Spain Activates Online System in Havana for Applying for Nationality

The Spanish Consulate in Havana launched on July 31st the new online system for receiving appointment requests for those interested in applying for Spanish citizenship through the Democratic Memory Law.

In a bulletin on its official website, the consulate announced the implementation of the new digital method and the definitive closure of the previous system through which such requests were submitted since the law was enacted in October 2022.

The new form can be accessed through the website itself. It allows for a faster process and the virtual submission of fewer documents than the previous method. According to what has been explained on social media, where questions about its operation are also beginning to be posted and difficulties with the newly implemented system are being reported.

Among other differences with the previous mechanism, the new one allows multiple applications to be submitted using the same email address and generates a receipt with an electronic signature (CSV). A unique code that identifies the electronic document and allows its authenticity to be verified.

This receipt is received instantly by the user once their application is submitted and can also be downloaded in PDF format from the platform itself upon completion of the process.

The presentation note for the new method explains that “appointment requests submitted and validated through this new online platform. Within the validity period of the Democratic Memory Law, will allow interested parties to appear in person before this Consulate General to submit their application on a date that may be later than October 22nd, 2025.”

This provides peace of mind to applicants for Spanish citizenship who were unsure of what would happen to their cases if they had not obtained an appointment before the official end of the law.

The consular publication also clarifies that credentials (username and password for booking an appointment) will continue to be received in the chronological order of the appointment request in both systems, and that those who submitted their request through the previous system should not repeat their request on the new platform.

Two Months of Uncertainty

Many Cubans have been waiting more than two months for this new system to become operational. Which promises to streamline a process that until now has been a long and winding road. Many people complain of having to wait long periods for their credentials or even of having experienced glitches in the previous system due to missed application deadlines.

The consulate announced, starting in November 2024, through an instruction published in the Official State Gazette (BOE). The migration to online systems that would allow “Consular Offices, the main recipients of documentation, to more expedite the management and guarantee of optional nationality requests.”

On May 21st, it was announced that the new system, already in operation in other consulates such as the one in Miami, would be enabled for Cuba and that on June 23rd, all users of the previous system would be eliminated. Including those who had already received their credentials but had not booked an appointment.

In mid-July, in response to complaints and concerns from interested parties, the consulate explained that the new platform was being coordinated from Spain and would be operational when its proper functioning could be guaranteed. In the meantime, it stated at the time, people could continue submitting their applications through the previous system, even if it was not generating an immediate receipt.

Finally, the implementation of the new mechanism was delayed until now, which, combined with other irregularities and questions, has prompted a petition on Change.org for “the effective expansion and extension of Law 20/2022 on Democratic Memory. Along with the urgent addressing of recent administrative failures that hinder its practical implementation.”

José Miguel Ávila Pérez
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