Greetings to all. This is a great forum, thanks to everyone that contributes to it.
I, a US citizen born in Cuba, am trying to get Spanish citizenship through the ?Ley de la Memoria.? When my parents were born in Cuba my grandparents were still Spanish citizens thus making them Spanish as well. I have my birth certificate and my parents birth certificates legalized. I presented those documents to the Spanish Consulate and they told me that I needed to prove that my grandparents were still Spanish when my parents were born by requesting a letter of citizenship for my grandparents in Cuba. I?ve tried to get this through a document retrieval service and they tell me is next to impossible to do this and if the document existed sometimes it can take as much as two years and the Cuban civil registry simple says ?we can?t help you.? If I could prove this somehow my citizenship would be a done deal.
Has anyone gone through this? Any suggestions? Are there other documents that can be submitted as well? I?m running out of time.
Thanks?rbr1!
Sep 18, 2011 · SpainExpat member
Hi. That was probably me you talked to because unfortunately I have to tell this to many people.
However, all is not lost.
It is my understanding that there is nothing in Law 52 about the citizenship of the Spanish exile/expat. It shouldn't matter if the Spanish exile/expat was an illegal alien in Cuba, a registered immigrant of if he/she went all the way and became a Cuban citizen.
The fact that the Spanish exile/expat left Spain for Cuba or could not return to Spain because of Franco is what matters.
Law 52 gives the children and grandchildren the right to apply for Spanish citizenship whatever the immigration status of the Spanish exile/expat was, it doesn't matter.
That's my understanding.
So, if you show up at the consulate with the Spanish exile/expat birth certificate, a current legalized birth certificate of the child and/or grandchild, you should be able to ask for a waiver from the immigration papers or some way around having to submit naturalization papers.
Be polite but be persistent and post here after you meeting we we'll all know how it went.
However, all is not lost.
It is my understanding that there is nothing in Law 52 about the citizenship of the Spanish exile/expat. It shouldn't matter if the Spanish exile/expat was an illegal alien in Cuba, a registered immigrant of if he/she went all the way and became a Cuban citizen.
The fact that the Spanish exile/expat left Spain for Cuba or could not return to Spain because of Franco is what matters.
Law 52 gives the children and grandchildren the right to apply for Spanish citizenship whatever the immigration status of the Spanish exile/expat was, it doesn't matter.
That's my understanding.
So, if you show up at the consulate with the Spanish exile/expat birth certificate, a current legalized birth certificate of the child and/or grandchild, you should be able to ask for a waiver from the immigration papers or some way around having to submit naturalization papers.
Be polite but be persistent and post here after you meeting we we'll all know how it went.