Does getting a literal birth certificate equals Spanish citizen?

@linsaywv

If the embassy said you can apply for a passport and NEI then you probably can.

However, my guess is that they've given you a special birth certificate which confirms your connection to your Spanish grandparent. And with this document you can now apply for Spanish citizenship, based on descent (rather than residence). You'd have to check the rules for this application, as you might have to be living in Spain and/or pass some standard tests (Spanish language, Spanish citizenship/culture).

Until you make this application (and get approved, and go through your naturalization ceremony) you are not a Spanish citizen. Once approved, you should get a passport and NEI (although perhaps as a separate step).

https://www.globalcitizensolutions.com/ … y-descent/

Thanks for the reply. They said I wouldn't have to go through any ceremony or tests because of the new temporary law. And I would just have to apply for the passport and the NEI card. They gave me the forms to fill out an appointment at the consulate for the passport and card.

@linsaywv

Yes, there's a recent, temporary law (passed in 2022, I think, and then renewed until 2025) the Ley de Nietos (law of grandchildren). This definitely simplifies the process for you, and does away for the need of any residence period in Spain, and allows you to apply at your local Spanish consulate. Lucky you! :-)

I don't know where you are in the process with the consulate, and, as I said before, if they say it's like so, then I don't have any reason to doubt them. So even if you're not Spanish today, you soon will be.

My guess is that somewhere along the line you have to formally apply for citizenship, and maybe you already did this, or maybe that's what you'll do at the next appointment. And maybe the consulate will combine citizenship with issuing your passport/DNI. But I'd still expect there to be some evaluation period for your citizenship application (and maybe they already did this), followed by, at some point, you swearing your oath of allegiance, and getting your certificate of Spanish citizenship. At this point, they can also give you your passport/DNI.

I could be wrong, but if you haven't done the oath thinggie, I'd be very surprised if you were Spanish. :-) However, you might not have noticed it, as this doesn't have to be a fancy ceremony. It might be that as part of the paperwork the consulate gave you, you already signed the oath of allegiance (witnessed by a consular officer), which amounts to the same thing.

Another possibility, I suppose, is that the certificate given to you by the consulate, that you mentioned initially, is actually your new certificate of Spanish citizenship, rather than a birth certificate. In which case, yup, you're Spanish.

https://marfourlaw.com/ley-de-nietos-grandchildern-law/

What is a NEI?  I am familiar with NIE, DNI, and Tarjeta de Residencia.  I have not heard of NEI before

@BlueMoonx47

Ho, ho. My bad. I meant DNI.