The two most common routes
By residence. The general period is ten years, but it drops to five for refugees, to two for nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal and for Sephardic Jews, and to one in several cases, among them having been born in Spain or having been married to a Spaniard for a year.
By marriage. This is really a case of the previous route, the one-year legal residence, and it requires actual cohabitation, not just the legal bond.
In both cases you must prove good civic conduct and a sufficient degree of integration, which is where the exams come in.
The exams and who is exempt
- CCSE, on constitutional and sociocultural knowledge. Required of almost all adult applicants with legal capacity.
- DELE A2 or higher. Nationals of countries where Spanish is an official language are exempt.
Minors and people whose capacity has been judicially modified do not sit these tests. It pays to pass them before filing: applying without them means waiting for a formal request for documents.
From the file to the oath
- Preparation: birth certificate legalised or apostilled and translated, criminal record certificate from your home country, padrón certificate and the history of legal residence.
- Online filing with a professional certificate, with no appointment and no travel.
- Tracking. Status is checked in the Ministry of Justice's electronic office, in the service everyone knows as «cómo va lo mío».
- Decision and oath. Once citizenship is granted there is a deadline to take the oath or promise and to register the birth in the Civil Registry. That act is in person and time-limited; missing it means extra procedures.
The long part of this file is almost never the processing: it is gathering documents from your home country with the correct apostille and a sworn translation in order. That is why we start there.
You do not need to come to the office
Most of the work is done online, with a digital certificate or a power of representation, so where the client lives does not limit the service. There are two routes and both are routine:
- Digital certificate: you sign from wherever you are, and we prepare and file the application.
- Power of representation or electronic authorisation: we act on your behalf using the professional certificate of a registered gestora.
The exception is strictly personal acts, which nobody can do for you: proving your identity to obtain the digital certificate, giving fingerprints for the TIE, and taking the oath in a citizenship file. Those must be done in person, and always in the province where you are registered.
Shall we handle it for you?
Registered gestora administrativa, ICGA Valencia. Fixed quote before we start and a free first consultation.
Frequently asked questions
How long does citizenship by residence take?
The maximum decision period is one year from a complete file. In practice it varies, and silence counts as refusal, which opens the way to court.
Do I have to sit the CCSE and the DELE?
The CCSE yes, unless you are a minor or your capacity has been judicially modified. The DELE A2 only if Spanish is not an official language of your country.
Can the oath be taken remotely?
No. It is a strictly personal, in-person act, with a deadline from notification of the grant. It is one of the few things in this file that cannot be delegated.
Is any birth certificate acceptable?
It must be legalised or apostilled depending on the country and translated by a sworn translator. A certificate without an apostille, or with a plain translation, is the most common cause of a request for documents.
I live in the province of Valencia but not in the city. Where do I take the oath?
At the Civil Registry for your address. The earlier processing is the same whichever municipality you live in.
Legal basis
- Spanish Civil Code, arts. 17 to 26, on acquiring Spanish nationality
- Royal Decree 1004/2015, procedure for acquiring Spanish nationality by residence
- Law 39/2015 on Common Administrative Procedure, art. 14 on electronic dealings with the administration
Official sources
- Ministry of Justice: citizenship by residence
- Check the status of an immigration file
- Official College of Gestores Administrativos of Valencia
- Public register of licensed gestores administrativos
- València City Council
Written by Irina Klein. Reviewed by Elena Alonso Volostnova, registered gestora administrativa (ICGA Valencia). Updated on 5 October 2026. This page is general information and does not replace personalised advice on your case.