How much Spanish nationality costs in 2026

What you'll actually pay

Search online for the cost of getting Spanish nationality and you'll run into figures all over the map. Some people say "around 200 euros". Others throw out "more than 1000". Both are true depending on the case, which is exactly why a single number tells you nothing useful. What it will really cost you depends on your country of origin, whether you need the DELE A2 or not, how many documents need to be translated, and whether you decide to hire a professional or handle it yourself.

This guide breaks everything down into concrete line items and realistic ranges in euros. Heads up: apostille and translation prices vary a lot between countries and between sworn translators, so the numbers below are realistic ranges, not a closed quote for your specific case. If you're living in Spain and requesting papers from your country of origin remotely, factor in international shipping that most people forget about until the bill arrives.

The point is that you finish this guide with a rough figure for your profile, and a clear sense of where you can save without hurting the file. No filler.

Fixed official fees

Three mandatory state fees apply to every applicant. They don't depend on your country or your situation: they're set by regulation and they're the same for everyone applying through residency.

CCSE exam fee: 85 euros per session. This is the Instituto Cervantes constitutional and sociocultural knowledge exam. You pay when you register and the fee covers a single session. Fail and you pay another 85 euros to sit it again. No discounts, no reduced rate, no second chances inside the same payment.

DELE A2 fee: about 124 euros. This one only applies if you aren't a native Spanish speaker, meaning you come from a country where Spanish isn't an official language. The exact price varies a bit between exam centres and countries, but it's around 124 euros. Same rule as the CCSE: fail and you pay again to retake it.

Nationality fee (Modelo 790 código 026): 104.05 euros. You pay this when you file the application on the Ministry of Justice Sede Electrónica. Pay it online by card or through your bank, then upload the receipt to the file. A point most people don't know: this fee is NOT refunded if your application is denied or if you withdraw it. It's a filing fee, not a grant fee.

Adding up the mandatory state fees:

• If you come from a Spanish-speaking country (no DELE needed): 85 + 104.05 = 189.05 euros.
• If you aren't a native Spanish speaker (DELE required): 85 + 124 + 104.05 = 313.05 euros.

That's the floor of your budget. Everything that follows is what varies by case.

Documents from your country of origin

On top of the fees, the file requires papers from your country. At a minimum, a criminal record certificate and a literal birth certificate, both apostilled under the Hague Convention (or legalized through consular channels if your country didn't sign the Hague). These are issued by your country of origin, not Spain, and you pay for them in local currency.

The typical ranges you'll see:

Criminal record certificate from your country of origin: 30 to 100 euros. Heavily country-dependent. In Colombia or Mexico the cost is low and the process is fully online in a matter of minutes. In other countries you have to show up in person, pay higher administrative fees, and wait weeks. If you're requesting it from Spain through a relative or a gestor on the ground, add their tips or commissions.

Hague Convention apostille on the criminal record: 10 to 40 euros. This is processed in the country that issued the document, by the authority designated there (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Interior Ministry, depending on the country). You CANNOT apostille an Argentine document from Spain, nor a Peruvian one, nor any other. The apostille always happens where the document was born.

Literal birth certificate: 10 to 30 euros. There's a distinction here that can save you money later. Some countries issue two versions of the certificate: the standard one (in the local language) and the Vienna Convention plurilingual version, which is already written in several languages including Spanish. If your country issues the plurilingual version, ask for that one. You skip the sworn translation for this document.

International shipping if requesting from Spain: 30 to 80 euros. Lots of people don't budget for this and it shows up as a surprise at the end. Certified international mail or a courier like DHL, especially if you want delivery guarantee and tracking. If you request several documents in different shipments because they're ready at different times, multiply accordingly.

Typical total for a Latin American requesting their papers from Spain: somewhere between 100 and 200 euros adding criminal record, apostille, birth certificate, and one international shipment. For people from other continents the range can climb, especially if the home country has high administrative fees or if the apostille is hard to process remotely.

Sworn translations

Any foreign document arriving at the ministry has to be translated into Spanish if it isn't already in Spanish. And not just any translation: it has to be a sworn translation by a sworn translator appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation (MAEC).

