Declaration · Closed
Spain citizenship by descent: who qualifies in 2026
The Democratic Memory Law (Law 20/2022) let children and grandchildren of Spanish exiles, and children of Spanish women who lost their nationality by marrying foreigners, opt for Spanish nationality. The window closed on October 22, 2025. This silo covers pending applications and what to do after approval.
- Route
- Democratic Memory Law option ("Grandchildren's Law") — closed
- How far back
- The window for grandchildren closed on October 22, 2025
- Language test
- No
- Dual citizenship
- Allowed for people who used the option
- Government fee
- Not applicable
- Typical timeline
- Only applications already filed are still being processed
The rules that decide eligibility
- No new appointment requests under the Eighth Additional Provision have been accepted since October 23, 2025.
- Applications filed in time are still being processed by the consulates.
- Children of a Spanish parent may still have other routes under the Civil Code.