Spain is one of the most attractive countries for relocation. The warm Mediterranean climate, rich culture, friendly and hospitable local population, as well as the relatively low cost of living by European standards – all this attracts people from all over the world to think about moving to this amazing country.
If you consider Spain not from the point of view of your temporary stay, but as a country for permanent residence, then sooner or later the question of obtaining Spanish citizenship arises. This is possible in several ways, so let’s look at them in more detail.
Contents
- Method #1: Investments
- Method #2: Naturalization on general grounds
- Method #3: Citizenship by origin
- Method #4: Marriage
- Method #5: Family reunification
- Method #6: Option
- Who can claim citizenship earlier than 10 years?
- Dual citizenship
- What does Spanish citizenship give?
Method #1: Investments
In most cases, to obtain Spanish citizenship, you need to first obtain the right to stay in the country for a long time, i.e. a temporary residence permit – TRP. If certain conditions are met, TRP will later turn into PR – permanent residence. You can apply for Spanish citizenship by naturalization after 10 years in the country.
Buying real estate is one of the ways to get a residence permit, but it is suitable, of course, only for wealthy people. For this, you need to buy any property in Spain for an amount of at least 500,000 euros. This method is also called the “golden visa”.
But an investor TRP can be obtained not only by buying real estate. You can choose other options for investing in the country’s economy:
- Shares of Spanish companies – from 1,000,000 euros.
- Shares of investment or venture funds – from 1,000,000 euros.
- Opening an account in a Spanish bank – from 1,000,000 euros.
- Government bonds – from 2,000,000 euros.
In most cases, citizens of other countries choose to buy real estate, because it is more profitable due to the lower starting amount (500,000 euros). In addition, real estate prices rise every year, so there is a secondary benefit here. Current offers for buying villas, apartments, townhouses and other real estate can be viewed by link.
Obtaining a residence permit takes several months. After 5 years of having it, you can apply for permanent residence. This status is almost equal to Spanish citizenship, but with some limitations – you will not be able to hold a position in the security forces and participate in elections. After 5 years from the moment of obtaining PR, you can apply for a Spanish passport, i.e. in total it should take 10 years. It is important to understand that this procedure involves passing an exam on the knowledge of the Spanish language, culture and history of the country, as well as the basics of Spanish legislation.
Method #2: Naturalization on general grounds
Here the procedure is roughly the same, i.e. you first need to get a residence permit, after 5 years apply for PR and another 5 years later you can claim a Spanish passport. But in this case, everything happens on general grounds, i.e. you do not invest in the Spanish economy.
But getting a TRP is more difficult. Foreign citizens get a residence permit on the grounds of employment or opening their own business. TRP is issued for a period of one year, then it is extended for 2 years (unlimited number of times).
Method #3: Citizenship by origin
You can get a Spanish citizen passport by “right of blood”. For this, the following conditions must be met:
- At least one of the child’s parents has Spanish citizenship.
- At least one of the parents was born in Spain.
- The child was adopted by a Spanish citizen.
In this case, citizenship is assigned automatically.
Method #4: Marriage
To obtain citizenship of the country, you can marry a citizen of Spain.
In this case, obtaining a Spanish passport is faster than naturalization on general grounds – only after a year of marriage and living in the country.
Method #5: Family reunification
Children, spouses and parents of foreigners who live in the country can claim Spanish citizenship. If a foreign citizen has a residence permit in Spain, then his family members can also apply for a TRP, then PR and citizenship. Obtaining a Spanish passport in this case is also possible only after 10 years of living in the country.
If a foreigner has a child born in the country, then he can obtain citizenship by naturalization after a year.
Method #6: Option
Persons who are under the guardianship of citizens or institutions of Spain can obtain Spanish citizenship. For this, it is necessary to live continuously in the country for 10 years.
Who can claim citizenship earlier than 10 years?
In most cases, foreign citizens can claim Spanish citizenship only after 10 years of continuous residence in the country. But there are also some exceptions.
After 5 years, persons who have been officially granted refugee status can apply for citizenship. After 2 years, citizenship can be obtained by persons who have citizenship of most countries of South and Central America, as well as Andorra, the Philippines, Portugal and Equatorial Guinea.
Descendants of Sephardic Jews who were expelled from the country by Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand in 1492 can also apply for citizenship. The corresponding law was signed in 2015 and on its basis a large number of passports of the country have already been issued.
After one year, the following categories of foreign citizens can apply for citizenship:
- Children born in Spain, regardless of the citizenship of their parents.
- Persons who were born outside of Spain, but their parents, grandparents or great-grandparents were ethnic Spaniards.
- Persons who have been married to a Spanish citizen for one year.
- Widows and widowers who were ever married to Spaniards, if the marriage lasted until their death.
Dual citizenship
The right to dual citizenship depends on how exactly the Spanish one was obtained.
Those who obtained citizenship by origin have this right. For this, you need to declare your intention to retain Spanish citizenship within 3 years from the date of obtaining the passport of another state.
Citizens of some countries can keep their first citizenship, while obtaining the Spanish one. This list includes Andorra, Portugal, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, as well as Latin American countries, i.e. where they speak Portuguese or Spanish.
In all other cases, obtaining dual citizenship is impossible. To obtain a Spanish passport, you will have to renounce your first citizenship.
What does Spanish citizenship give?
The passport of a Spanish citizen gives quite large benefits:
- Freedom of movement. Spanish citizens have the right to freely move around the Schengen countries without the need for a visa. This allows them to easily travel and work in other European countries, staying there for an unlimited period of time.
- High standard of living. Spain has a developed health care system, a high level of education and a well-thought-out social protection of the population. Spanish citizens have access to these benefits and can enjoy a high standard of living.
- Work and social benefits. Spanish citizens have the right to receive social benefits provided by the state. This implies access to free health care, social security and unemployment benefits.
- Economic opportunities. Spanish citizenship allows you to do business and work in European companies without a special permit.
- Security and stability. Spain is part of the European Union and NATO, which ensures a high level of security and stability for the country. This is especially important in the conditions of a changing political situation in the world.
To legally live and work in Spain, and in the future to claim citizenship of this country, you will definitely need your own housing – it can be an apartment, townhouse, bungalow or luxury villa depending on your financial capabilities. The company “M2 Real Estate” has a large selection of offers for buying and exchanging real estate, which undergo a strict verification procedure. Many options are not published on our website, so we can send them to you upon request.
