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filipino with spanish citizenship needs help
Jul 15, 2008 · marygspain · 44 replies · 22849 views
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greetings! i have read really helpful messages and hope you too can help us. Got my Spanish citizenship after years of wait since I have a Spanish father. Was raised and born in the Philippines and my dad died when i was very young and never learned the language. recently registered and they gave me and my 2 children spanish passports and my marriage with my wife is registered in my libro de familia. recently moved my family to Ireland to work since i don't speak spanish and feels it will be difficult to survive in spain without knowing the language but needed to flee the terrible Philippine Government. Would want to move to spain so my wife too can get her own spanish citizenship but its so hard to ask help at their embassy here in Ireland and we've been scorned for holding a spanish passports and not speak the language so i opted to ask for your expert opinion since medium of language here is english. people at the spanish embassy was not even helpful when we tried to register here and had difficulty cause their forms did not have english translations, routine for most forms right since English is the international language? :-)
we plan to visit spain soon and see if moving my family to spain will be a good move for us. hope you can give us input on this. my wife (filipino also) is holding a residency card here in ireland but pending the issuance of her EU spouse documents (they say can take 6mos to 1 year) she needs visa to travel still. am i correct to assume that i just need her to apply for a short term stay visa and if we like spain, what are the steps to do so she too can have her spanish citizenship.Will it be better for us to just wait for her EU spouse documents next year and probably make her apply for Irish citizenship (but this takes 5 years stay in ireland before they process it and after processing, another minimum 1 year wait versus being told that she only needs to stay in spain for a year and she can have her own citizenship, is this true?) Do i have to be in spain with my wife or i can continue to work here in ireland and just visit my wife and kids regularly in spain?
thank you and more power to your website!
hope you can help us.
maryg
Jul 15, 2008 · Santi
> Do i have to be in spain with my wife or i can continue to work here in ireland and just visit my wife and kids regularly in spain?
thank you and more power to your website!
hope you can help us.
maryg
An EU resident from outside of Spain but married to a Spanish citizen needs to be resident in Spain for a period of 1 yr to be eligible to apply for Spanish citizenship.
A non EU citizen can become a Spanish citizen after a period of residency of 10 Yrs.
You probably could still work in Ireland and your wife life in Spain, but she does need to be a resident of Spain and you`d need to prove your family home was Spain.
Jul 15, 2008 · jurdyr
your wife has to be EU resident are have work visa for ireland ..... make sure she registor with the garda in Ireland
pm me and i fill you in
jurdy
will be in ireland next few days
Jul 15, 2008 · marygspain
thanks so much, yes my wife is registered with garda, they gave her 1 year stamp 4 which will allow her to set up a business or work in ireland without work permit. they also gave her multiple reentry visa allowing her to travel and we are hoping to visit spain soon and check if life in spain will suit us, but 10 years? was informed in the Philippines it will take a year, but wanted to check cause embassy here in dublin said, after a stay in spain for a year, her residency can be processed... so maybe that is the 10 years you meant, might be best if that's the case to just stay here in ireland for the time being and be with my family, but will not close my doors after we visit spain. again thanks and hope to hear more feedback.
great forum! all the best!
Jul 16, 2008 · Santi
No if you are a Spanish citizen it`ll only be a year.
You`ll need to contacting the Spanish Embassy for clarification.
Aug 3, 2008 · bok
A non EU citizen can become a Spanish citizen after a period of residency of 10 Yrs.
G'day Santi, does this apply also to Filipino citizen working in Spain? I thought its only 2 years?
Cheers,
instigator
Aug 3, 2008 · Santi
You situation is slightly different as your from an Iberio-American country, so after 2 yrs of legal residency you can apply for Spanish citizenship.
Other Nationalities including the EU its 10 yrs, unless married to a citizen or having Spanish parents.
There will be a change in 2008 under the "Law of Historic Memory" that now allows children of parents/grandparent who fled Spain for Political or Economic reason`s during the Civil War and Franco years.
