As of October 2022, people will be able to obtain Spanish nationality through the application of the Law of Democratic Memory (LMD). The method of obtaining Spanish nationality by origin is being used by many people from different parts of the world.

However, everyone was wondering: will the legislation be renewed and the application deadline extended to October 2025? Where is the Grandchildren Act heading?

The Spanish Government has officially declared that the deadline of the Law of Democratic Memory, also known as the "Law of the Grandchildren" will be extended by one year. The deadline for submitting applications was set for October 2024.

In early March, Angel Victor Torres, Spain's Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, stated that the DML would be extended until the end of 2025. In the period leading up to this revised deadline, descendants of Spanish citizens who were forced to leave the country during Franco's dictatorship will have the opportunity to apply for nationality.

This announcement has already been officially confirmed. What conditions had to be met for this extension to be confirmed?

When did the extension of the Grandchildren Act come into force?

According to information from consular sources in Argentina and Cuba, the announcement regarding the extension of the Grandchildren Act was expected to be made sometime between the end of May and the first half of June.

However, there was speculation that the announcement would be postponed until July, and so it was. But in reality, Spanish consulates were working on the assumption that the LMD would be extended.

In this regard, we have always recommended from the outset to avoid delays and begin the necessary procedures to acquire Spanish nationality through the Grandchildren Law as soon as possible. Every day that passes is a missed opportunity.

What is the current deadline to apply for Spanish nationality under the Grandchildren's Law?

It was very difficult to give a definitive answer to this question. Consulates consulted agreed that "the extension will apply". However, in the worst case scenario, all applications received would have to be processed by 31 October 2024.

The Spanish Council of Ministers has authorised an extension of the deadline for applying for Spanish nationality under the Law of Democratic Memory (LMD), popularly known as the Grandchildren's Law. The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that the process will be extended by one year. This means that applicants will now have until 22 October 2025 to submit the necessary documentation.

Conclusion

As experts in Spanish citizenship procedures, we emphasise the importance of submitting your application on time. Those who have not yet done so have very little time left to take advantage of this opportunity.

Despite its simplicity and generality, this regulation contains a series of strict conditions that must be met to the letter. Often, the process gets bogged down in the details, resulting in a long period of time to resolve each individual case. Therefore, it is essential to submit the application as soon as possible.

In order to obtain recognition of Spanish nationality under the Grandchildren Law, it is essential to obtain specific documentation. It is often even necessary to go beyond the Civil Registry and seek alternative sources, such as parish archives, to obtain these documents.

By 2023, it is estimated that more than 90,000 people will have acquired their Spanish passport under the Democratic Memory Law.

The majority of applications have come from people residing in Latin America, with 94.9% of the total. The largest number of applications came from Cuba, followed by Argentina and Mexico. The remaining 5.1% of the applications were distributed among various regions of the world, mainly France, the United States and Morocco.

These individuals are children, grandchildren or great-grandchildren of native Spaniards, and applicants must have been born outside Spain in all cases.