Citizenship for a child born in Spain

A child born in Spain to foreign parents does not automatically receive Spanish citizenship. Spain applies the right of blood: a newborn inherits the parents’ citizenship. But children born in Spain have a special benefit — they can apply for citizenship after just 1 year of legal residence instead of the usual 10 years.

A child automatically becomes Spanish in only four situations: if at least one parent is Spanish; if one of the parents was also born in Spain; if the child would otherwise be stateless; if the child’s parentage has not been established. For families from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine, none of these cases usually applies.

Below — what exactly the child receives, how to sort out the documents in the first weeks and how to apply for a Spanish passport after a year.

Why being born in Spain does not give citizenship

Two principles operate around the world. The right of soil (ius soli) — citizenship by place of birth, as in the USA, Canada, Brazil and Argentina. The right of blood (ius sanguinis) — citizenship through the parents.

Spain belongs to the second group. A child of Russian parents born in Barcelona becomes a citizen of Russia at birth, not of Spain. The maternity hospital, the region or whether the parents hold a residence permit make no difference.

There are exceptions to this rule, but they are protective: their purpose is to prevent a child from being left with no citizenship at all, not to reward them with a Spanish passport for their place of birth.

When a child does become Spanish straight away

The third point is the main misunderstanding in Russian-language articles

The wording “if the parents’ country does not give citizenship to children born abroad” is often presented as if it might apply to Russians. It cannot.

Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine pass their citizenship on to children by descent regardless of the place of birth. So the child is not left stateless, and the protective rule does not apply. This point works for citizens of certain Latin American countries whose legislation is structured differently.

Your child’s Russian citizenship: what to do first

A child of Russian parents is a Russian citizen by birth. But the fact of citizenship has to be documented, otherwise you will not be able to take the child out of the country or obtain documents for them.

The procedure in outline:

1. Register the birth at the Spanish Registro Civil. The deadline is from 24 hours to 10 days after the birth, extendable to 30 days for good reason. The basis is the certificate from the maternity hospital.
2. Obtain a certificado literal de nacimiento — the Spanish birth certificate.
3. Have it apostilled and get a translation the consulate will accept.
4. Apply to the consular section for the child’s documents: confirmation of citizenship and an international passport.

The exact list of documents and the consulate’s booking procedure change — check on the website of your specific consulate before the birth, not after. For citizens of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine the scheme is similar, but you need to apply to your own consulate and take into account your country’s position on multiple citizenship.

A residence permit for the child: where the path to a Spanish passport begins

Spanish citizenship after a year is possible on one condition only: the child must have legal resident status for that entire year. A year of “simply living in the country” does not count.

If the parents are residents of Spain, the child obtains a residence permit as a child of a resident born in Spain. The child’s status is tied to the parents’ status and is renewed along with it.

Hence a practical conclusion worth a whole section: the child’s residence permit must be applied for immediately, not “some time”. Every month of delay is a month that pushes back the citizenship application. Parents who realise six months later lose six months.

If the parents were not residents at the time of the birth — for example, they came on a tourist visa — the child has neither a residence permit nor grounds to obtain one. The clock will only start once the family has legal status.

Citizenship after one year: how it works

The rule is set out in Article 22 of the Civil Code: for those born in Spain the naturalisation period is reduced from 10 years to one year. This is the shortest route to a Spanish passport of all those available to families from the CIS.

What you will need

• the child’s Spanish birth certificate;
• proof of continuous legal residence for a year — the child’s residence card and a historical certificate of municipal registration;
• the parents’ documents: passports and their residence cards;
• the application and the paid fee.

Three differences between the children’s procedure and the adult one

No exams are taken. The CCSE on the constitution and DELE A2 language exam are requirements for adults. They do not apply to a young child. This removes the main difficulty of adult naturalisation.

The application is filed by the legal representative. For a child under 14 the parents file the application, and this requires prior authorisation from the officer in charge of the Registro Civil. A teenager aged 14 to 18 files the application themselves, but with the assistance of their legal representative.

The question of renouncing previous citizenship is handled differently. For minors the procedure differs from the adult one, and the consequences depend on the position of the country of origin. More on how renunciation works in our article on dual citizenship. This is the point worth going through with a lawyer individually: the price of a mistake is the child’s citizenship.

And what do the parents get?

The direct answer: the birth of a child in Spain does not in itself give the parents either a residence permit or citizenship. This is the main myth on the subject, and a large part of “birth tourism” is based on it.