Aug 8, 2008 · eva33
> A non EU citizen can become a Spanish citizen after a period of residency of 10 Yrs.
G'day Santi, does this apply also to Filipino citizen working in Spain? I thought its only 2 years?
Cheers,
instigator
NO! Filipinos, can because of the Philippines being a former colony, obtain Spanish citizenship in 2 years. Out of topic: I did live in the Philippines for three years (I am not Filipino), but it is nice to read your comments about your government, coming from a Filipino.During my life, I did travel the world extensively and did live for a longer period of time in 8 different countries. In my opinion Filipino government and rich Filipinos, are some of the most disgusting people on the planet. They colonize, discriminate, plunder and enslave there own kind.
Eva33
Dec 30, 2008 · aritz
filipinos, south americans, ecuatorial quineans, sephardic jews can start applying for spanish citizenship after completing two years legal residence in spain.
lines for residency have grown 200x since the influx of south american immigrants and the new european immigrants from the union.
there are further requirements while you are applying.
fellow filipino in ireland, if you plan to move to spain be sure to be able to speak some spanish. there may be a few jobs in spain that may not require it at the beginning but common sense will tell you that to live in a new country requires learning their language to communicate. when a tagalog goes to live in ilocos, the sooner he learns ilocano the better for his sake.
forms (especially for immigration to spain) in the spanish embassy are in spanish of course, you cannot require them to produce a document in english since spanish is also an international language.
what i do not understand is how your wife got a residency in ireland but not in spain. anyway, if your wife has a garda, both of you can fly to spain, no problem and you can apply for her residency in spain right here. i would suggest that you get a job here before you ask her to come over.
Jul 4, 2009 · vlsoco
"""...[quote author="aritz" date="1230644483"]filipinos, south americans, ecuatorial quineans, sephardic jews can start applying for spanish citizenship after completing two years legal residence in spain."""
I wonder if staying in Spain on a student visa counts towards this 2 year residency requirement for purposes of applying for citizenship.
Jul 4, 2009 · vlsoco
> filipinos, south americans, ecuatorial quineans, sephardic jews can start applying for spanish citizenship after completing two years legal residence in spain.
I wonder if staying in Spain on a student visa counts towards this 2 year residency requirement for purposes of applying for citizenship.
Please reply if you know the answer.
Jul 5, 2009 · aritz
a student visa in spain does not count as 2 year residency requirement in order to apply for citizenship. Although, if you can find an employer who will hire you while you have a student card, you can change it into residence card. if you have had a student card for 3 years, you do not have to go back to the philippines to get the residence visa at the spanish embassy, that requirement is waved. you just have to submit the other requirements, such as nbi clearance from the philippines, some others that you get right here in spain.
this situation may change once the alien law is modified.
Jul 15, 2009 · keikei
does anyone know how long does it take for spanish embassy philippines to issue the libro de familia?
Jul 15, 2009 · aritz
the spanish embassy issues the libro de familia if the birth or marriage or death or divorce certificates are already bound in a book in the registro civil central in madrid. why? because to apply for it you have to give the page number and book number. if you have these you can apply for them online, what i do not know is if they mail it internationally.
if you have the birth certificates, why do you need the libro de familia?
Jul 15, 2009 · keikei
hi thanks for your reply..i got married with a spanish national in the philippines. i was informed that i need to submit my marriage cert from the nso to the spanish embassy in the philippines as a requirement for the libro de familia. assuming,i submitted it, how long does it take for the libro de familia?i need that to apply for the residence visa. hope you can give me input re this.thanks:-)
Jul 15, 2009 · aritz
keikei,
it depends, if the spanish embassy issues the libro de familia to reflect your marriage on the basis of the nso marriage cert, maybe fast. but if they issue the libro de familia on the basis of an annotation of the marriage in the spanish birth certificate of your spouse or the registry of the marriage in madrid it may take a long time because they have to send the report to the registro civil central in madrid, and that document will have to take its turn from among the documents coming from all over the world. but maybe they are doing it online now, i am not sure. they can inform you better. some women from the dominican republic who married spaniards told me some it took 6 months some 1 year, that was 3 years ago. if you are a woman, do not change your lastname in your filipino passport to save you the problem of changing back to your birthname once you apply for spanish citizenship. there is no such thing as marrried name as spanish citizen.
