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Spanish Citizenship Lawyers

Advisors in Spain handles Spanish citizenship cases by descent, marriage or residency, with document legalization, exam-preparation guidance and dual-nationality questions.

Every case starts with the form below. Describe your situation, and a citizenship lawyer who handles that exact route takes your case, in English or Spanish, whichever you are most comfortable in.

Your lawyer handles your filing directly, at the Ministerio de Justicia's sede electronica for a residency or marriage-route case or at the consular Registro Civil for a descent filing, from the first document to the final registration, and flags any tax or dual-nationality question your route raises along the way.

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Sagrada Família basilica rising above Barcelona
Typical timing 1 to 10 years of residency before you can even apply, depending on route The page explains what can change it. How the work runs 7 steps From your enquiry through to completion. What to prepare 5 items See the documents and details you will need.

Who Needs a Spanish Citizenship Lawyer

  • You need a Spanish citizenship lawyer when your ancestry documentation spans several countries or generations, your dual-nationality status is unclear, a prior application was denied, or your residency-based route depends on exam and paperwork deadlines you cannot afford to miss.
  • Ancestry documentation spanning more than one country or generation needs birth, marriage and death certificates gathered, apostilled and sworn-translated in the right order before the Registro Civil will accept the filing.
  • An unclear dual-nationality position, especially where a prior naturalization elsewhere may already have affected your claim, needs checking against the Codigo Civil's own list before you file.
  • A prior denial follows you into any new application, and a lawyer reviews what the resolution actually said before you try again.
  • The residency-based route shares its NIE, TIE and empadronamiento prerequisite paperwork with any other visa or residency case, so a tight filing window compounds if that groundwork is not already in place.

A straightforward case, one clear Spanish parent and a complete civil registry record with no gaps, is sometimes simple enough to register directly at the Registro Civil. See our guide on citizenship by descent for the self-serve steps.

What's Included With Your Lawyer

The lawyer handles every step below directly, covering whichever of the three routes applies to your case.

  • Citizenship by descent. Spanish-origin ancestry documentation and civil registry filing, including cases already lodged under the Ley de Nietos (Democratic Memory Law) before its October 22, 2025 deadline. See our citizenship by descent guide, or have your lawyer handle your citizenship-by-descent filing.
  • Citizenship by marriage. The one-year residency track for spouses of Spanish nationals, from the initial eligibility check to the final filing. This track is an application for nationality by residence, so it carries the DELE A2 and CCSE tests that Ley 19/2015 sets for every residence application. See our citizenship by marriage guide, or have a lawyer manage your marriage-route application.
  • Citizenship by residency. The long-term legal residency track, including exam preparation guidance for the DELE A2 and CCSE tests Ley 19/2015 requires and scheduling the jura de fidelidad, the oath of allegiance. Have a lawyer manage your residency-route case.
  • Dual-nationality assessment. A review of which route keeps your original nationality and which one asks you to renounce it, checked against the Codigo Civil's own list before anything is filed.
  • Document legalization. Apostille and sworn translation of your civil registry chain, the same process detailed in full on our immigration lawyers page.
  • Residency and NIE prerequisites, bundled free. Clients on the residency route who are relocating to Spain get NIE and bank-account assistance bundled into the engagement at no extra cost; descent and marriage-route clients who are not relocating do not need this bundle. Ask about opening an account as part of your case. If a prior application was denied, your lawyer also reviews the resolution and handles the appeal.

What You'll Need to Provide

Passport
A valid passport; the exact minimum validity period depends on your route and the office you file with, so confirm it before booking an appointment.
Civil registry documents
Birth, marriage and, for a descent claim, your Spanish ancestor's own birth or baptismal record, proving the family or residency chain your route relies on, apostilled and sworn-translated into Spanish.
Criminal record certificate
A certificate from every country you hold nationality in or have lived in over the lookback period your route specifies, apostilled and sworn-translated before it is filed.
Proof of exam completion
DELE A2 and CCSE certificates for any application for nationality by residence, the one-year marriage route included, since Ley 19/2015 sets both tests for that whole class of application. Applicants from countries where Spanish is the official language are exempt from the DELE A2 only. A descent claim filed as an option under the Codigo Civil carries no exam requirement.
Route-specific documents
The descent, marriage and residency routes each carry their own exact list beyond this general set. See our guide on citizenship by descent or citizenship by marriage for the paperwork specific to your route.

