Check your home country's dual-nationality rules before you apply

Key rules

• Home law decides: Your home country's law, not Spain's, decides whether you lose your original citizenship.
• Timing: Finish your home-country check before the Spanish oath, because renouncing is hard to reverse.
• Written answer: Get the consulate's reply in writing, since informal answers can be wrong.
• Exempt nationalities: Nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal do not have to renounce when naturalising by residence.

The country examples are general and can change, so confirm your own country's current rules with its official nationality law or consulate.

Your home country decides what you lose

Spain's rules are only half the picture. Your home country's law decides whether you keep your original citizenship, lose it, or face limits once you become Spanish. Check this with official home-country sources before you apply, and finish before the Spanish oath. Renouncing cannot easily be undone.

Who does not have to renounce

Nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal do not have to renounce when naturalising by residence. If you are from one of these, you may keep your nationality by agreement or declaration. Still check your own country's rules, as it may have its own conditions.

What kinds of rules exist

Countries fall into three broad groups:

• Strict. Some end your citizenship when you voluntarily take another. India and China are commonly cited. Japan makes adults choose. Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates also have restrictions. Austria, Norway and Denmark have limited dual nationality too.
• Generally permissive. The United States, the UK, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Brazil and Mexico allow dual nationality in general. Many Latin American states also allow it.
• Mixed. Details and exceptions vary, so do not rely on a list. Your country's own nationality law is what counts.

How to check

1. Read your country's nationality law. It is usually on the ministry of interior or justice website.
2. Email your embassy or consulate in Spain and ask, in writing, whether becoming Spanish would cost you your original nationality. Ask for the reply by email or letter.
3. Do not rely on a casual answer. Consular staff sometimes get it wrong, so get it in writing.
4. If the consulate will not answer in writing, or the reply is unclear, ask a lawyer in your home country. This is worth the cost if a lot is at stake, such as property, a family business or an inheritance.

The checklist below lists the exact questions to ask, including passport handover, reversal, and land and inheritance rules.

Questions to settle with your home country before you renounce

• Read your home country's nationality law on the ministry of interior or justice website to see what acquiring another nationality does to yours.

• Ask whether you must hand in your passport and ID, and what certificate you get when the loss is recorded.

• Ask whether the loss can be reversed and how, and whether military service or tax obligations continue.

• Ask for the answer as a signed letter or certificate on letterhead, with the legal basis, and keep copies and proof of delivery.

• Check whether your home country limits foreigners owning land, farmland, border property or inherited property, and whether former nationals must sell within a time limit.

• Check inheritance rules, forced heirship, and whether foreign heirs pay different taxes.

• Check the effect on bank accounts, company shareholdings, property held through a family company and professional licences.

• Check whether your state pension or benefits depend on nationality or residence, and whether they can be paid to you abroad as a non-national.

• Check whether a social security agreement between Spain and your home country covers you, and whether voluntary contributions can continue after renouncing.

• Check whether health cover or public-sector pensions require citizenship.

• Check whether you could enter your home country without a visa, and whether you would need a permit to stay, live and work, and how long it takes.

• Check whether your country has a route for former nationals to return, such as ancestry or reacquisition.

• Check the effect on your children, spouse and family reunification, and whether former nationals can be refused entry.

• Check visa-free access and the maximum stay on a Spanish passport for the countries you travel to.

• Finish all these checks before the Spanish oath, since renunciation is made there and nationality takes effect only once it is registered.

Frequently asked questions

Which countries make you lose citizenship when you become Spanish?

Several countries end citizenship or ban dual nationality when you voluntarily take another one. India ends citizenship on voluntary acquisition of another nationality, and China does not recognise dual nationality.

Does my country allow dual nationality if I am from the US, UK, Canada or Australia?

Yes, the United States, the UK, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Brazil and Mexico allow dual nationality in general. Many Latin American states do too. Your own country's nationality law still decides the real outcome, so confirm it before you apply.

When should I finish checking my home country's rules?

Finish the check before you take the Spanish oath, because the oath is where renunciation is asked for. A verbal answer from consular staff can be wrong, so ask for the reply in writing. For high stakes, a lawyer in your home country can confirm it.