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Get Spanish Citizenship

Expert legal consultation on how to get Spanish citizenship from a team of English-speaking immigration lawyers in Spain.

There are several ways to get Spanish citizenship. Our immigration lawyers in Spain will guide you through the process step-by-step.

How can a lawyer help me become a Spanish citizen?

 

Becoming a Spanish citizen can be a complex and tedious process. But don’t worry, having an immigration lawyer by your side can make all the difference. So what can we do for you?

Collect the right documents: Every case is different. We will let you know exactly which documents you need, so you’re not left guessing.

Direct line to Justice: Have a tricky question? We can communicate with the Ministry of Justice directly to sort it out. No middleman is necessary.

Digital Submission: We can handle the digital submission on your behalf and follow up on the status of the application process.

Extra Insight: We know the ins and outs of the practice of the Spanish Administration. Sometimes there are unwritten rules and requirements – we have that covered too.

Service in Your Language: Whether it’s English, French, Greek, Portuguese, Spanish, or Italian – we can assist you in whatever language you’re most comfortable with.

Spain Citizenship Requirements

Spanish Citizenship by Option

Requesting Spanish citizenship by option does not require the applicant to live or have ever lived in Spain. However, it only applies to specific cases, such as:

  • Individuals who are or have been under the parental guardianship of a Spaniard.
  • Individuals whose father or mother was born in Spain.
  • Individuals whose parentage or birth in Spain occurs after the age of eighteen. In this case, the period to opt for citizenship is two years after the parentage or birth is determined.
  • Those who are adopted by a Spanish citizen after the age of eighteen. In this case, the right to opt exists until two years have elapsed from the establishment of the adoption.
  • Additionally, the Democratic Memory Law may have relevance in certain cases.

Spanish Citizenship by Residence

Spanish citizenship by residence requires that the applicant has lived in Spain for at least 10 years in most cases. However, some exceptions require shorter periods including:

  • 5 years of residency for individuals with refugee status.
  • 2 years of residency for nationals of Latin American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, or individuals of Sephardic ancestry.
  • 1 year of residency for those born in Spain, married to a Spanish citizen, or with a Spanish parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent.

Additionally, the applicant must demonstrate good civic conduct and a satisfactory level of integration into Spanish society by passing the necessary language and/or culture exams required for foreigners to obtain Spanish citizenship.

Frequently Asked Questions

You can apply for Spanish nationality after one year of legal residence in Spain if your grandparents were Spaniards.

Generally, you must give up your original nationality and passport. But there are exceptions.

You can qualify for an exemption and keep both nationalities if you are a citizen of one of the following countries: Chile; Peru; Paraguay; Nicaragua; Guatemala; Bolivia; Ecuador; Costa Rica; Honduras; Dominican Republic; Argentina; Colombia; Equatorial Guinea; Philippines; Andorra; Portugal; Brazil; Cuba; Mexico; Panama; Puerto Rico; El Salvador; Uruguay; Venezuela and France.

Once you get Spanish citizenship, it lasts forever. 

However, since Spain generally doesn’t recognize dual citizenship, you will need to renounce your Spanish nationality if you go after citizenship in another country.

The one loophole? If you apply for citizenship in a country where Spain recognizes dual citizenship, you get to keep both passports.

Yes, there is a difference between Spanish nationality and permanent residence.

With permanent residence, you can keep your original nationality and passport while having the right to live and work in Spain as a resident. 

With Spanish nationality, you are granted all the rights and freedoms of a Spanish citizen. For exmaple, you can move freely around the EU and have the right to vote in national and EU elections

OUR WORK

We are a department formed by qualified legal experts who have been trained in the field of immigration law. We work on these requests every day and it’s our passion. For us, Lexidy is a way of life and what excites us the most is to be able to deliver the happiness and satisfaction of a successful immigration process. We want to help you achieve your goals and dreams.

