Record Number of Foreign Nationals Granted Spanish Citizenship
In a remarkable turn of events, Spain awarded citizenship to a staggering 299,732 foreign residents in 2025, marking an impressive 18.7% increase compared to the previous year. This figure represents the highest number recorded since the National Institute of Statistics (INE) began tracking such data in 2013. Notably, the majority of those who acquired Spanish nationality hailed from Morocco, with 42,114 individuals, followed closely by Colombia with over 37,700 residents and Venezuela contributing 32,271 to this notable statistic.
Insights into the Citizenship Acquisition Process
The data reveals that the most common pathway to citizenship in 2025 was through residency, wherein foreign nationals could become Spanish citizens by residing legally and continuously in the country for a specified duration, typically ten years. In this context, a remarkable 253,836 individuals secured their nationality through this route, while an additional 45,715 obtained it by option, a legal right established by the Civil Code for those with direct family ties to Spain, without the necessity of prior residency in the country.
Analyzing the demographics, it is evident that a significant majority, approximately 83.3%, of the new citizens had previously resided abroad, while 16.7% had lived exclusively in Spain. Among the foreign nationals who gained Spanish citizenship, the year of arrival that most frequently preceded their acquisition was 2019, indicating that, on average, individuals took around six years to achieve this milestone. Furthermore, the INE reported that 55.4% of the new citizens were women, with men constituting 44.6%. The age group most prevalent in acquiring nationality was between 30 and 39 years, followed by those aged 40 to 49.
Interestingly, the data also highlights that Spain emerged as the country of origin for the most nationality acquisitions, totaling 52,886 cases. This is significant because citizenship is not automatically granted merely by being born in the country. Other countries contributing to this statistic included Colombia with 37,094 acquisitions, Venezuela with 35,428, and Honduras with 19,093. The regions of Catalonia and the Community of Madrid dominated the statistics, with 70,933 and 69,566 cases respectively, accounting for 46.9% of the total nationality grants in 2025. Conversely, La Rioja and Extremadura recorded the fewest acquisitions, with only 1,719 and 1,764 respectively.
As reported by elmundo.es.
