How to obtain citizenship in spain?

On this page, we provide a full guide to applying for Spanish citizenship.

Click on a link to each section:

Obtaining Spanish citizenship can provide the following benefits:

Travelling to Spain will be easier for you and your family if you are a Spanish citizen, particularly if you travel to and from Spain on a regular basis. You’ll get a Spanish ID card that fits in your wallet, rather than passports or permit papers, for example.

If you gain Spanish citizenship via naturalisation, you can work in Spain with far more ease. You will also be granted the right to live and work anywhere within the European Union.

To most Spanish residents, native-born or otherwise, the right to take part in voting is an important part of life. Obtaining Spanish citizenship allows you to take part in voting as well as other political activities.

Following your marriage to a Spanish citizen, this method requires you to have lived in Spain with your partner for a minimum of one year from the date your residence permit was granted.

You will also be required to provide identity documents, including a full passport and a birth certificate for both your spouse and you, as the principal applicant. You will also need to provide your marriage/civil registry certificate and proof of registration at the town hall showing your presence on the local census.

In addition to these requirements, you will also need to pass the CCSE (Constitutional and Sociocultural Aspects of Spain) and DELE (Diploma of Spanish) exams. You can read more about taking the CCSE and DELE tests here.

Once you have lived in Spain with your spouse for at least one year, you will then be able to start the process and submit your application online together with the required documents, and translated copies.

For more guidance, read our full guide to applying for Spanish citizenship through marriage here.

You are eligible to apply for Spanish citizenship through naturalisation if you have experienced Spanish residency for ten years and have no criminal record. You will also be required to pass the DELE and CCSE tests to check that you are proficient in the Spanish language and have an awareness of the general culture.

There are some exceptions to this, however. If you are a refugee, you may apply after five years of residence in Spain. Nationals from Ibero-American countries or Spanish territories may apply for citizenship after only two years. Those who fall under this bracket may originate from Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea or Portugal. This policy also applies to those of Sephardic Jewish origin.

You can read more about applying for Spanish citizenship as a Sephardic Jew here.

When applying for Spanish citizenship through naturalisation, you must complete an application form either entirely online through the SEDE electronica, or this can be done in person at the Spanish Civil Registry. This is when you will need to present all of your documentation and copies, as well as fully certified and translated copies as necessary.

For more guidance on applying for Spanish citizenship through naturalisation, you can read our full guide here.

You can obtain Spanish citizenship by descent if you can prove of any of the following:

If applying through this method, you will need to provide documents that prove you have Spanish relatives or have been adopted by Spanish citizens.

You can read our full guide to applying for Spanish citizenship through descent here.

You may also apply for Spanish citizenship through possession of status. This means that you have possessed or been using Spanish nationality for ten years, unaware that you were not truly a Spanish national. In this case, as long as you have been doing so in good faith, you may continue to do so.

You will need to pay 60 to 100 Euros to the relevant authority at the beginning of the application process – this is non-refundable whether or not your application is successful. However, you should expect some other fees related to obtaining certain documents you may have to provide.

Spanish citizenship provides you with the same rights as other Spanish citizens. For example, you are provided with the right to vote in European/national elections and the freedom to move around the EU freely. Permanent residency allows you to retain your original nationality and passport while living as a Spanish resident. You can move around the EU for limited periods, and for longer with permission.

If you obtain Spanish citizenship, you will have to renounce your original nationality. There are exceptions to this if you are from a Spanish-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea or Portugal. Sephardic Jews and their descendants are also allowed to obtain dual citizenship in their home country.

When going through the process of applying for Spanish citizenship, the right support can make a considerable difference between struggling and success. Giambrone & Partners can help you at every step of the way when completing your application.

Giambrone & Partners' lawyers can guide you with filling out the various forms without errors that may slow the process down. If you aren’t sure which documents you will need, or which may require translated copies, our expert immigration lawyers can make this clear, as well as providing any legal advice you may need.

Are you ready to start the process of applying for your Spanish citizenship? Get in touch to see how we can help you.

Related content

How to apply for Spanish citizenship through marriage

Can I obtain Spanish Citizenship through Sephardic Ancestry?

How to obtain Spanish citizenship through descent?

• By having lived enough years in the Spanish country (citizenship by residency)
• By marrying a Spanish national (citizenship by marriage)
• By being a descendant or grandchildren of a Spanish citizen (citizenship by descent)

If you want to live in Spain long term or even permanently, you will need to apply for permanent residence or Spanish citizenship.

This helpful guide explains how the residency rules in Spain work, including eligibility and how to apply for citizenship.

The guide covers the following topics:

After you have lived in Spain for five years, you can apply for permanent residence. After 10 years, you can apply for Spanish nationality. Some exemptions exist that allow certain people to apply sooner. For example, you can apply if you are married to a Spaniard or the child of a Spanish parent. Both Spanish citizenship and permanent residency allow you to stay living in Spain, but some differences exist between the two.