Laura Fuste

Laura Fusté

Head of Immigration Europe
David Planes

David Planes

Lawyer
Cristina Negro Vizoso

Cristina Negro Vizoso

Lawyer
Mónica Isern López

Mónica Isern López

Lawyer, Head of Immigration Spain
Gabriela Baly

Gabriela Baly

Lawyer
Francesca Coluccio

Francesca Coluccio

Legal Advisor
Luisa Rivera

Luisa Rivera

Trainee
Sandra

Sandra Faura

Lawyer
Carolina Gimeno

Carolina Gimeno

Lawyer

Rizette

Lawyer
Eugenia Yanes

Eugenia Yanes

Legal Trainee
Lexidy Legal Tech
4.8
Based on 455 reviews
Muizz Ahmed
Muizz Ahmed
11:33 14 Mar 24
Working alongside Cristina has been an excellent experience. I initially contacted her from Pakistan and had a one-on-one meeting in Madrid upon my arrival. She is an exceptional lawyer with extensive expertise in her field. Despite my numerous concerns and questions, she remained remarkably calm and patiently explained everything to me, demonstrating both her exceptional professionalism and personal qualities.Thanks to her assistance, I obtained my TIE in Spain. For anyone seeking immigration advice or services, I highly recommend reaching out to her. Cristina, along with Lexidy, offers a comprehensive solution for realizing your European dreams. Many thanks, Cristina and Lexidy, for your invaluable support.
Jonathan Elron
Jonathan Elron
07:37 13 Aug 23
A great law firm that covers anything an expat might need. I needed help with real estate initially, and they also helped me with immigration, taxes, and corporate legal matters. Fantastic people to work with. Alejandro from their real estate and immigration department is my main contact and he is an absolute pleasure to work with. Highly recommended!
Blake Yu
Blake Yu
12:13 30 May 23
I'm an expat / tech worker from the US and have been in contact Lexidy since I moved to Barcelona roughly a year ago and have to say it's been very convenient having help centralized across tax, immigration, and labor. Want to give a shout out to Monica Lopez, Gabriela Baly, Sara Rinaldi & Sara Fraile for all being very professional / supporting me as things have come up!I've already referred a few friends in that are interested in moving to spain on nomad visas. Gracias por todo!
Kabeer Vohra
Kabeer Vohra
15:33 22 Mar 23
Cristina is the person you need if you have any immigration inquiries. She has honestly been phenomenal, answering each and every question so promptly, we had an issue with the immigration office and she took care of everything with extreme empathy and professionalism. Thank you for all you have done for me.
Marieke Ayoub
Marieke Ayoub
11:20 09 Feb 23
We've only had an initial consultation with Wessel from Lexidy, to explore our planned move to Spain and all the paperwork that is involved. Lexidy do not charge for this initial consultation, unlike quite a few other firms. Wessel was extremely helpful and gave us very clear information both during our video call and in the follow-up email. The only reason why we have chosen not to go ahead with Lexidy, is the fact that we found a firm in the province that we will be moving to, which is an important benefit for us.
Andy Kreek
Andy Kreek
10:14 07 Feb 23
I've worked with Lexidy with various tax and immigration related inquiries, which they have handled well.However, I did have a negative experience regarding obtaining a digital certificate. I engaged Lexidy to obtain a digital certificate, for which they charged 250EUR. As it turns out, the certificate was valid for just one year, which they did not inform me of when they delivered it to me.After I discovered it had expired, I wrote to Lexidy expressing my surprise, but I never received any reply.I then proceeded to follow the process myself to obtain a new digital certificate per the website of the Fabrica Nacional de Mondeda y Timbre to obtain a digital certificate. The process is, in fact, free and (if you speak Spanish) only marginally more complex on my end than engaging Lexidy.On top of it all, the digital certificate I received from the FMNT is valid for 3 years, not 1.
Radostin Denev
Radostin Denev
09:47 27 Oct 22
Comment from Radostin and Kaloyan Bulgaria:We could recommend working with Lexidy and especially with Juan Diego Muñoz to everyone. Our assessment is defenitely 10 out of 10!Strict professional who cover full end-to-end journey in buying real estate and successful relocation to Spain in our case. We highly appreciate efficient and effective approach and providing us and supporting us in each step of the journey in buying property in Spain. Without support of Juan Diego we would be lost, he provides us with daily support in most critical days before finalization of the deal and also there was not even a single question to which he could not provide us details in most structured way.Thank you Juan Diego Muñoz, thank you Lexidy we will be happy working together in the future.We wish you lots of success in your innovative and trustful approach in supporting your customers in a holistic way.Radostin and Kaloyan
D Par
D Par
23:43 25 Oct 22