but do not be in a hurry because it is hard to get a job in spain right now, study spanish first to compete better with the south americans. get intensive courses at the instituto cervantes in manila. before you know it after a year you are ready to go with the libro de familia, residence visa and compete for jobs, go to the market, talk to the police, banks, etc.
Jul 16, 2009 · keikei
ohhh thanh aritz for the info. yeah good that u mentioned the passport thing. actually the reason for me to go to spain is to study spanish language.i may stay there for 6 months to a year. so what kind of visa shall i have?it seems that the residence visa is not possible coz it may take long. i plan to go there asap. i thought just by submitting our marriage cert fr nso, that would suffice for the residence visa.
thanksss
Jul 16, 2009 · aritz
hi keikei,
there may be other options like:
1 a student visa -you will need to be very rich or get a scholarship
2 a b?squeda de empleo visa or even a spanish citizenship - if you have a spanish born grandparent.
you can study spanish there while waiting really for the libro de familia but you should really ask the consulate.
Jul 18, 2009 · Conrad
Who of you can explain me more about granting Spanish citizenship in Philippines?
I live in Australia, but i am European origin, and want to move back to the UK with my gf/future wife. She lives in Philippines, but her grandfather is a Spaniard, and grandmother French, they had a daughter borne in Spain, she is my gf's mother so she should be Spanish citizen, and as a little girl moved with parents from Spain to Philippines, then my girlfriend was borne there but not registered in Spanish Embassy. Now we seek any information how to get Spanish citizenship and passport for her. I hold EU passport so no problem to return to the UK and live there but she has not. Now we need to find any informations how to process her citizenship application, where, cost of processing and any documents required. I am sure that her mother's birth certificate will be required, but unsure in Spanish embassy can help us to find it out in Spain, or we need to go there and find it in Spain. My girlfriend's parents are divorced and she hasn't any contact with them so we don't know when and where her mother was borne in Spain.
Who did all process, please let me know about the details, the most important is time of waiting for citizenship.
Jul 18, 2009 · aritz
conrad,
if someone who is not a spanish citizen but has one parent who was born in spain and is a spanish citizen, can get his/her spanish citizenship by getting registered at the spanish embassy (they will inform you what they need). once she gets a copy of the spanish birth certificate, she can be issued a spanish passport (could be provisional), she travels then to spain to get a regular passport after getting her dni and ss number.
if she does not know when and where her mother was born in spain, i think she meant she does not know where. she should at least know her birth date.
the spanish embassy may have data on her mom, just tell them her name and two last names.
i suggest she takes spanish lessons while waiting because as a spaniard she would be talked to in spanish when she enters spain and all the documentation are in spanish.
Jul 18, 2009 · Conrad
Thanks
But if you can tell me what spanish embassy may want, any documents? I emailed spanish consulates in Australia where i live and got one email asking me for my address to sent me some papers about it, and weeks passed since they got my post address and i didn't get anything, i emailed them again and dind't get any response. My gf goes soon to her grandparents but they are old and sick and difficult to get any informations from them, we wil see what can we find.
I see now economical situation in Australia is not good, still miss the UK, want to back there, as can find a job easier there in my profession as a EU passport holder can go there even now, but she has no EU passport so we try to get Spanish or French one, then would be easy. But how long and process may take t get Spanish citizenship for her? If would be possible to do all without travel to Spain to find documents related with her grandparents marriage and her mother birth. Also i am not sure Spanish law, her mother and grandfather may have lost Spanish citizenship if they acquired Philippino citizenship, then my gf was borne as only Philipino citizen. I would like to knwo what documents are required, time to process all paperwork, and costs to do it all.
