The option to acquire nationality by this means has a period of only two years from the entry into force

of the Law, so all persons who fall within one of the cases must submit their application before 21

October 2024.

Unlike the regime foreseen in the Spanish Civil Code, there is no age limit for nationality to be transmitted under Law 20/2022.

Normally, Spanish nationality by descent is transmitted up to the first degree (from parents to children) in accordance with Article 20 of the Civil Code, with a time limit for application until the age of 20.

The new Law establishes the cases of children and grandchildren, so that successive generations are apparently excluded.

However, if a grandchild of an exiled Spaniard acquires nationality under this Law (scenario 1), then the child of the “new Spaniard” (the great-grandchild) will be eligible for nationality under scenario 3.

The application must be submitted to the Civil Registry of the applicant’s place of residence.

If the applicant is resident abroad, he/she must submit the application at the civil registry office of the Spanish Consulate General of his/her current place of residence.

In the event that the applicant is a legal resident in Spain, the application shall be submitted to the Civil Registry Office of the applicant’s place of residence in Spain.

The application must always be submitted by the interested party, in person, providing the documents that demonstrate compliance with the assumption for the exercise of the option and providing the standard forms required by the Instruction of Law 20/2022.

The documents and requirements will vary according to the specific case of Law 20/2022, but in general they consist of the following:

Identity document of the applicant: valid passport.

Applicant’s birth certificate, legalized and apostilled.

Birth certificate of the original Spanish father, mother, or grandparent or, in their absence, a baptismal certificate from the parish or diocesan archives, together with the negative birth registration certificate issued by the corresponding registry.

Birth certificate of the parent that links the applicant to the original Spanish grandparent.

Depending on the scenario of Law 20/2022:

(i) Assumption 1: evidence of the migration of the Spanish ancestor, such as his or her Spanish passport, record of entry into the country of destination, registration as an exile, migration documents, etc;

(ii) Scenario 2: marriage certificate – prior to 1978 – of his Spanish mother and proof of renunciation of his nationality;

(iii) Scenario 3: birth certificate of the father or grandfather according to Law 52/2007, of 26 December 2007 – Grandchildren Law – or according to the new Law 20/2022.

Authorization completed by the applicant to act on his or her behalf.

Exile status is presumed for all Spaniards who left Spain between 18 July 1936 and 31 December 1955.

In these cases, the applicant will only have to prove the departure from Spanish territory of his/her ancestor by the different means of proof described in the last part of the Requirements and documents section.

It confers the status of Spanish of origin (derived) but not originally Spanish, so the effects are not retroactive.

The applicant does not have to renounce his or her previous nationality in order to opt for Spanish nationality, so it is compatible with usually incompatible nationalities, such as US nationality.