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The Spanish government is further simplifying the process for children and grandchildren of Spanish emigrants or exiles to apply for Spanish nationality through the Law of Democratic Memory.
After previously extending the application deadline in view of the difficulties in obtaining appointments and processing documentation, the government has now announced it will allow the documentation to be submitted after the deadline if the appointment was requested within the established timeframe when the relevant consulate doesn’t have any vacancies before the presentation period ran out.
This was confirmed by an official state bulletin (BOE) published on Monday. Many embassies and consulates, particularly in Latin America, have seen a very large number of applications that have overwhelmed bureaucracy.
READ ALSO: Spain’s new ‘grandchildren’ citizenship law – What you need to know
The new change states that in person presentation of supporting documents may now be made after the deadline if consulates or embassies can’t attend them in time and the appointment is booked beforehand:
“With regard to consular posts, for all those cases in which the appointment to exercise the right of option to nationality… cannot be attended to within the time limits provided therein, but has been requested through electronic tools designed for this purpose…the persons concerned may submit their application in person at a later date, on the date on which they are summoned, accompanied by the aforementioned proof.”
In other words, the Spanish government is demanding consulates enable electronic appointment booking systems, and that, if the appointment is requested before the deadline, applicants will be able to present their documentation after the deadline has passed, if they can prove they made their appointment before the deadline.
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Consulates should also provide applicants with a receipt that allows them to prove that their appointment was within the time period, even if it comes at a later date.
In March the Spanish government extended the deadline to apply for citizenship through the Grandchildren’s Law (Ley de Nietos in Spanish) until the end of 2025. It was initially scheduled to be October 2024 but was pushed back to allow for bureaucratic processes to run their course amid a surge in applications.
The Grandchildren’s Law allows for descendants of Spaniards who fled Spain during the Civil War and Franco’s dictatorship to claim Spanish citizenship, even if they or their parents haven’t ever lived in Spain.
READ ALSO: Descendants of International Brigades can get fast-track Spanish nationality
As of early 2024, almost 70,000 people had received Spanish nationality around the world, mostly in Latin American countries.
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Who is eligible for the grandchildren’s law?
Who is eligible for Spanish citizenship under the new law? There are a number of groups included.
- Children or grandchildren born outside Spain to a Spanish father, mother, grandfather, or grandmother who was exiled and left Spain due to ‘physical, moral or psychological damage, economic damage or the loss of fundamental rights’, or renounced their Spanish nationality.
- People born outside Spain to Spanish women who lost their nationality by marrying foreigners before the 1978 Constitution was established.
- The adult sons and daughters of Spaniards who gained nationality due to the 2007 Democratic Memory law.