Spanish language - well, she lives close to Cagayan de Oro, unsure is spanish language is spoken there, she understand a bit, me too, I liked Spanish language and learnt many years ago, was in Spain and Central America so can understand spoken and written but as I haven't spoken for many years, living in english speaking countries so have some problems to speak.
What is required to get these numbers, tax number etc in Spain, and also how long it takes to get spanish passport then?
Jul 18, 2009 · aritz
conrad,
your gf can get a filipino birth certificate from nso because there would be a notation there about her mother's citizenship.
if her spanish grandfather or french grandmother were eventually naturalized, there would be documents somewhere or with the spanish consulate in manila, the grandfather can recover his spanish citizenship easily. his old passport would be just renewed.
she should get her mother's birth certificate, if she knows place and birthdate most probably madrid, no problem, you can get it online, no costs.
call or contact the consulate of spain in manila, check this
http://www.maec.es/subwebs/Consulados/Manila/en/home/Paginas/Home.aspx
you can also call the honorary consul in cebu (nearer cagayan de oro) Consulado en Ceb? Consul Honorario de Espa?a en Ceb?, D. Jaime Picornell Rodr?guez,
47-g molave street. Lahug. Ceb? City - tel?fono 032.311.329.
as long as you know the names and last names (birth names) birthplaces and birthplace, the only cost would be mailing. and the cost any embassy would charge for passport issuance.
i do not understand the haste. remember haste makes waste.
Jul 19, 2009 · Conrad
Spanish "maniania" is worse waste than haste.
I have few ways, and must choose the best one, fastest, and cheapest. Examples:
1. I can apply for australian spouse visa, it costs about 3000$ and may take up to one year. My friend did it, it took him about 10 months waiting, and almost 10000$ spent for her wife migration, but he used migration agent to do all paperwork. I don't see any sense t waste so much money if I plan to move back to the UK, then australian visa would be lost. Living for some time in Australia we can apply for EEA family permit, but it is complicated, also waste of time and she might be refused. So I prefer other ways:
2. Her Spanish or French origin, on these passport she can enter the UK easy, but if she needs to wait e.g. 5 years for spanish passport, it makes no sense.
I have limited time, max one year and want to be back to the UK, no more so we must find the fastest way to do it all as migration law in each country changes for worse, costs are higher, and more paperwork. UK announced to stop migration, cut numbers of migrants, so I don't want to wait more for worse rules.
Jul 19, 2009 · aritz
conrad,
i suppose the maximum time for her is 6 months. that is if her grandfather (who is still living) is really a spaniard born in spain and so was her mother. the only thing she has to do is prove it. she will find her mother's birthplace and age (maybe birthdate, too) in her filipino birth certificate.
but come on, not knowing her mother's birthday and birthplace? although she can ask her grandpa and grandpa, where and when. she can also ask her dad. you said they are divorced. you may mean separated, or marriage annulled. there is no such thing as divorced in the philippines. if they were also married, in the marriage certificate you can find her mom's birthdate and birthplace.
filipino birth certificates and marriage certificates are so affordable and you can get them in a matter of days, maximum 3 weeks, if data given are correct or if they really exist.
once she knows her moms birthdate and birthplace, she can even apply online or get the certificate thru spanish embassy. she should receive it in a few weeks.
now, having her nso issued filipino birth certificate plus her mom's birth certificate plus her spanish grandpa, they can go to manila and have her registered as a spaniard, she could be even given a provisional passport, free to travel anywhere without a visa.
have you contacted the spanish consulate?
below you can find the website regarding filipino certificates.
http://www.census.gov.ph/data/civilreg/index.html
https://www.ecensus.com.ph/Secure/frmIndex.aspAug 6, 2009 · larsxie
Hi
Im a filipino currently studying in China, im planning to work in Spain once i finish my studies.
I just have a few questions about obtaining a Spanish citizenship.
