Nationality in Cape Verde is governed by the 1992 Constitution, as amended in 2010, and by the 2023 Lei da Nacionalidade, as amended in March 2024. Regulations implementing the new law were due to be issued by mid-2024.

Article 5 of the Constitution only includes one substantive provision, para. 3, which reads that Cape Verdeans may acquire the nationality of another country without losing their nationality by origin. Paras. 1, 2 and 4 merely refer to ordinary legislation and international agreement (including dual nationality treaties) the definition of who is Cape Verdean and the rules on acquisition, loss and reacquisition of nationality, as well as its registration and proof. Article 40 of the Constitution, under the heading ‘right to nationality”, rules that no Cape Verdean by origin may be deprived of nationality or of the prerogatives that go with citizenship.

The Preamble to the 2023 Lei da Nacionalidade (Law No. 33/X/2023, of 22 August 2023) stressed that nationality is a fundamental right and that Cape Verde is a country of emigration keen on keeping its emigrants tied to the national community under a policy of Global Nation (Nação Global). The main changes to Cape Verde’s nationality law introduced by Law No. 33/X/2023 — which repealed and replaced Lei No.80/III/90 of 29 June 1990 —  consisted of: (a) widening the scope of nationality of origin by birth with its attribution to children born abroad who are children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren or great-great-grandchildren of Cape Verdean nationals of origin if they declare their wish to be Cape Verdean [Article 8(1)(e)]; (b) adding a five-year marriage duration requirement for acquisition of nationality by marriage and extending the regime to registered partnerships (Article 10); (c) adding the requirement that the five-year residence in Cape-Verde prior to naturalization be legal [Article 13(1)(a)]; and (d) adding new grounds for loss of nationality, for cases of fraud, acquisition of nationality with the sole purpose of committing crimes or avoiding expulsion or extradition, and conviction for the crime of terrorism [Article 18(1)].

Law No. 33/X/2023 had some inconsistencies and was amended by Law No. 37/X/2014, of 22 March 2024. Article 8(1)(c) of the Lei da Nacionalidade now attributes Cape Verdean nationality of origin by birth to children born abroad to a Cape Verdean parent who is a Cape Verdean national of origin, provided that the birth is registered at Cape-Verde’s civil registry, with no need for a declaration. The provision in Article 8(1)(e) was amended to exclude the reference to children born abroad to Cape Verdean nationals. Article 10 was amended to lower to four the duration of a marriage or registered partnership required for the purposes of acquisition of nationality based on this ground. The 2024 amendment eliminated the statelessness safeguard that was previously in Article 8(1)(c), which attributed Cape Verdean nationality of origin by birth to those born in Cape-Verde who did not possess another nationality.