Nationality

Spanish citizenship is a right that you can get and that allows you to live indefinitely in Spain; while giving you certain benefits, such as the right to vote or to free movement and work within the EU.

Ways to obtain Spanish nationality

The main way to obtain Spanish nationality is by residence; is demands, as a general rule, residence in Spain for ten years legally, continuously and immediately prior to the petition. 

There are cases where the required period of residence is reduced.

Exceptions: 

1. Five years: for the granting of Spanish nationality to those persons who have obtained refugee status.
2. Two years: for nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal or persons of Sephardic origin.
3. One year: para those persons who were born in Spanish territory, all those who did not duly exercise their right to acquire Spanish nationality by option, the foreign person who has been legally subject to the guardianship (under the supervision of a guardian), guardianship or placement (the placement that allows the reduction of legal residence to one year is the one in which there is a resolution of the public entity that has in each territory entrusted with the protection of minors and the placements that are judicially recognized) of a Spanish citizen or institution for two consecutive years, even if it continues in this situation at the time of the application; any person who, at the time of application, has been married to a Spaniard or Spaniard for one year and is not legally or de facto separated, persons widowed from Spanish or Spaniards, if at the time of the death of the spouse they were not de facto or judicially separated and people born outside Spain as long as they are the son/daughter or granddaughter/grandson of Spaniards of origin.

Other common ways to obtain Spanish nationality are:

• Origin: for children of Spanish citizens and persons born in Spain to foreign parents if either parent was also born in Spain.
• Option: children of Spaniards of origin born in Spain and all those subject to the parental authority of a Spanish citizen.
• Nature Charter: this form of acquisition of nationality is ex gratia and is not subject to the general rules of administrative procedure. It will be granted or not "discretionally" by the Spanish government by Royal Decree, after assessing the concurrence of exceptional circumstances.
• State ownership: a person who has held and used Spanish nationality for ten years, continuously, in good faith (without being aware of the actual situation, i.e. that he is not in fact Spanish), on the basis of a title registered in the civil registry shall be entitled to Spanish nationality.
• By Simple Presumption: in accordance with the Civil Code (Article 17.c), Spaniards of origin are those born in Spain to foreign parents, if both lack nationality (stateless persons), or if the legislation of neither of them attributes to the child a nationality. In this case, a file can be made in the civil registry of your domicile to declare Spanish nationality with the value of a simple presumption.
• For the Law of Democratic Memory (Law of Grandchildren): 
  • Los nacidos fuera de España de padre o madre, abuelo o abuela, que originariamente hubieran sido españoles, y que, como consecuencia de haber sufrido exilio por razones políticas, ideológicas o de creencia u orientación e identidad sexual, hubieran perdido o renunciado a la nacionalidad española; Los hijos e hijas nacidos en el exterior de mujeres españolas que perdieron su nacionalidad por casarse con extranjeros antes de la entrada en vigor de la Constitución de 1978; 
  • The adult sons and daughters of those Spaniards whose nationality of origin was recognized by virtue of the right of option and in accordance with the provisions of this law or the seventh additional provision of Law 52/2007, of December 26. the deadline to apply through the Grandchildren's Law only goes until October 2024, as established by Law 20/2022, unless possible extension.

General documentation

• Standard application form. In case of electronic filing, it will be replaced by the online form.
• Foreigner Identity Card, a family card of a citizen of the European Union or a certificate from the Central Register of Foreigners or the Register of a citizen of the European Union.
• Full passport and in force in the country of origin. A photocopy of each of the pages of the passport is needed to check the exits and entrances to Spain, so it is necessary to ensure that the photocopies are of quality so that the stamps can be seen.
• Birth certificate of the interested party, duly translated and legalized/apostilled.
• Certificate of criminal record from your country of origin, translated and legalized/apostilled, issued by the authorities of the country or countries where you have resided during the five years prior to entry into Spain, in accordance with existing international conventions or consular certificate of conduct issued on the basis of consultation with the competent authorities of the country of origin.
• Marriage certificate if the applicant is married.
• Proof of payment of the fee (104,05€).
• Criminal record certificate from the Central Register of Prisoners. It may be replaced by the authorisation to consult the Ministry of Justice in the standard application form.
• Certificate of registration. It may be replaced by the authorisation to consult the Ministry of Justice in the standard application form.
• Cervantes Institute Diploma of Constitutional and Sociocultural Knowledge Test (CCSE). It may be replaced by the authorisation to consult the Ministry of Justice in the standard application form. In any case, they may be exempted from taking the CCSE test, provided that they prove it and the Ministry of Justice approves it: illiterate people, people with learning difficulties, and those who have been in school in Spain and have passed compulsory secondary education.
• Diploma of the Instituto Cervantes of the Spanish language knowledge test (DELE A2). It may be replaced by the authorisation to consult the Ministry of Justice in the standard application form. In the case of persons who are nationals of a country in which Spanish is an official language, they will be exempted from taking the DELE exam in accordance with the Regulation on nationality by residence, on presentation of the valid passport or certificate of nationality attesting to the exemption. Proof of knowledge of the Spanish language can also be provided by providing official certificates of teaching Spanish as a foreign language, certificates of aptitude and academic certifications of elementary cycle, issued by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport, competent ministries of the CC. AA, or Official Language Schools, in accordance with current legislation.

