Country by country
Spanish citizenship by descent once the grandchildren law closed
Say whether your Spanish ancestor is a parent or a grandparent, where that parent was born and whether they were still Spanish at your birth.
Which Spanish route is still open to you?
Rules in force on October 25, 2026
Likely eligible
| Route | Spanish by origin (birth registration) |
| Fee | Free at the consular civil registry |
| Keep US citizenship | No renunciation for Spaniards by origin |
Since your parent was born in Spain, the rule that removes Spanish nationality from a second generation born abroad does not apply to you.
Spanish citizenship by descent narrowed sharply on October 22, 2025, when the window of the Democratic Memory Law closed at 11:59 p.m. local time. That law had let grandchildren of Spaniards apply from abroad; now only people who asked for an appointment before the deadline, and can prove it, may still file. For everyone else the Civil Code is what remains. If your father or mother was Spanish on the day you were born, you are Spanish by origin and the consulate simply registers your birth. If you were born abroad to a parent who was also born abroad, you had to declare within 3 years of turning 18 that you wanted to keep it. And if your parent was originally Spanish and born in Spain but had stopped being Spanish by the time you were born, article 20.1.b lets you opt for Spanish nationality at any age, free of charge, with a declaration renouncing US nationality before Spanish authorities.
What will the file cost?
US side of the file
$251
| 5 certified records (2 births, 2 marriages, 1 deaths) | $126 |
| Apostilles (5, ask the consulate) | $100 |
| Naturalization proof | $25 |
| Translations (English accepted) | $0 |
| Spain fee | free |
Records from the old country are not counted: they are ordered there.
Rules read and verdicts built by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How verdicts are built
What changed in October 2025
For three years the eighth additional provision of Law 20/2022, known in Spain as the grandchildren law, let the grandchild of a Spaniard who left Spain apply from a consulate, as well as children of Spanish women who lost their nationality by marrying a foreigner before 1978. The window was extended once by a year and ended on October 22, 2025. The Spanish consulates stopped taking new appointment requests the next day. Files whose appointment was requested in time are still being decided, at the office where the appointment was obtained, and backlogs run long. If you never asked for an appointment, this route is closed for you.
| Your situation | Route in 2026 | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Parent Spanish on the day you were born | Spanish by origin, birth registration | None, but see the 3-year keep rule |
| Parent born in Spain as a Spaniard, not Spanish at your birth | Option, art. 20.1.b | None |
| Parent became Spanish while you were a minor | Option, art. 20.1.a | Before age 20 |
| Grandparent only | Residence in Spain (1 year) | Democratic Memory route closed |
Spanish by origin through a parent
Article 17 of the Civil Code makes Spanish by origin anyone born to a father or mother who was Spanish at the time of the birth, wherever the birth took place. Nothing needs to be granted: the consular civil registry enters your birth and issues a Spanish birth certificate. The text has no generation limit, but article 24.3 adds a trap for families settled abroad. If you were born and live abroad, hold US nationality from birth, and are Spanish only because your Spanish parent was also born abroad, you lose Spanish nationality unless you told the civil registry within 3 years of turning 18 that you wanted to keep it. An American in their thirties whose Spanish father was born in New York has usually lost it already. Recovery is possible under article 26, and the consulate notes that the requirement to live in Spain does not apply to emigrants and their children.
The option for children of Spanish-born parents
Many Spaniards who emigrated to the United States took US citizenship, and with it stopped being Spanish. A child born after that naturalization was not Spanish at birth. Article 20.1.b gives that child, at any age and with no deadline, the right to opt for Spanish nationality, provided the parent was originally Spanish and born in Spain. A grandparent born in Spain does not open this door by itself. Nationality acquired by option is not nationality by origin, which matters for later transmission and for dual citizenship.
The New York consulate describes the steps. You send a scan of your documents to the civil registry by email for a first check. You then come in person, which is mandatory for anyone over 14, to sign the option, swear or promise allegiance to the King and obedience to the Constitution, and, as a US national, declare that you renounce your previous nationality. The acquisition is then entered in the civil registry. There is no language test and no residence requirement.
Documents
For the option the consulate asks for your long-form birth certificate issued by the state health department (the hospital certificate is not accepted), the literal Spanish birth certificate of your Spanish-born parent issued less than a year before filing, your parent's US naturalization certificate, the birth certificate of your other parent, your parents' marriage certificate, a valid passport and proof that you live in the consular district. New York does not ask for a translation of documents in English or Spanish. Certificates from a third country need an apostille. A US naturalization certificate is a federal document, so when an apostille is needed it comes from the US Department of State, not from a state office. The document guide explains how to order each record, and the cost calculator totals copies and apostilles.
Fee and waiting time
Civil registry procedures at Spanish consulates are free: the option, the recovery and the registration of a birth carry no fee. New York gives around 6 to 8 weeks for registration after an option at the New York consulate. For pending Democratic Memory files the same consulate warns that issuing appointment credentials can take several months, and the Democratic Memory page keeps the instructions for those who requested in time.
Keeping your US passport
A Spaniard by origin who also holds US nationality from birth keeps both. The renunciation applies to the option and to naturalization, because the United States is not one of the countries Spain exempts, a list that covers the Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal and France. The Democratic Memory route did not require it. How a Spanish renunciation is viewed in the United States is a separate matter, covered on the US dual citizenship page. The country comparison shows which other countries ask for something similar, and the tax page explains what changes for a dual citizen filing US returns. If Spain is closed to your family, the Portuguese and Italian pages cover neighboring routes, and the second passport overview compares the options.