If i apply for a Spanish citizenship, do i have to renounce my Filipino citizenship?
How long does one wait for the citizenship? How long from the date i submit the application? What are the other documents i need
to prepare aside from the birth certificate, passport, etc.
Will they provide both the passport and id card right after the approval of the application?
Thank you
Lars
Aug 7, 2009 · aritz
larsxie,
filipinos who acquire spanish citizenship are not required to renounce their filipino citizenship.
when you apply for spanish citizenship, depending on your circumstances, it can take a few weeks to 2 years and a half to get approval.
when you get approval, depending on your circumstances, it can take a few weeks to a year to have your spanish birth certificate.
when you get your spanish birth certificate, it can take 30 minutes to an hour to get your passport and id.
what are your circumstances?
Aug 7, 2009 · larsxie
wow, a few weeks to two years?
im planning to get an internship, then get a proper work after that.
do you think it will take longer for me? what are the specific requirements?
will they require me to show them a proof of income, those kind of certificates?
and, i heard that the id card will be different from the real spanish id card? or will it be the same?
thanks a lot :-)
Lars
Aug 7, 2009 · aritz
lars,
were you born in spain?
are you married to a spanish citizen?
do you have a spanish born grandparent?
what kind of visa are you applying for: student or residence?
Aug 7, 2009 · larsxie
Hi
Im not born in spain, not married, and also none of my relatives are spanish.
i want to apply for a citizenship thru residency.
from what i know its 2 years of legal residency for filipino applicants, only then i can apply for a citizenship.
do you have any idea how long will the wait be? from the submission date?
im applying for the residence, since i am looking for a job in Spain.
how about you? what were you circumstances then?
thanks a lot for the help
Lars
Aug 7, 2009 · aritz
larsxie,
after submitting the application as legal resident for 2 years., you get the approval after 2 to 2.5 years. and another 6 months to a year to have your spanish birth certificate registered. this may be faster by the time you apply. once you get this you can get the passport and id in an hour or so.
i came with a student visa. after 3 years there was an amnesty. i changed it to a resident and work permit.
good luck on your application.
Aug 8, 2009 · larsxie
oh i see.
thats a bit long then.
so thats a total of 4-5years? is it? 2years of residency + approval 2yrs approx then 6 months for the processing of the
birth certificate? how long did it take yours? from your application date?
and i also wanted to ask, do you know the official website where i can find exact details, requirements for the citizenship?
ive checked ministerio de justicia, but its all in spanish, im still working on my spanish. haha
and, the 2 years residency, it has to be uninterrupted 2 straight years, right? or, it doesnt matter if i leave spain, as long as the
total time i spent in spain is 2 years?
sorry i ask a lot of questions, i really appreciate the help. :-)
thanks a lot
LARS
Aug 8, 2009 · aritz
larsxie,
check this
http://www.mjusticia.es/cs/Satellite?c=Documento&cid=1161677941215&pagename=Portal_del_ciudadano/Documento/TempDocumento
there are two things you need from the philippines, the filipino birth certificate and nbi clearance. authenticated up to the spanish consulate.
translated into spanish either by the spanish consulate in manila or the philippine consulate in madrid.
the rest of the requirements are only available in spain.
while the application is in process you will have to be legal resident in spain.
the first residence card is for a year. then for two years, then for two years. it is dependent on your having a job. so you will have to be working at least for 6 months prior to the renewal of the card.
Aug 8, 2009 · larsxie
ok, so i guess all in all the wait could be 3-4 yrs, all depending on my work.
thanks a lot for the information.
i will just ask for an assistance from our embassy when i get there next year.
i guess they will have information there.
thanks a lot !! :-D
Aug 8, 2009 · aritz
larsxie,
the philippine consulate does not give assistance or information to filipinos in order to become citizens of another country.
one of the services they offer to filipinos is the issuance of documents needed by filipinos.
Aug 20, 2009 · chezko
i have a different circumstance and I would appreciate if you any of you guys could answer or, at least, direct me to the right office, or site to get answers from.