Additional documentation for specific cases

In addition to the general documentation, in each specific case:

For minors:

• There are a number of documents that will have to be signed by the legal guardian in the case of children under fourteen years of age. For children under the age of fourteen to eighteen who can act on their own with the assistance of their legal representative, there will also be specific documentation. In both cases, in addition to the general documentation, a certificate from the training, residence or reception centre attesting to the sufficient degree of integration will be requested.

For refugees:

• Identity card of foreigners stating their refugee status.
• Blue Passport of the 1951 Geneva Convention (if available).
• Certificate from the Asylum and Refuge Office of the Ministry of the Interior (this certificate shall be valid for six months from the date of issue) stating:
  • Name and surname.Date and place of birth.Names of parents.
  • Maintaining his refugee status.

For born in Spanish territory:

• Verbatim certificate of birth of the interested party registered in the Spanish civil registry.

For those who have not exercised the right to choose in a timely manner:

• Birth certificate of the father/mother with Spanish citizenship.
• Literal certificate of birth of the interested party registered in a Spanish civil registry or judicial decision where the adoption by Spanish or the recognition of filiation is recorded.

For persons in non-provisional guardianship, custody or foster care:

In cases of foster care:

• Order of the competent court designating the person to exercise guardianship, custody or foster care.

In cases of placement by Spanish institution:

• Resolution of said Institution assuming the guardianship, guardianship or foster care.

For married to Spanish:

• Literal certificate of birth of the Spanish spouse, issued by Spanish civil registry.
• Literal marriage certificate issued by Spanish civil registry.
• Certificate of Coexistence or Joint Enrollment with the spouse.

For Spanish widower:

• Verbatim certificate of birth of the spouse issued by Spanish civil registry.
• Literal marriage certificate issued by updated Spanish civil registry, that is, issued on dates close to the application for nationality.
• Certificate of death of the spouse.
• Certificate of joint registration or cohabitation at the date of death of the spouse.

For descendant of Spanish:

• Literal birth certificate of the father/mother with Spanish citizenship.
• Literal birth certificate of the grandfather/grandmother, only when one or both of them are Spanish ascendants. In this case, the birth certificate of the father/mother descended from Spanish must also be presented, regardless of whether he/she was Spanish or not.

Who can apply for Spanish nationality

• The interested party, by himself, provided that he is over 18 years of age or is emancipated.
• The person over fourteen years of age assisted by his or her legal representative.
• The legal representative of the child under 14 years of age.
• The person with the judicially modified capacity alone or the legal representative of that person, depending on what the incapacitation sentence indicates.
• By duly accredited representative.

Once the application has been approved, the effectiveness of the granting of Spanish nationality by residence will be subject to a period of 180 days the requirements of article 23 of the Civil Code are fulfilled before the person in charge of the civil registry of the domicile. That the interested party, over fourteen years of age and able to give a statement for himself, proceed to perform the following acts:

• Swear or promise allegiance to the King and obedience to the Constitution and laws.
• Relinquish your previous nationality. The nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea or Portugal and the Sephardim are exempt from this requirement.
• That the acquisition of nationality be registered in the Spanish civil registry.

Adquisición de la nacionalidad española: actos finales obligatorios

1. Juramento o promesa

Una vez concedida la nacionalidad, la persona interesada debe jurar o prometer fidelidad al Rey y obediencia a la Constitución y a las leyes.
Este acto es personal, solemne y obligatorio, y debe realizarse dentro de los 180 días siguientes a la notificación de la resolución.
Puede llevarse a cabo ante:

• The Civil Registry Officer competente.
• Notario/a autorizado/a, según la Instrucción de la DGSJFP de 22 de diciembre de 2021.
• Funcionario diplomático o consular que ejerza funciones de Registro Civil.

Referencia normativa: Art. 23.a) del Código Civil; Art. 21.4 CC sobre caducidad; Arts. 12 y 13 del Real Decreto 1004/2015; Instrucción DGSJFP 22-12-2021.

2. Declaración de renuncia a la nacionalidad anterior

En el mismo acto se formaliza, con carácter general, la declaración de renuncia a la nacionalidad anterior.
Existen supuestos exceptuados: el Código Civil y diversos convenios internacionales reconocen que determinadas nacionalidades están exentas de renunciar, principalmente por vínculos históricos, culturales o por tratados bilaterales de doble nacionalidad.

Entre estas excepciones figuran:

• Nacionalidades de países iberoamericanos.
• Andorra, Filipinas, Guinea Ecuatorial, Portugal.
• Nacionalidades con las que España tenga dual nationality agreements en vigor (por ejemplo, France desde el 1 de abril de 2022).
• Personas de Sephardic origin.

Referencia normativa: Art. 23.b) y 24.1 CC; Convenios bilaterales de nacionalidad; Instrucción DGSJFP de 31-03-2022 (Convenio España-Francia, BOE-A-2022-4916 y BOE-A-2022-5573).

Nota práctica: La renuncia es un requisito formal en España. Su efecto real sobre la pérdida de la otra nacionalidad dependerá de la legislación del país de origen, que puede no reconocerla.

3. Inscripción en el Registro Civil español

The inscripción en el Registro Civil es el acto constitutivo de la adquisición: sin ella, la nacionalidad no produce efectos jurídicos.
El Registro debe inscribir el hecho en los 5 días siguientes a la jura o promesa.

A partir de esta inscripción, la persona ya puede solicitar DNI y pasaporte españoles.

Referencia normativa: Art. 23.c) CC; Art. 68 Ley 20/2011 del Registro Civil; Art. 13 RD 1004/2015.