How the Process Works

  1. You submit the qualification form

    A few questions cover your route and timeline. Answering them submits a service request to Advisors in Spain; nothing goes to the Registro Civil yet.

  2. A citizenship lawyer takes your case

    A lawyer experienced with your specific route, whether that is descent, marriage or residency, takes on your case directly.

  3. The lawyer assesses your route and eligibility

    Your lawyer reviews your situation directly with you, in English or Spanish, and confirms which route fits and what your dual-nationality position looks like before any paperwork starts.

  4. Documents get collected and translated

    Civil registry documents and criminal record certificates travel through sworn translation and, where the receiving office needs it, an apostille, before anything is filed.

  5. The lawyer files your application

    For a residency or marriage-route case, the filing goes to the Ministerio de Justicia's sede electronica, with the Direccion General de los Registros y del Notariado instructing the file and the Minister of Justice resolving it. A descent filing goes to the consular Registro Civil, with the lawyer named as your representative.

  6. Exam scheduling, where your route requires it

    Every application for nationality by residence carries the DELE A2 and CCSE tests, the one-year marriage route included, and the lawyer coordinates those Instituto Cervantes appointments around the rest of the filing.

  7. Resolution and registration

    The lawyer helps you complete the jura de fidelidad where it applies and register the new status once the Registro Civil resolves the case.

Timing: What to Expect and What Causes Delays

1 to 10 years of residency before you can even apply, depending on route

The residency term Codigo Civil Article 22 requires before filing, not the wait after you file.

What delays it

An incomplete civil registry chain, backlogs at the Registro Civil Central, and missing apostilles or sworn translations can all push a case back further. The Ministerio de Justicia does not publish a single resolution-time figure for how long a complete filing then takes once it reaches the Direccion General de los Registros y del Notariado, so ask your lawyer for a current estimate for your case.

What to prepare now

Gather your civil registry documents and criminal record certificates for every country in your lookback period, and book any required DELE A2 or CCSE sitting as early as you can.

Legal and Tax Considerations Alongside Your Citizenship Application

Spain restricts dual nationality to a defined list: Codigo Civil Article 23(b) exempts nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal, together with Sephardic Jews of Spanish origin, from renouncing their prior nationality when they naturalize. The Spain-France nationality convention, in force since April 1, 2022, adds French citizens to that exemption, and the Direccion General de Seguridad Juridica y Fe Publica set out how the civil registries apply it in its instruction of March 31, 2022. The convention shortens no residency term. Everyone outside those groups declares renunciation of the previous nationality as part of the process, whatever route they file under.

Becoming a Spanish citizen does not, by itself, change your tax residency status. That status runs on its own day-count and habitual-residence tests: spend more than 183 days in a calendar year in Spain and the Agencia Tributaria treats you as tax resident, whatever your nationality or immigration status, and your citizenship application has no separate bearing on that threshold. Clients pursuing the residency route toward citizenship often reach that threshold anyway, since the underlying non-lucrative visa or digital nomad visa residency already requires living in Spain.

The NIE, TIE and empadronamiento groundwork behind a residency-based citizenship case is the same paperwork any immigration lawyer case handles, and your lawyer flags any tax question your specific route raises during the initial consultation, before any filing starts. The visa and immigration hub covers that groundwork in full.

Citizenship routes, deadlines and the sourced figures on this page are current as of August 23, 2026, and are reviewed every six months against BOE, the Registro Civil and Instituto Cervantes guidance.

Exam dates and registry backlogs move fast

Tell us when you need this resolved, and we aim to reply within one business day. The Ley de Nietos window closed on October 22, 2025, so a new grandparent claim today runs under Codigo Civil Article 22.2(f) and its one-year residency term.

