Spain received over 2.3 million applications for citizenship from descendants of people who fled the country during the rule of dictator Francisco Franco.
Euro News reports that it has overwhelmed the country’s consular services.
Over 1 million people formally applied for Spanish nationality under the Law of Democratic Memory since the program launched in October 2022. Another 1.3 million scheduled appointments they have not yet been able to attend due to massive backlogs, according to the General Council of Spanish Citizens Abroad (CGCEE).
Spain has approved approximately half of the 1 million cases processed so far, rejecting 2%. Many cases remain pending final registration.
The program, known as the “Grandchildren’s Law,” generated nearly five times more applications than Spain’s 2007 Historical Memory Law, which received 503,439 requests.
The Law of Democratic Memory aimed to address historical injustices by granting Spanish citizenship to descendants of people forced to leave the country between 1936 and 1978 during the Spanish Civil War.
The law initially gave applicants two years to apply, and later extended it to three years. The deadline closed on 21 October.
Eligibility included children and grandchildren of Spaniards who lost citizenship due to political, ideological or religious exile, or because of their sexual orientation.
The law also covered children of Spanish women who lost citizenship by marrying foreigners before Spain’s 1978 Constitution, and adult children of people who gained Spanish citizenship under the 2007 Historical Memory Law.
A surge of applications before the October deadline exceeded all forecasts and consular capacity. Spanish authorities adopted a flexible interpretation, accepting applications from anyone who requested an appointment online before the deadline, even if they had not yet submitted documents.
Sources involved in the process acknowledge that at current processing rates, some applicants could wait decades. Elderly applicants may not live to see their cases resolved.
