
Foreign investors or natural persons who want to
relocate in Spain and obtain a
citizenship here have to know the local requirements imposed by the
Spanish authorities. In order to
obtain a citizenship in Spain, the person applying for it must have an age above 18 years old; it is also necessary to have
lived in Spain for a period of 10 years, if the person is a
foreign national. Still, several exemptions are allowed under specific situations, which can be presented by
our team of Spanish company formation specialists.
Apply for Spanish citizenship
As a foreigner applying for citizenship, it is necessary to be a resident of the country for at least 10 years. The citizenship can also be obtained if the foreigner marries a Spanish citizen or if the person has parents that are considered Spanish citizens.
An important aspect is that the local legislation requires having a good understanding on the local culture, but also to be able to speak the Spanish language.
There are two ways of obtaining the citizenship in Spain:
• by option;
• via residence.
Persons are entitled to apply for a citizenship by option if the individual is the child of a Spanish citizen; at the same time, adopted children of Spanish citizens, who, at the moment of the adoption had an age above 18 years old, can apply for this type of permit.
The
Spanish citizenship can also be obtained by a foreign person who has been
living in Spain for five or ten years. Five years is the time period required for refugees, while a period of ten years is applicable to nationals from countries such as Andorra or Portugal;
our team of Spanish company formation agents can offer more details.
Spanish nationality
The main body processing
citizenships applications is the
Civil Registry, to which persons can address to in the place of residence.
Spanish nationality is given to persons who have registered their
citizenship at the Civil Registry for a period of at least ten years. It is important to know that those granted
Spanish nationality shall not lose this distinction even in the situation in which the record of the
Civil Registry is annulled.