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Common questions

Can I hold dual citizenship if I become a Spanish citizen?
Yes, if you are a national of an Ibero-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea or Portugal, if you qualify as a Sephardic Jew of Spanish origin, or if you are French. Codigo Civil Article 23(b) waives the renunciation requirement for the first two groups, and the Spain-France nationality convention in force since April 1, 2022 extends the same exemption to French citizens, as the Direccion General de Seguridad Juridica y Fe Publica confirmed in its instruction of March 31, 2022. Everyone outside those groups declares renunciation of their previous nationality when they naturalize.
What is the fastest way to get Spanish citizenship?
It depends on your route, but marriage to a Spanish national is usually the fastest for a qualifying case: Codigo Civil Article 22 sets a one-year residency term for that route against the general ten-year term for naturalization by ordinary residency. A direct descent claim under Article 17.1(a) does not turn on a residency clock at all, since nationality of origin is automatic from birth. A grandparent claim today runs under Article 22.2(f), which carries its own one-year residency term, and its timing also depends on how complete your ancestor's civil registry record already is.
How much does it cost to get Spanish citizenship?
The government fee is 100 euros for an application for nationality by residence, set by Ley 19/2015. On top of that sit the DELE A2 and CCSE exam fees charged by Instituto Cervantes and the lawyer's own fee, and neither carries one published figure that holds across routes and case complexity. You get a quote in writing before any work starts.
What happens if my citizenship application is denied?
You can challenge the decision: Codigo Civil Article 22 leaves the contentious-administrative court route open against both a denial and a grant of nationality by residence. The lawyer who reviews your denied case checks whether the resolution's stated reason is correctable before deciding whether to refile or appeal.
How many years does it take to get citizenship in Spain?
It takes between one and ten years of residency before you can file at all, depending on your route, under Codigo Civil Article 22. How long the file then takes to resolve is not published as a single figure by the Ministerio de Justicia. An incomplete civil registry chain, missing apostilles or sworn translations, Registro Civil backlogs and exam-scheduling delays can all push a case back further.
What is the 2 year rule in Spain?
It is the shortened naturalization term Codigo Civil Article 22.1 gives to nationals by origin of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal, and to Sephardic Jews: two years of legal residency against the general ten-year term. Article 22.1 says nationals of origin, so someone who naturalized in one of those countries later in life does not reach the two-year term on that basis.
How much does a lawyer charge to help with citizenship?
A multi-generation descent case with a thin civil registry trail typically takes more of a lawyer's time than a single-document marriage-route filing, and that difference is usually reflected in the fee. You get a quote in writing before any work starts.
Do I need a Spanish citizenship by descent lawyer to apply through my grandparents (the Ley de Nietos)?
No, not for a new application: the Ley de Nietos application window under Ley 20/2022 ran for two years and then a one-year extension, and it closed on October 22, 2025, after which the consulates stopped accepting filings under the law. If you already filed before the deadline, your case continues to be processed. A grandparent claim today runs under Codigo Civil Article 22.2(f), which sets a one-year residency term for someone born outside Spain to a Spanish-origin grandparent, so the route now asks you to live in Spain legally first.
Do I need to pass a Spanish exam to become a citizen?
Yes, if you are applying for nationality by residence: Ley 19/2015 requires the DELE A2 Spanish-language diploma and the CCSE constitutional and sociocultural knowledge test, both designed and administered by Instituto Cervantes. The one-year marriage route is an application for nationality by residence, so it carries both tests. Applicants from countries where Spanish is the official language are exempt from the DELE A2 alone, and a descent claim filed as an option under the Codigo Civil carries no exam.
Is a Spanish nationality lawyer the same as a citizenship lawyer?
Yes. Spanish law calls the status nacionalidad, so a Spanish nationality lawyer and a Spanish citizenship lawyer do the same work. The residence track is formally an application for nationality by residence, and the descent track is a claim to nationality of origin. One lawyer covers both.
What's the difference between a gestor and a citizenship lawyer?
A gestor is an administrative agent who fills in forms and manages routine paperwork. A gestor is not a lawyer, solicitor or attorney, and cannot represent you in a legal dispute or argue a denied case. A citizenship lawyer holds a law degree, is registered with a colegio de abogados, and can contest a refusal through the courts if the Registro Civil pushes back.

Why Work With Advisors in Spain

Every lawyer who takes on a citizenship case meets the same standard and handles it directly, from the first document to the final registration.

  • Every lawyer meets the same standard first.

    Every lawyer who works on a case meets the same standard for qualification and experience in Spanish law. We tell you plainly if your route is not something we handle.

  • Every lawyer works in English or Spanish.

    You explain your case once, in English or Spanish, to the lawyer handling it, whichever of the three routes applies to you.

  • Coordinated support for related matters.

    The citizenship filing, document legalization and any tax or dual-nationality question it raises: we coordinate related requirements, with responsibility and scope agreed for each service.

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