Latin American and other special-ties passports, what really gets easier

Key rules

• Residence permits: Your Ibero-American passport gives no general advantage when applying for a residence permit.
• Short stays: Visa-free entry covers up to 90 days in any 180 days and does not change the permit you need to live in Spain.
• Nationality: You can apply for Spanish nationality after 2 years of legal residence instead of 10.
• Visa needed: Bolivia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Ecuador need a short-stay visa.

Where the advantage is real

Your passport helps in two places: short visits without a visa for many countries, and a shorter wait for Spanish nationality. Residence permits work as they do for any other non-EU national.

If you also hold an EU passport, you are an EU citizen and register in Spain under EU rules, so the Ibero-American passport benefits on this page do not apply to your residence.

Short visits

Many Ibero-American nationals can enter Spain for up to 90 days in any 180 days without a visa. This includes Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.

If your country is not on this list, apply for the short-stay visa at the Spanish consulate before you book travel.

Visa-free entry gives you a short stay only. It does not let you live or work in Spain.

Residence permits

There is no general shortcut. You need the same permit as any other non-EU national, so choose the one that fits your plan: work, study, family or another route.

Nationality

This is the biggest benefit. The 2-year period for Ibero-American nationals also applies to Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal, and to Sephardic Jews. The general period is 10 years.

Other shorter periods exist: 5 years for refugees, and 1 year for people born in Spain, spouses of Spaniards, and widows or widowers.

The 2 years must be legal, continuous and immediately before you apply, so you first need a valid residence permit.

The fee for applying for Spanish nationality by residence is 104.05 EUR, paid with form modelo 790 código 026. You pass the CCSE constitutional and sociocultural knowledge test; the DELE A2 Spanish exam is not required if you come from a Spanish-speaking country. You file the application online through the Ministry of Justice electronic office, with a digital certificate or Cl@ve.