My experience was optimal. Each time I sent an email, the response was prompt, the information thorough, and the exchange pleasant. The complimentary consultation was informative, friendly, and professional. My immigration services will be addressed by none other than Lexidy Law Boutique. I thank you for the detailed information, your authenticity, most of all, for making me feel at ease in discussing such a private matter.
Simon Blomfield
Simon Blomfield
10:18 26 Aug 22
Lexidy Law - sucessful Non Lucrative Visa assistanceI employed Lexidy Law to assist with applying for my Non-Lucrative Visa, now granted. I also used them to check my property rental contract.Cristina Vizoso was my legal contact and was highly responsive and reassuring.In the future, I will certainly be using Lexidy to assist with my TIE and to apply for an autonomous Visa. I highly recommend them for all your immigration to Spain needs
Rick Estrada-Stone
Rick Estrada-Stone
15:05 16 Jul 22
We are working with Lexidy for our immigration and real estate needs. Our real estate lawyer, Juan Diego Muñoz, has been amazing to work with throughout the entire process. His diligent communication during the real estate purchase has not only kept us informed every step of the way, but helped us to understand the differences and intricacies of purchasing property in Spain. We can't say enough great things about Juan Diego and the team at Lexidy.
Duncan Casemore
Duncan Casemore
08:57 01 Jul 22
My wife, 2 children, and I wanted to move to Spain on a non-lucrative visa to experience something new following a stressful covid period. I had the privilege of working with Max and Gabriela, who were outstanding: Fluent English, nurturing us the whole way from initial sales contact through to landing in Spain, refreshingly responsive (usually within minutes, unlike many legal firms which work in units of days!), deeply knowledgable (added so much more value beyond paperwork), professional, experienced, and couldn't do enough for us. Top marks -- and that's from a customer with high expectations! Thank you for the quality experience and for helping us realise our dreams 🙂
RICHARD BRITTON
RICHARD BRITTON
21:46 29 Jun 22
We contacted Lexidy Law boutique when we recently moved from Cyprus to open a new chapter in our lives to move into a house in Brittany that we had bought 12 years previously. We had underestimated the twists and turns involved in obtaining residency in France - so we contacted Lexidy Law Boutique and were assigned Eleonore, an immigration lawyer well acquainted with French immigration laws. From the very beginning we realised she was determined that we should have a successful outcome and she guided us expertly to avoid all the pitfalls in the process of applying for residency. She even accompanied us to the prefecture and ensured that everything went smoothly - without her presence we might well have not succeeded.We thank and highly recommend Eleonore and Lexidy Law Boutique.
Ornela Xhelili
Ornela Xhelili
16:43 14 Jun 22
Extremely helpful and professional law firm. My lawyer, David Pilar Planes, managed my immigration process that involved the conversion of an EU Permit from another member country into a Spanish residence permit, in a smooth, reliable and dedicated way. Highly recommended for anyone in need of immigration assistance in Spain.
Leah Tarran
Leah Tarran
09:20 02 Dec 21
Amazing experience! Mónica Isern López for immigration and residency, her communication was excellent, she responded to every email in a timely manner, spoke to me on the phone whenever I requested, and provided extremely clear instructions. I was very impressed that if Monica was out of office, someone else would respond that had knowledge of my specific situation.The information she provided was always accurate and she followed through with every document and appointment laid out in the contract. If I had a question, she found the answer and provided supporting documentation. Even though it was a long process due to the pandemic, I felt confident with her help and received a favorable resolution without any issues.
Emilie Naples
Emilie Naples
19:10 20 Sep 21
This is the ONLY law firm I recommend to handle whatever immigration needs you may have. They not only give free consultations, but respond to literally every single one of your questions. They were the most informative, responsive, polite, and professional lawyers I have ever been in contact with, and provided peace of mind throughout the entire process I need handled. I highly recommend Cristina who is splendid at her job for all of these reasons. This firm is 100% dependable, reliable, and truly interested in helping. Thank you Lexidy Law!!
Benjamin Colchester
Benjamin Colchester
16:43 01 Sep 21
We have been working with Lexidy Law Boutique since 2019 on matters ranging from accountancy to immigration and are absolutely delighted with all aspects of the service they provide. Highly professional, supremely knowledgable, diligent, efficient and courteous, we would not hesitate to recommend them.
Robert Webber
Robert Webber
12:32 31 May 21
One of, if not, the best firms in Spain. Look no further these are your guys. Everything from immigration to Real Estate to Wills. We have never been let down. Highly recommended!
Tatiana Quadros
Tatiana Quadros
15:52 12 May 21
