Eligibility quiz
Was one of your parents originally a Spanish citizen?
Benefits
Benefits for youBenefits for you
Spanish passport and ID
Spanish citizens can have a passport and identity card.
The identity card normally lasts 2 years under age 5, 5 years from age 5 to under 30, 10 years from 30 to under 70, and indefinitely after 70.
The passport normally lasts 2 years under age 5, 5 years under 30 and 10 years from age 30.
Live in Spain for life
Spanish citizens can enter, live and remain in Spain without a time limit, even after living abroad, and do not need to renew the right to live there.
Study in Spain
Spanish citizens can study in Spain.
Work in Spain
Spanish citizens can work in Spain for an employer or for themselves without an immigration or work permit.
Get help abroad
Spanish citizens can seek help from Spain when abroad.
Outside the EU, if Spain has no embassy or consulate, another EU country’s embassy or consulate can help with problems such as arrest, serious illness, a lost passport or emergency travel home.
Vote and run for office
Spanish citizens can vote and run for office, including in national elections, when they meet the rules.
Those living abroad can register with a consulate to help them vote in Spanish elections.
Those living in another EU country can vote and stand in local and European Parliament elections there on the same terms as its citizens.
Use public healthcare
Spanish citizens who usually live in Spain can generally use publicly funded healthcare, though citizenship alone does not make every treatment free.
Receive benefits and pensions
Spanish citizens may receive social security benefits and pensions if they meet the relevant conditions, which can include contributions, residence or financial need.
How to apply
Applying at a consulateApplying at a consulate
Find your consulate
Find the Spanish consulate that serves the place where you live. You can continue this application only if you made an identity-verified appointment request by 22 October 2025 and have its electronic receipt or CSV.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “Which Spanish consulate covers your city for nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law?”
Download the application form
Download the Spanish nationality by option forms. Use Anexo I for a Spanish parent or grandparent, Anexo II for a Spanish mother who lost nationality through marriage, or Anexo III for an adult child of a parent recognised under a memory law.
Download the formsFill in the form
Fill in and sign the form; for a child under 14, their legal representative does this. A child aged 14 to 17 fills it in with their legal representative's help, unless the child is legally independent.
See how to completeSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I complete the Spain nationality by option form under the Democratic Memory Law?”
Gather your documents
Prepare the required documents for the consulate.
See required documentsKeep your appointment receipt
Keep the electronic receipt or CSV from your identity-verified appointment request made by 22 October 2025. New requests cannot be made.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I use my appointment request receipt for Spain nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law at the consulate serving your city?”
Book your appointment
Wait for the consulate to send your appointment credentials, then book the offered appointment as instructed.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I book an appointment for Spain nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law at the consulate serving your city?”
Go to your appointment
Bring your signed form, required documents and appointment receipt or CSV to the consulate in person. For a child, the child and their legal representative attend as required.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I submit Spain nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law at the consulate serving your city?”
Wait for the decision
Wait for the Civil Registry to decide your application, and send any further evidence it asks for within the period it gives you.
See how longSearches DuckDuckGo for “How long does Spain nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law take at a consulate?”
Complete your registration
Follow the Civil Registry's instructions to make any required oath or promise and register your citizenship.
Find registration guidanceSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I register Spain nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law after approval at a consulate?”
Get your certificate
Obtain your Spanish birth or nationality certificate from the Civil Registry. You can then apply for a Spanish passport.
Get your certificateSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I obtain a Spanish birth certificate after nationality by option under the Democratic Memory Law at a consulate?”
Documents needed
Family certificates and recordsFamily certificates and records
Birth certificates
Get your full birth certificate from the office where your birth was registered, and your Spanish parent's full birth certificate from the office where their birth was registered. Bring originals and the copies your office asks for.
Marriage certificates *
Get your mother's marriage certificate from the office where the marriage was registered. Bring the original and any copies your office asks for.
* Only if your Spanish mother lost her citizenship by marrying a foreign national before the 1978 Constitution.
May need translationMay need apostille/legalisationParent's citizenship records *
If your mother lost Spanish citizenship through marriage, get records showing that loss from the office or archive that holds them. If your parent gained Spanish citizenship through a historical-memory option, get the record recognising their Spanish citizenship of origin under that option.
* Only if your mother lost Spanish citizenship through marriage or your parent gained Spanish citizenship through a historical-memory option.
May need translationMay need apostille/legalisationConsiderations
Things to think aboutThings to think about
Citizenship can be lost
Abroad, emancipated citizens risk loss three years after gaining or solely using another citizenship without declaring they want to keep it; exceptions apply.
Those born and living abroad to a Spanish parent also born abroad risk loss without that declaration within three years of adulthood or emancipation.
Citizens not Spanish by origin risk loss for fraud, prohibited foreign service or office, or solely using a citizenship they gave up.
Discuss
Online communitiesOnline communities
Ley de memoria democrática, nacionalidad española y residencia 🇪🇦
Spanish Facebook group for people living in Spain interested in Spanish citizenship
Join on FacebookLey de Memoria democrática en Miami
Spanish Facebook group for people interested in Spanish citizenship
Join on FacebookLey de nietos y ciudadanía española en Miami
Spanish Facebook group for people interested in Spanish citizenship
Join on FacebookConsultation
Talk to a professionalTalk to a professional
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