Holding an EU long-term permanent residence permit allows you to stay on as a resident in Spain while retaining your own nationality and passport. As a Spanish permanent resident, you can enjoy most of the same benefits as Spanish citizens. You must, however, be able to fulfil certain conditions. This includes being able to support yourself financially. You can move around the EU for limited periods, and longer with permission.

If you become a Spanish citizen, however, you will need to give up your original nationality and passport, unless you qualify for an exemption (see below). You will enjoy all the same rights as other Spanish citizens. In addition, you will become a citizen of the EU, meaning you are free to move around within it. You can also vote in European elections.

Uncertainty remains around the UK’s departure from the EU, but there are signs that British expats living in Spain will be protected. In March 2019, the Spanish foreign minister announced that the 400,000 UK citizens living in Spain would be granted residency rights in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit.

It is not totally clear how this would work just yet. British nationals might need to apply for a foreigner identity card by the end of 2020. This process would be nearly automatic.

Whatever happens, expats who already live in Spain could consider applying for Spanish citizenship if they meet the necessary criteria to main EU access. This would, however, mean surrendering their British citizenship.

It is possible that British expats may need to apply for a Blue Card in the future. This is an EU-wide work permit that allows high-skilled, non-EU citizens to work in Spain and other EU countries.

If non-EU nationals have legally lived in Spain for five uninterrupted years, they can apply for an ‘EU long-term residence permit’. This allows them to stay in Spain indefinitely working or otherwise, under the same conditions as Spanish citizens.

In order to apply for a permit, you must be able to prove that you have adequate financial resources to provide for yourself and your family (if applicable), such as a Spanish pension, scholarship, or salary. You must also have proof of public or private health insurance in Spain.

You might also have to submit:

When you have the permit, you can work freely and enjoy social services and benefits in Spain. You can generally move between other EU member states for up to three months. This may be longer if it is for certain purposes and you have a permit.

If you hold a Blue Card from another EU member state, and have lived elsewhere in the EU for the same period, this also grants you long-term residence in Spain. However, you must have lived in the country for two years beforehand.

If you hold an EU long-term residence permit granted by another EU member state and want to stay on in Spain, you will have to relinquish your long-term residence status in the other country. You will also need to apply for an EU long-term residence permit from the Foreigner’s Office (Oficina de Extranjeros) in Spain.

You can apply for Spanish nationality after 10 years of residence in Spain. You can also acquire Spanish nationality by getting married in Spain or birth, even if you or your Spanish parents were born outside Spain.

All applicants must prove that they are a good citizen. This means that you must be financially stable and have no criminal record. In addition, you must show a sufficient degree of integration into Spanish society. For example, you can speak Spanish and you take part in social activities that are part of the Spanish way of life.

You have to apply at the Civil Registry where you live in Spain. You will need to take along the required supporting documents for your Spanish citizenship application, plus a completed Spanish citizenship application form.

If you are 18 years or above, 14 or older with legal assistance, or the legal guardian of a person under 14, you can apply for Spanish citizenship. The process of applying for citizenship in Spain may be much easier with the help of expert immigration attorneys, who can assist you with every phase of the process of obtaining your residency permit.

As a rule, refugees only have to wait five years before they can apply for Spanish nationality. Nationals from Spanish-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, and those of Sephardic origin only have to wait two years.

The required period of residence for citizenship is just one year if you are born in Spain to legal foreign residents. The same period applies if you are married to a Spaniard, widowed from a Spaniard, or the child or grandchild. This applies even if you were born outside of Spain to a Spanish national (by birth or residence).

Descendents of expelled Sephardic Jews from Spain can also apply for Spanish citizenship without residing in Spain. This is if they can prove special connections to Spain and pass tests on Spanish language and history. The application deadline is 1 October 2019.

You are Spanish by origin and can apply for Spanish citizenship by ‘Option’ (where you do not require a residency period) if you were:

There are also other situations to qualify for Spanish citizenship, where residency is required for one year. This applies to those born outside Spain to parents (also born outside Spain) and grandparents, whom were originally Spanish. It also applies to those with a Spanish guardian or foster parent. Those who did not duly exercise their right to acquire Spanish nationality by option are also required to have a year.

You can fast-track citizenship if you are married to a Spaniard and can become a Spanish citizen after living in Spain for one year. The application and conditions follow the standard citizenship procedure. The exception is that you don’t need to wait 10 years to apply. You will have to surrender your existing citizenship to become Spanish. You can also claim Spanish citizenship as the widower or widow of a Spaniard. However, you cannot have been separated at the time of their death.

Spain charges a non-refundable fee to process your citizenship application. The price varies and can range from €60-€100, even if they reject your application. Fees may also apply to issue certificates and documents required for your application.

If you are successful, you will have to swear your loyalty to the King. You must also promise to obey the Spanish constitution and laws.

Unless you are from a Spanish-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, or Portugal, you will also have to renounce your previous nationality. Sephardic Jews and descendents can also maintain their original citizenship to have dual nationality.

You will lose your Spanish citizenship if you reside abroad and take up another nationality for more than three years. This also applies of you use your old nationality in that period. The only exception is, if within that period, you declare to the Civil Registry your will to keep Spanish nationality.