my boyfriend and I want to get married and move to spain. He is a Spaniard and i am a US citizen. He will get his US citizenship soon. will I be able to keep my US citizenship when I marry him and move to Spain? Also my parents want to eventually join us there (both are US citizens)... will I be able to bring them there as their daughter (by that time i wll be a spanish citizen)
2006-09-04 14:59:43 · 3 answers · asked by Chica 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Hello,
First, good luck with your upcoming marriage and move to España. As an American living in Spain, I think I can confidently answer some of your questions.
First, you do not have to give up your US citizenship to live here. Your husband will have to apply for your legal residency under the "family reunification" laws, which allow the spouses and children of Spanish citizens to immigrate legally. The whole process takes a LONG time. When I went through my residency process - on a working visa - it took about 10 months from start to finish. Immigration is getting tougher here, because we have had a FLOOD of illegal immigrants and the government is starting to come under a lot of pressure to do something about this. So, be prepared and expect HUGE queues, paperwork, etc. The best thing you can do is get in touch with a good immigration lawyer here in Spain to help you negotiate the paperwork.
After a period of time of residing here legally (2 to 10 years, depending) you will be able to apply for Spanish citizenship. If you are from a FORMER SPANISH COLONY or of direct Spanish descent, or you are a sephardic Jew, then you can apply after 2 years. Otherwise, you have to be here for 10 years, residing in Spain with no interruptions, and then you can get your citizenship.
As far as your parents joining, that is something I´m less knowlegable about. I believe they can reside here as property owners, if they buy a house to retire here. But I´m not sure if they would qualify under the family reunification act or not. That would best be checked with a lawyer. A good one is iabogados here in Madrid. The specialist in this area is Helena Gonzalez.
Best of luck to you
2006-09-05 23:46:08 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i beleave when u move to another country like that and want to keep Ur citizenship here there's paper work on both side's. if u become a citizen of that country u give up all rights talk to the b/f.
2006-09-04 15:07:54 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes. this is called dual citizenship.
2006-09-04 15:06:15 · answer #3 · answered by ny21tb 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