Dominican citizens have been diligent in applying for Spanish nationality after the Spanish government made citizenship easier to get for Spanish descendants. The biggest attraction for locals is that a Spanish passport exempts Dominicans from the tedious and costly procedure of having to apply for a visa to the European Union and many other countries around the world. Getting Spanish citizenship also opens doors to residency in all European Union countries. It also opens up a world of job opportunities.
The Dominican Republic ranks sixth in the world among countries with citizens that have become new Spanish citizens under the rights granted by the Memoria Española and Ley de Nietos.
The top countries with citizens getting Spanish citizenship are: Morroco (54,027), Venezuela (30,154), Colombia (18,738), Ecuador (11,326), Honduras (11,189), Dominican Republic (10,275), Cuba (9,790), Bolivia (9,103), Peru (8,489), and Argentina (7,208).
When the Law de Memoria Histórica was enacted in 2007, thousands of Dominicans with Spanish parents or grandparents did the paperwork to get the Spanish passport. Then the Ley de Memoria Democrática (Ley de Nietos) is an extension of that law that was passed in October 2022 relaxing rules for children and grandchildren of Spanish citizens to get Spanish citizenship without having to live in Spain. The time for applying to the Ley de Nietos was extended to October 2025.
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Diario Libre
INE
España Exterior
17 June 2024