Spanish Nationality

This form of acquiring nationality requires the person to have legally resided in Spain for ten years continuously and immediately prior to the application.

There are several cases where the 10-year residency period can be reduced:

Five years of legal residency: for the granting of Spanish nationality to those who have obtained refugee status.

Two years: for nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, or persons of Sephardic origin.

One year:

• Those born in Spanish territory.
• Those who did not properly exercise their right to acquire Spanish nationality by option.
• Those who have been legally subject to the guardianship (under the care of a guardian), custody, or foster care (foster care that allows the reduction of legal residency to one year is the one where there is a resolution from the public entity in each territory responsible for the protection of minors, and foster care that is judicially recognized) of a Spanish citizen or institution for two consecutive years, even if they continue in this situation at the time of the application.
• Those who, at the time of the application, have been married to a Spanish citizen for one year and are not legally or factually separated.
• The widow or widower of a Spanish citizen, if at the time of the spouse’s death they were not separated, either factually or judicially.
• Those born outside Spain to a father or mother (also born outside Spain), grandfather or grandmother, as long as all of them were originally Spanish.

Its eighth additional provision establishes the possibility of acquiring Spanish nationality in the following cases:

a) Those born outside Spain to a father or mother, grandfather or grandmother who were originally Spanish and who, as a result of having suffered exile for political, ideological, or belief reasons, or due to sexual orientation and identity, lost or renounced their Spanish nationality.

b) Sons and daughters born abroad to Spanish women who lost their nationality by marrying foreigners before the 1978 Constitution came into effect.

c) Adult children of those Spaniards whose nationality of origin was recognized under the right of option in accordance with the provisions of this law or the seventh additional provision of Law 52/2007, of December 26.

The option is a benefit that our legislation offers to foreigners who meet certain conditions, allowing them to acquire Spanish nationality. The following people have the right to acquire Spanish nationality in this way:

• Those who are or have been subject to the parental authority of a Spanish citizen.
• Those whose father or mother was Spanish and born in Spain.

Those born in Spain to foreign parents, if both are stateless, or if the legislation of neither parent attributes a nationality to the child. In this case, a procedure can be carried out at the Civil Registry of their residence to declare Spanish nationality with the value of simple presumption.

This form of acquiring nationality is discretionary and is not subject to the general rules of administrative procedure. It will be granted or not at the Government’s discretion by Royal Decree, after considering the concurrence of exceptional circumstances.