ABSTRACT
Portugal's long experience as a country of emigration can be traced back to the fifteenth century, when the main migratory flows were directed toward Portuguese colonial territories. This chapter outlines the Portuguese immigration policies regarding the control and integration of immigrants, the most important types of immigration status and permits, and the recent developments in the existing naturalization law. It presents a demographic and social characterization of the immigrant population in Portugal, including the country's most important ethnic groups. The chapter provides an overview of the civic integration of immigrants in Portugal, with a special focus on immigrants' civic rights and their participation in Portuguese public life. It offers an overview of the media coverage and media discourses on immigration in Portugal. The Portuguese local and central state and Portuguese civil society have created some institutional structures and opportunities to encourage immigrants' participation in Portuguese public life.