What does NOT count:

• A translation done by your country's embassy or consulate in Spain.
• A translation done by a "regular" translator or an academy.
• A sworn translation done in your country by a translator appointed there.

The official list of active sworn translators is published on mjusticia.gob.es and exteriores.gob.es. You can filter by language and by province, see the translator's contact email, and request a quote directly.

Typical cost per document: 30 to 60 euros. Depends on the source language, the length of the document, and the translator. Common languages like English, French, or Italian sit at the lower end of the range. Less common languages like Arabic, Chinese, or Russian usually sit at the higher end or above.

Important exception for Latin Americans: many Latin American countries issue certificates directly in Spanish, so you don't need to translate them. If your criminal record certificate and your birth certificate already come in Spanish at the source, you skip this entire line item. And if your country offers the Vienna Convention plurilingual birth certificate, you skip translation there too.

Total budget by profile

Let me land all of the above in three typical scenarios. Your actual case may fall between two or carry quirks of its own, but these numbers will get you close.

Profile 1: Latin American who doesn't need DELE.

• CCSE fee: 85 euros.
• Nationality fee (Modelo 790 código 026): 104.05 euros.
• Country-of-origin papers (criminal record + apostille + birth certificate + shipping): 80 to 150 euros.
• Sworn translations: 0 euros if the birth certificate and criminal record are already in Spanish (common case in Latin America).

Estimated total: 250 to 400 euros.

Profile 2: non-Spanish speaker (rest of the world).

• CCSE fee: 85 euros.
• DELE A2 fee: 124 euros.
• Nationality fee: 104.05 euros.
• Country-of-origin papers: 80 to 200 euros (often pricier if you're outside Europe).
• Sworn translations: 60 to 180 euros, depending on how many documents need translating and which language.

Estimated total: 450 to 700 euros.

Profile 3: if you hire a lawyer or a gestor.

Add 500 to 1500 euros on top of whichever profile fits you. The range depends on whether they handle the entire file, advise you only on specific parts, or process the apostilles and translations for you on their end. It's useful if your case has real complications (international marriage with unusual paperwork, residency with gaps you need to justify, criminal record entries you aren't sure whether to declare). It is NOT required. Plenty of people with standard cases handle the whole thing themselves without a professional and without issues.

How to save without compromising the file

A few legitimate shortcuts to cut down the budget, without sacrificing the quality of your file:

Request your country-of-origin papers as soon as you complete your residency years. Don't wait until you have an exact filing date. The validity of the criminal record certificate is 3 to 6 months, so if you request it too early it'll expire and you'll have to request it again (paying the fee again, the apostille again, the shipping again). The birth certificate, on the other hand, doesn't expire the same way, and the apostille on the birth certificate doesn't either. Those you can process well in advance. Practical rule: birth certificate and its apostille as soon as you can, criminal record as close to filing as possible.

If your country issues a plurilingual birth certificate (Vienna Convention), ask for that version. The plurilingual comes in Spanish from the factory and is usually accepted without sworn translation. You save the 30 to 60 euros on the birth certificate translation without sacrificing anything. Several Latin American countries already issue the certificate in Spanish by default, so you have the advantage without asking for anything special.

Before paying a gestor, evaluate whether your case is standard. The Ministry of Justice Sede Electrónica isn't complicated to use. If you have continuous legal residency, a clean record, organized papers, and a bit of patience to read the procedure instructions, you can do it yourself in an afternoon. Paying 800 euros to a gestoría to upload your documents to a website doesn't make sense if your case has no rough edges. Save the professional spend for cases with real complications: residency with gaps, criminal record with incidents, marriage or filiation with unusual documents.

Watch the validity of the DELE A2. Since 2021, DELE diplomas are valid for life for nationality applications. Before that date, they expired after 4 years. If your certificate is from before 2021 and you're unsure whether it still counts, check the latest BOE update or ask the Instituto Cervantes directly before paying for another exam you may not need. No sense burning 124 euros on an exam you might not have to retake.

Once you have the budget straight, take a look at the complete requirements to make sure you aren't missing any paperwork before you start spending money on apostilles and translations.