Spanish Passport Application from Canada

Only Spanish citizens can apply for Spanish passports. Once your Spanish citizenship application is approved, you are required to take an oath of obedience to the Spanish constitution and laws, as well as swear your loyalty to the King of Spain, at the Civil Registry or before a notary. You can then apply for a Spanish passport.

A Spanish passport application is an in-person process. The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the issuance authority for Spanish passports. If you are in Spain at the time of your application, you can apply through an official passport office in Spain.

If you are living outside Spain (e.g. Canada in this context), you will need to visit your nearest Spanish embassy or consulate in your country of residence to apply for or renew your Spanish passport.

Page Contents

• Spanish Passport Application Overview
• Travel and Work Privileges with a Spanish Passport
• Types of Spanish Passports
• Requirements for Obtaining a Spanish Passport
• Spanish Passport Application Process From Canada
• Required Documents to Apply for a Spanish Passport
• Spanish Passport Application Processing Time and Fees
• Spain Passport Validity
• Spain Passport Renewal or Replacement
• How Can Total Law Help?
• Frequently Asked Questions

The Spanish passport ranks second in the world as per Passport Index 2024, allowing visa-free travel to 193 countries. With a Spanish passport, you can enter and exit Spain freely as well as enjoy the right to live, work and study in any of the EU Member States, EEA and Switzerland. You will be entitled to Spanish diplomatic protection while travelling abroad.

With a Spanish passport, you will enjoy access to public healthcare not only in Spain but across the EU. In addition, you will also be entitled to social security benefits, the right to vote, and the right to run for a public office in Spain.

Moreover, with a Spanish passport, you will not ever have to worry about your visa/permit expiry or renewal in Spain as citizenship is a right for life. You will continue to have the same rights and privileges as enjoyed by Spanish citizens by birth. You will also be able to pass on your Spanish nationality to your children and direct descendants.

Currently, there are four different types of Spanish passports. ‘Pasaporte Ordinario’ is the standard biometric Spanish passport issued to citizens in Spain for regular travel. It is a 32-page document with a burgundy cover, and it contains the passport holder’s photo, their signature, an electronic chip with their biometric information, and a unique passport number.

‘Pasaporte Colectivo’ or the collective passport is, on the other hand, is a limited passport issued to children and young adults under 21. It is valid for three months, and usually issued for events such as pilgrimages if there is a reciprocal agreement with the destination country.

‘Pasaporte Diplomático’ or the diplomatic passport is issued to government officials and diplomats, while ‘Pasaportes Oficiales Y De Servicio’ (i.e. official and service passports) are issued to individuals representing the Spanish government on official business.

All Spanish passports are public, personal, individual, and non-transferable documents. They certify the identity and nationality of Spanish citizens abroad and the same for non-resident Spaniards in the country.

Spanish passports issued 2015 onwards come with additional security measures. Citizens can also now link their emergency contact information with their Spanish passports.

To be eligible to apply for a Spanish passport, Canadians will first have to obtain Spanish citizenship through one of the existing pathways (i.e. by residency, descent, option or marriage).

Once you have successfully become a Spanish citizen, you will be entitled to apply for a standard Spanish passport, unless:

• You have been sentenced to penalties or security measures in Spain that either completely deprive you of, or limit, your freedom of residence or movement outside the country
• A judicial body does not allow you to leave Spain, or has prohibited the issuance of a Spanish passport to you, because you are an accused in a criminal proceeding
• The Spanish Ministry of the Interior has reasonably limited your freedom of movement outside Spain due to the states of alarm, exception and siege

In addition, if you are subject to parental authority or guardianship according to the Spanish law, issuing a Spanish passport to you will depend on obtaining express consent from your parent, guardian or custodian board’s express consent (or, failing the same, consent from a competent judicial body).

If you are a Spanish citizen residing in Canada, you will need to get in touch with the Spanish embassy in Ottawa, or consulates in Toronto or Montreal, to apply for a Spanish passport (or to renew or replace your existing passport). Your place of residence in Canada will determine where you need to apply.

Fr example, the Spanish Embassy in Ottawa has only the National Capital Region (Ottawa and Gatineau) under its consular jurisdiction. The Spanish Consulate General in Toronto covers the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario (except Ottawa), Saskatchewan, North West Territories, Yukon and Nunavut.

On the other hand, the provinces of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Québec (except Gatineau), and Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada come under the consular jurisdiction of the Spanish Consulate General in Montreal.

You will first be required to schedule an appointment online with your respective Spanish embassy/consulate general. Please consult their respective websites to check details such as email IDs for booking passport application/renewal appointments, working hours, telephone service hours, list of holidays, document pickup timings, etc.

On the date of your appointment, you will need to visit the consular section of the embassy/consulate in person to submit your documents and pay the application processing fees (if paid by cash or a credit/debit card). You can also pay the fees online.

If you are applying for a Spanish passport for the first time, you will have to submit the following documents:

• Your Spanish ID (i.e. the Documento Nacional De Identidad or DNI). It must be a valid document and not in a deteriorated condition fit for renewal
• Your recent colour photo, clearly showing the oval of your face, including eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth and chin. The photo measurements should be 36 x 22 mm, taken from the front with a plain white background, high resolution, and without wearing a hat or dark glasses. It should be a hi-res photo printed on good quality photo paper

You will not be required to provide a photo if you have obtained or renewed your Spanish ID card on the same day.

If the passport is for a minor who does not have a Spanish national identity document (as they are not required to obtain it), you will have to submit their literal birth certificate issued by the corresponding Civil Registry must be submitted in lieu of.

This certificate must have been issued no earlier than six months from the passport application date.

It usually takes up to one month to get a first-time or renewed biometric passport issued. Please take this time period into account if you are planning to travel abroad.

You will need to pay a fee of €‎30 for a fresh passport application, a renewal or a replacement. You may pay the fees during your appointment at the Spanish embassy/consulate via cash or a bank card, or make an online payment. Applicants enjoying the status of a large family may have this fee waived.

The validity of a standard Spanish passport depends on the age of the applicant at the time of their application.

According to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the validity will be up to two years for passports issued to children under 5. Individuals between five and 30 years of age will be issued passports with five years’ validity. If you are 30 or above, your Spanish passport will be valid for 10 years.

Additionally, in case of minors or incapacitated persons, the above-mentioned validity period may be further limited at a reasonable request from the individuals or institutions having parental authority or guardianship over the applicants.

Your existing passport must have less than 12 months’ validity or have run out of pages to be eligible for a renewal. A Spanish passport renewal process in Canada is the same as that of a fresh application.

If you are applying for a passport renewal or replacement (due to its damaged condition), you must submit your previous Spanish passport (for renewal) or the damaged passport (for replacement) so as to prevent a valid document from remaining in circulation. If your Spanish ID card was renewed within the last two years, you will not be required to submit a new photo for a passport renewal.

If your original passport has been lost or stolen, you will have to submit a police report or statement of loss. Please get in touch with the embassy/consulate as soon as possible in such a scenario for a replacement.

A replaced passport will have the same validity as the original. In the event of loss or theft, the first duplicate will have the same validity as the lost or stolen passport. If they get lost or stolen again, the validity of the subsequent duplicates may be limited to six months.