Spanish Nationality by Residence 2026: timelines, exams and how to apply

In short

General rule: 10 years of legal, continuous residence in Spain.
Reduced timelines: 5 years if you're a recognised refugee, 2 years if you're from an Ibero-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, or of Sephardic origin, and 1 year in several family situations.
Two exams: the CCSE (Spanish culture and society) for everyone, and the DELE A2 unless Spanish is an official language in your country of origin.
Fee: €104.05, plus the cost of each exam.

Spanish nationality by residence is the most common route for anyone who has lived legally in Spain for years and wants to stop depending on renewing a residence permit. The requirement that raises the most questions isn't an exam — it's the years: how many you need depends on your nationality of origin and your family situation, not the same for everyone.

How many years you need

10 years is the general rule, for any nationality without a reduced timeline.
5 years if you hold recognised refugee status in Spain.
2 years if you're a national of an Ibero-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, or you can prove Sephardic origin.
1 year if you were born in Spanish territory; if you didn't exercise your right to nationality by option in time; if you've been married to a Spanish citizen for a year and aren't separated, in fact or by court order; if you're the widow or widower of a Spanish citizen and weren't separated at the time of death; or if you were born outside Spain but your parent or grandparent were originally Spanish.

In every case, the years must be of legal, continuous residence immediately before the application date. It doesn't matter if you accumulated more years in the past with a gap in between — what counts is the final unbroken stretch.

Not sure how many years you have left?

In the strategy session we review your residence history, check whether you qualify for a reduced timeline, and tell you exactly when you can apply.

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The other requirements

Good civic conduct. No criminal record in Spain or in the countries where you've lived, and no serious administrative proceedings (deportation, entry ban).
Sufficient degree of integration. Proven, among other things, with the CCSE and DELE A2 (see below), though the Civil Registry can ask for additional documentation: employment contract, historical municipal registration (empadronamiento), social security record, studies in Spain.
Oath or promise of loyalty to the King and obedience to the Constitution and the law, and renunciation of your previous nationality if your country isn't among those allowed to keep it.
Registration with the Civil Registry once granted — an essential step for the nationality to take effect.

The CCSE and DELE A2 exams

For every applicant

CCSE — Constitutional and sociocultural knowledge

A 25-question multiple-choice test in 45 minutes, on Spain's institutions, history, culture and everyday life. It's held around 10 times a year, except in August and December, and the certificate is valid for 4 years from the date you pass it. There's an exemption for applicants over 70 and for people with proven learning difficulties.

Unless Spanish is official in your country of origin

DELE A2 — Spanish as a foreign language

Proves a basic level of Spanish. Applicants from a country where Spanish is an official language are exempt, with the exception of Brazil. Unlike the CCSE, the DELE certificate never expires.

How it's processed

The application is filed electronically through the Ministry of Justice's online office, along with your historical certificate of municipal registration (empadronamiento), your criminal record certificates, proof of payment of the €104.05 fee, and your CCSE and DELE A2 certificates where they apply.

The legal term to resolve it is one year from when the file is registered complete. Past that, with no decision, it's treated as denied by administrative silence, though that can be appealed. In practice, the real wait tends to run 12 to 24 months, depending on how busy your Civil Registry office is and whether anything needs to be corrected along the way.

Once granted, you must swear or promise loyalty at the Civil Registry or before a notary, and then register the nationality.

Common mistakes

Miscounting the years. Counting from when you arrived in Spain instead of when your legal residence began, or not discounting a gap in residence.
An expired CCSE. Passing it too early and having the file resolved after the 4-year validity window.
Gaps in municipal registration. A patchy empadronamiento history that doesn't match the years of residence claimed.
Outdated criminal record certificates. Submitting certificates that have expired or, when issued abroad, that lack an apostille.
Not proving the reduced route. Failing to provide the specific documents (marriage certificate, birth certificate of Spanish parents or grandparents, proof of Sephardic origin) needed to benefit from the 1- or 2-year timeline instead of the general one.
Waiting instead of applying. Meeting the years and still waiting for "the perfect moment" instead of applying — the resolution clock doesn't start until you do.

FAQ

Do I have to renounce my current nationality?

It depends on your country. If you're from an Ibero-American country, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, or you're of Sephardic origin, you can keep your original nationality.

Otherwise, the law requires you to swear to renounce it, although in practice many home countries don't actually remove your nationality, so you end up with de facto dual nationality.

Do the years need to be consecutive?

Yes, they must be legal, continuous and immediately before your application. A trip abroad of several months, or a gap without legal residence in between, can break the count and force you to start over.

Does the CCSE certificate expire?

Yes, it's valid for four years from the date you pass it. If your file takes longer than that to resolve, you may need to sit the exam again.

What happens if I fail the DELE A2 or the CCSE?

You can sit the next sitting. There's no limit on attempts, but each sitting has its own fee and you need to book a place in advance — they fill up fast in big cities.

How long does it take to resolve?

By law, the Ministry of Justice has one year from when you register the complete application to decide.

In practice, the real wait tends to run 12 to 24 months, depending on how busy your Civil Registry office is and whether the required Police and intelligence-service background checks come back clean or need follow-up. What you can control is not losing time with an incomplete or poorly documented application, which is what drags cases out the most.

What if it's already been over a year with no answer?

It's treated as denied by administrative silence, but that's not a final no: you can appeal that denial, and a late decision is still valid if it does arrive.

You have one month to file an internal appeal with the Ministry of Justice, or six months to go straight to a contentious-administrative appeal before the Audiencia Nacional.

At Legalia we review your file, prepare the appeal, and follow it through until it's resolved.