I highly recommend Lexidy. They have been extremely professional from start to finish; their attention to detail is extraordinary and this means that applications and processes run smoothly without surprises. Cristina, Diego and all the team are very prompt to help, clarify, advise. Professionally helped me with all my enquiries and efficiently helped me in my immigration process. I will go to them for any legal matter now, I have every confidence in their service. A very happy customer.
Sam Dale
Sam Dale
11:16 29 Jan 21
Lexidy have been a godsend. As a British freelancer in Spain, I felt uncertain about the wealth of complicated paperwork, especially as my Spanish still needs improvement. Lexidy have been helpful with setting up my status as a freelance, organising my tax information, as well as guiding me on immigration issues due to Brexit. The team has been brilliant, if I ever have an issue or need know something, they will be patient and responsive (very quick) with accurate and useful information. For the services and professionalism they offer, it is very well valued. I plan on using Lexidy for all my legal needs. Highly recommended.
Dan Centinello
Dan Centinello
14:26 19 Nov 20
Let me start by saying that I normally do not write reviews - and I am often skeptical of the authenticity of the ones that are left. However, I feel like this law team has earned it and here's why...I am the type of person who will do endless research & contact several people before making a decision. I did the same when looking for a Spanish law firm that would be able to quickly handle my immigration matters and, most recently, help me with my leasing agreement for my apartment.They are extremely responsive (replying within a couple of hours of my messages) and even after office hours.Maximiliano, in particular, has been exceptional. He put a lot of effort to understand all the details of my situation so he can find the best solution.It was quickly evident that he understands that not all people have the same immigration situation and was going to tailor a solution specific to me.What impressed me most though was how he was thoughtful enough to make sure that his immigration solution did not impact my tax or business situation adversely. His focus on the big picture, while not missing the important small details is one of the main reasons why I felt compelled to write a review.Lastly, Max even made himself available during the time I was crossing the border, just in case I had any issues.With all this being said, I have worked with many lawyers in the past - many simply look for "a solution", but the great lawyers look for the "best solution". Everyone I have interacted with thus far at Lexidy seems to understand the latter. I feel very fortunate to have come across them in my research.I know how stressful it can be, especially when dealing with immigration issues. So, I hope this helps others out there that might be in the same situation I was in.
Reg Reg
Reg Reg
12:19 14 Nov 20
From the first day I contacted Lexidy Barcelona ,They have been very extraordinary helpful . Especially Max and the team who was dealing with my case .Max was available all the time even in hard times covid to assist with my queries effeciently ,effectively plus guidelines that resulted to a very positive results on my immigration status. Awesome !The team is overwhelmingly wonderful and they are good at their job . If you have any legal or immigration problems , I advise to look no where ,just contact Lexidy : Stress free legal problems solving company and believe me you will smile in the end !Thank very much Max and the the team of Lexidy Barcelona for making it super easy for me.Will always choose you !
Daniel Zuckerman
Daniel Zuckerman
15:04 10 Nov 20
I couldn’t be happier with my experience with Lexidy and their excellent attorneys. After months of trying unsuccessfully to navigate the maze of Spanish bureaucracy, I finally got the help I needed. Max Agazzi Paulet and his team were extremely professional and knowledgeable and were able to quickly give me the information I needed to successfully move forward with my application. Without hesitation, I would recommend Lexidy to anyone dealing with Spanish immigration law and/or real estate issues.
Seung-Hee Han
Seung-Hee Han
10:03 30 Oct 20
Lexidy has been helping both of us with everything that requires to settle in our dream-life in Spain. Each advocate at Lexidy is extremely professional and excellent at their job. We can't recommend them enough! If any of our friends and families abroad moves to Spain, we will take them to Lexidy. Thank you so much for your supreme service!
Khoa Le
Khoa Le
11:07 28 Aug 20
Lexidy made my relocation from Vietnam to Ibiza, Spain smooth and easy!With proper guidelines provided I was able to get long-term visas for me and my family (my wife, my kid and my newborn). I am very happy and grateful to have them as my legal service. The clear communication and readiness from Max and David are very helpful to foreigners with no knowledge in Spanish like me. I can't say enough thanks for this amazing experience. Thumbs up!
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