Spanish citizenship for Sephardic or Sephardim

03/01/2013

Until now, the citizenship was given by a “naturalization letter” (carta de naturaleza), which means, by the government resolution, if a number of requests were fulfilled, and with the obligation to renounce the former citizenship (except of those who were born in Latin American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Guinea Equatorial or Portugal).

Now the Spanish Civil Code will be amended by removing the condition of having to renounce the former citizenship. The nationalization will take place automatically, if the needed documents have been presented, specially a certificate from The Federation of Jewish Communities that will be specified in a next executive order that was already presented to the Sefarad-Israel House by the Justice and Foreign Affairs Ministries on the 26th of November 2012.

Joan Ramón Pomar Serra & Alejandro Espada Gerlach