The situation changes if the child becomes a Spanish citizen — for example, on one of the protective grounds or through naturalisation after a year. Parents of a minor Spanish citizen gain their own ground for legal status, based on family ties.

But note the sequence: first the child becomes Spanish, and only then does this affect the parents’ status. And for the child to become Spanish, the parents need a year of legal residence — that is, they must already have a residence permit.

The rules on legal status on family grounds were revised in 2025 by the new immigration regulation, so the specific arrangement needs to be checked for currency.

Giving birth in Spain: healthcare and money

Spanish healthcare is consistently among the systems with the lowest maternal and infant mortality rates. In practice this means a high standard of pregnancy and childbirth care in both the public and private systems.

The waiting period — what people find out about too late

Private insurance policies almost always include a carencia — a waiting period during which childbirth is not covered. Depending on the company it ranges from six months to eighteen months from the date the contract is signed.

Hence the rule: take out insurance before pregnancy or at the very beginning of it. A policy bought in the seventh month will not cover the birth — you will pay for it entirely yourself.

Four myths

“I gave birth in Spain, so the child is Spanish.” No. The right of blood, not the right of soil.

“The child was born in Spain, so the parents will be given a residence permit.” No. The birth of a child is not in itself a ground.

“The year of residence counts from birth.” What counts is a year of legal residence with resident status. Without a residence permit for the child, the clock does not run.

“I’ll come to give birth on a tourist visa and get documents.” You will get emergency care and the child will be registered. But this creates neither a residence permit nor grounds for citizenship, and you will have to pay the bill for antenatal and postnatal care yourself.

Checklist for parents

1. Before pregnancy: take out health insurance, taking the waiting period into account.
2. Before the birth: make sure both parents have a valid residence permit and up-to-date municipal registration.
3. First 10 days: register the birth at the Registro Civil.
4. First weeks: obtain the Spanish birth certificate, apostille and translation.
5. First month: apply for the child’s residence permit — this is when the one-year clock starts.
6. In parallel: obtain the child’s documents at your country’s consulate.
7. Don’t forget: register the child at your address along with the family — the historical registration certificate will be needed after a year.
8. After 12 months: apply for citizenship.

Frequently asked questions

If you give birth in Spain, what citizenship will the child have?
The parents’ citizenship. A child of Russian citizens will be Russian. Spanish citizenship at birth is given only in exceptional cases: if one of the parents is Spanish or was also born in Spain, if the child would otherwise be stateless, or if the child’s parentage has not been established.

If you have a baby in Spain, will they get citizenship?
Not automatically. But those born in Spain have the right to apply for citizenship after one year of legal residence instead of the usual ten years.

The child was born in Spain and the parents are Russian — what citizenship does the child have?
Russian by birth. It needs to be documented through the consulate: the Spanish birth certificate with an apostille and translation, then the child’s documents.

Does having a child in Spain give the parents a residence permit?
Not in itself. The parents can gain a ground for legal status only once the child becomes a Spanish citizen.

Does the child need to take citizenship exams?
No. The CCSE and DELE A2 are requirements for adult applicants.

Can a tourist give birth in Spain?
Yes. Emergency care during childbirth is provided free of charge and the birth will be registered. Antenatal and postnatal care are paid for by you unless covered by insurance.

How much does giving birth in Spain cost?
For a resident with access to public healthcare — nothing. In a private clinic approximately €2,000–6,000 depending on the complexity of the birth.

From when does the year for citizenship count?
From the date the child obtained legal resident status, not from the date of birth.

How can a child get Spanish citizenship if born elsewhere?
The one-year benefit applies only to those born in Spain. In other cases the general ten-year period applies, and the child usually obtains citizenship together with or after the parents.

Summary

• Spain applies the right of blood: being born in the country does not give citizenship.
• A child of parents from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan or Ukraine receives the parents’ citizenship at birth.
• The main benefit of being born in Spain is the reduction of the naturalisation period from 10 years to 1 year.
• The year counts only if the child has a residence permit, so it is applied for immediately after birth.
• Children do not need to take exams.
• The birth of a child does not give the parents a status: first they get a residence permit, then the child gets citizenship, and only then does it affect their position.
• Insurance covering childbirth is taken out in advance — because of the waiting period.

A child’s path to a Spanish passport begins with your residence permit. If you do not have one yet or your renewal is coming up, we will look at your situation and find a route that gives the family legal status before the birth: write to us. For remote employees and freelancers the digital nomad residence permit is most often the right fit.