded. A political decision in 2024 concerned removing the usual 90-day limit, but general implementation was not yet verified; ECOWAS citizens should therefore confirm the current national practice instead of relying on the announced change alone. Work, study, business and cooperation can use different legal bases. Temporary permission may relate to study, business, cooperation or a public contract. Labour access must be separated from residence and documentation requirements: a 2018 migration profile reported no general nationality barrier in the Lei Geral do Trabalho of 1986, but actual access can still depend on immigration status, documents, the employment arrangement and whether the work is formal or informal. No sufficiently current, specific evidence was found for a general family-reunification system, so family members should obtain case-specific guidance rather than assume that a standard procedure exists. Protection claims fall under Lei No. 6/2008 and the work of the CNRD, the National Commission for Refugees and Displaced Persons. Guinea-Bissau is also bound by the 1951 Refugee Convention and the OAU Refugee Convention. The protection framework provides for registration, documentation, non-refoulement, refugee or status cards, freedom of movement, work, education, health and social access, travel documents and possible naturalisation. UNHCR reporting in 2025 noted that a legislative revision had remained in draft or standby status since 2019 and that fair and transparent access to asylum still needed development. Guinea-Bissau has also joined the 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions, while a 2023 government pledge for a national statelessness law and commission had not yet produced a completed framework. Long-term residence information requires particular caution. A historical guide refers to an initial one-year residence authorisation and possible titles lasting more than three years, more than five years or for life after five, ten or twenty consecutive years. The current legal validity, eligibility criteria and application process for an independent permanent-residence status were not confirmed by a current primary source. Applicants should therefore obtain written confirmation from the immigration authority before relying on those historical periods. Nationality law provides separate citizenship pathways. Lei No. 6/2010 amended Lei No. 2/92 and permits dual nationality. Citizenship may arise through descent, birth without another nationality or birth to stateless or unknown parents. A foreign spouse may qualify after three years of marriage and one year of residence. Naturalisation generally requires adulthood, at least six years of legal residence, basic Portuguese or a national Creole language, and no final conviction for an offence carrying a maximum sentence of at least three years. An application goes to the Minister of Justice through the Conservatória dos Registos Centrais. The preliminary review and opinion are each described as taking 30 days, followed by 15 days for the applicant to respond; the Government then decides on naturalisation. Marriage, descent and adoption cases generally involve the Minister of Justice. Language evidence can include a recognised school certificate or a declaration from the Direcção Geral da Cultura. Missing documents may be waived in special cases. Loss of nationality mainly concerns express renunciation, serious state-related conviction or fraudulent acquisition. A preliminary refusal in a nationality case should state reasons and allow 15 days for a response. Hierarchical or judicial review may be available. For ECOWAS expulsion, the decision should be individual and written with reasons, and national law generally provides an appeal with suspensive effect except for national security or public-order cases. Consular notification should normally occur at least 48 hours beforehand. A general, current remedy for refusal of entry was not reliably verified. Current fees, complete residence and visa document lists, processing times and a central online application system were likewise not verified, so applicants should confirm them directly with the DGMF, the relevant ministry or the competent embassy or consulate.