I was born in the Philippines and joined the U.S. Navy and eventually became a US citizen. I retired from the military 2 years ago and now reside in Greece on a permanent stay permit. I don't hold any kind of dual citizenship. I have since contemplating on moving to and acquiring Spanish citizenship, eventually EU citizenship. My question is: Does my being a US Citizen, though born in the Philippines of Filipino parents (both deceased now) disqualify me from the special consideration they afford Filipino citizens (2 years instead of 10 year) to apply for Spanish Citizenship?
Aug 20, 2009 · aritz
chezko,
recover your filipino citizenship and get the passport, it is easy now since the philippines recognizes dual citizenship.
since you get a pension as a retiree, you can apply as filipino for spanish residence permit but not residence/work permit.
when you complete two years residence, you can apply for spanish citizenship.
process takes 2 years or so, so you have to keep on renewing the residence permit until you get your spanish passport and dni.
Aug 21, 2009 · chezko
aritz,
by getting my filipino citizenship back, did you mean apply for dual citizenship (US and Philippines) at any Philippine Consulate back in the US, or you meant renounce my US Citizenship altogether and get my Philippine citizenship back for the sole purpose of emigrating to Spain?
I know the part of being able to apply for citizenship after 2 years of residency but the way you put it was that after 2 years of residency, I might not get the Spanish citizenship automatically after all or that I might not get the approval soon after the minimum 2-year residency, and there might be a need to renew the biannual residency permit more than once. Am i understanding you correctly? So, essentially, the 2 years of residency is purely theoretical? Had there been cases, or do you know of a case or somebody, who did the 2 year mandatory requirement and still has not gotten his/her Spanish citizenship after so many years?
thanks again in advance.
Aug 21, 2009 · aritz
chezko,
when you recover your filipino citizenship you just swear allegiance to the philippines in front of the consul. you do not renounce any other citizenship.
citizens of all former colonies of spain can apply for citizenship when they have been legal residents for two years.
the processing usually takes two years, so you get the passport after 4 or 4 and half years from the time you start your residency.
other citizens can start applying after residing for 10 years.
1 year minimum residency if you were born in spain or married to a spanish citizen or grandchild of a spaniard born in spain
2 year minimum residency if you are a citizen of a former colony, or a sephardic jew
5 year minimu residency if you are a refugee
10 year minimum for other citizens
as resident, you only get citizenship when you apply.
same thing in the usa, i have nephews who are still residents in the usa because they have not applied for US citizenship.
the only difference is applying for spanish citizenship is free of charge.
Aug 21, 2009 · chezko
aritz,
i will certainly do that (visit the Phililppine Consulate) the next time i fly back to the US.
One last question: once i get my filipino citizenship back, can i do the application for Spanish residency in a Spanish Consulate in the US, or is there a need for me to go back to the Philippines and initiate all the legal paperwork at the Spanish Embassy in Manila?
chezko
Aug 22, 2009 · aritz
chezko,
if you are residing in greece, you can go to the philippine consulate in athens.
when you decide to apply, i suggest you go to the spanish consulate in athens first. t
here are not that many people lining up.
you can start learning spanish to understand the forms you are going to fill in.
Aug 22, 2009 · chezko
thanks, aritz.
dont worry, my spanish is better than basic :)
Feb 9, 2010 · westmdrifter
Hi, if you are married to a Spanish national would you still need to be a resident in Spain for a year to qualify for Spanish Citizenship, and will it take 2 years to process citizenship even if you are married to a Spanish national.
Thanks and regards.
westm
Feb 10, 2010 · aritz
westmdrifter,
a person married to a spanish national can apply for citizenship after completing a year of residence in spain.
the process takes about 2 years. that means you have to be continuously residing (with a resident card) until you get your spanish citizenship, they will then issue you your spanish birth certificate and then you can apply for your spanish dni and passport.
Feb 10, 2010 · westmdrifter
Thanks a lot.