Spanish citizenship via deceased, unrecognied father?
January 25, 2025 9:54 PM   Subscribe

My biological father was Spanish, born in Spain with (as far as I know) Spanish citizenship. However, he is not listed on my birth certificate. He was not married to my mother. We never had any relationship. He is now deceased. But in the 1990s there was a DNA test proving his paternity for child-support-paying purposes. Can I apply for Spanish citizenship?

I do not have his birth certificate. However, I have his date and town of birth from his obituary.

I was born in Ontario. Even if it is possible, I would prefer not have him listed on my birth certificate. He was nothing to me and I was nothing to him. I feel like it would be an insult to my mother to put his name beside hers in any quasi-equal status.

When I was a teenager* there was a DNA test done, with my blood, my mom's blood and my bio father's blood. This test was court-ordered or possibly requested by his lawyers. Regardless of why it was done, the results of the test presumably exist somewhere in the court record, so it wouldn't just be my word.

My father is deceased. He had a wife, acquired a few years after my birth, who may or may not have learned of my existence a couple of years after the DNA test. He has adult children (to whom he was a father, as far as I know), who surely do not know about me. I have no wish to disrupt any of their lives.

There is no one else who was a de-facto or legal father to me.

*Oh, right...I am in my 40s...does that mean it's just too late?

Oh, and one source I found said something about a bloodtest showing spanish descent. Unclear if that meant an ancestry.com blood test or if it meant "we're going to do a bloodtest to make sure you are really descended from who you say). Anyway, if it means ancestry.com type stuff (which feels very sketchy as a reason for granting citizenship), I do actually have an ancestry test that shows me to be more than 50% Spanish (my mother also has significant Spanish descent, but not recent enough for citizenship).

TL;DR, I believe I can prove I am eligible for Spanish citizenship, but I cannot do it by the methods that appear to be part of the standard process. Is it possible I can still get citizenship? How would I pursue this?
posted by anonymous to Grab Bag (9 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Was the court case in Canada or in Spain (or elsewhere)?
posted by hoyland at 10:49 PM on January 25


I checked this for the Netherlands (since I read Dutch but not Spanish and these rules tend to be similar across Europe) and it looks like the DNA test would be insufficient there if your father never married your mother nor formally acknowledged/accepted you as his child.

It looks like in the Netherlands, "you can claim the nationality of your father" goes by legal ties, not biological ones.

I mention this because at first read, I had 'biological father' in mind and the text appeared to make sense until it didn't, but I was misinterpreting it. When you find the corresponding information for Spain, it could be helpful to keep this in mind.
posted by demi-octopus at 12:39 AM on January 26


Here's the basic info on naturalisation from the Spanish government (in English). You'll probably need to order his birth certificate.

In my experience of gaining UK citizenship, along with residency for a non-EU European country, and currently weighing on Italian citizenship, I can confidently say this is HARD work. But at the same time, there's often an interpretation that you're welcome to make if information when applying. What I mean by this is if you're serious, don't self exclude, apply and let the authorities make the call. They'll often have advice.
posted by socky_puppy at 1:41 AM on January 26 [1 favorite]


As a dual citizen (not of Spain) before you throw a lot of effort into this I want to point out that on the page linked above, it says to achieve Spanish citizenship you must renounce your other citizenships (with some exceptions.) That means Spain doesn’t permit dual citizenship with Canada and you would have to renounce your Canadian citizenship. So unless you want to do that I wouldn’t recommend pursuing it.
posted by warriorqueen at 5:48 AM on January 26 [1 favorite]


The renunciation of other citizenship "law" in Spain is rarely if ever enforced afaik. (I'm a US citizen, currently reside in Spain. )
posted by rabia.elizabeth at 5:57 AM on January 26


Residency isn’t the same as citizenship though? I mean…I’m not in Spain, you are. Are there people who are dual nationals under the radar formally? Before Canada changed its rules I know part of getting citizenship was to formally renounce US citizenship and you had to prove you did. My family (permanent residents of Canada) waited until the rules changed. Renouncing US citizenship involves quite a bit of work, too.
posted by warriorqueen at 6:37 AM on January 26


Warriorqueen, that only applies to three (?) of the methods of naturalisation, birthright isn't one of them.
posted by socky_puppy at 11:13 AM on January 26


I've no experience with this, but I poked around the internet and found this: https://www.globalcitizensolutions.com/spanish-citizenship-by-descent/

This site seems the most comprehensive. Various sites say slightly different things and offer services to help you get citizenship, but I'd be very skeptical of them. Also Google "Spanish citizenship by descent Reddit" for people's experiences on how they did it.
posted by foxjacket at 6:30 AM on January 27


Right but “but option” is via blood ties. Birthright is born on Spanish soil. If the OP was born in Spain, that’s different.

“ For the three routes to naturalisation mentioned (option, discretionary conferral and residency), three final requirements must be met:
Swearing an oath or promise of allegiance to the King and obedience of the Spanish Constitution and laws.
Declaration renouncing previous nationality. This is not required of nationals of Latin American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal or Sephardic Jews of Spanish origin.
Entry of the acquisition of nationality in the Spanish Civil Register.”

Option is:
“ Acquiring Spanish nationality by option

In general, this stems from close family links that the person concerned has with Spanish citizens.
Thus, any person who is or has been under the parental authority of a Spanish national, or whose mother or father was Spanish and born in Spain, or adopted persons aged over 18, may opt for Spanish nationality.
It is a simple procedure processed through the Civil Registers. The person concerned must provide documentary evidence of their relationship to the Spanish citizen.”

I just think the OP should ask before spending a lot of money and effort on it.
posted by warriorqueen at 7:31 PM on January 27


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