HeConsulate of Spain in Havana Starting in February, it will expand the capacity of attention for Cubans who opt for Spanish nationality through the Democratic Memory Law (LMD), better known asGrandchildren Law, as confirmed by the newspaperSpain Exterior.
The strategy is to allocate more human and material resources to expedite the processing of nationality applications submitted.
To face such a challengeThey will open a new location that will have four offices to handle the different phases of the process.
In addition, the number of workers engaged in this task will be increased, as reported during a meeting with the Council of Spanish Residents (CRE) of Cuba held on January 18 and reported by the aforementioned media.
David Casarejos, president of the Civil Rights and Participation Commission of the Council of Spaniards Abroad, listed the current problems faced by the Spanish Consulate in Havana with the nationality process through the LMD.
Casarejos pointed out that the problems with the processingThey come in part due to the difficulties that the Consulate has in accessing the information, in addition to the fact that entering the data manually into the database could not be done correctly.
On the other hand, he points out that another very relevant and long-awaited news has been that The creation of the new Consulate General of Spain in Camagüey has already been approved.
The location where it will be located has already been chosen and all that remains is the opening procedures, although these could take several months.
The new Consulate could be crucial if the Spanish Governmentdecides to extend the validity of the Democratic Memory Law beyond its current expiration date, which is October 2024.
The provisions of the LMD regarding access to nationality for descendants of emigrants are valid for only two years from its entry into force, which was on October 21, 2022. This means that on October 21 of this year it will end that option of access to citizenship, althoughThe Government of Pedro Sánchez could extend it for one more year, until October 21, 2025.
If the Grandchildren Law were extended,The opening of the Camagüey consulate would benefit many descendants of Spaniards residing in the central and eastern area of the country.
Complaints about problems in the processing of nationality applications have been a constant among users of the Spanish Consulate in Havana since the law came into force.
Cubans complain that they cannot present documentation at the honorary vice consulates that exist in Santa Clara, Camagüey and Santiago de Cuba, something that would make things much easier.
Other complaints are related to the fact that the Spanish Residents Council “is made up of older people who do not use social networks.”
"In 2025 there will be CRE elections and in Cuba you need to ensure that the lists have people who can adapt and inform," Casarejos said.
Other problems refer to the slowness of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) of Cuba when it comes to legalizing documents, the delay of which is even nine months.
However, in October 2023 - one year after the law came into force - a report fromEuropa Press He reported that Cubans have been the ones who have received the most Spanish nationality since the approval of the Democratic Memory Law (LMD).
Until the end of August last year, the Consulate General of Spain in Havana had been the one that had approved the most nationalities, withnearly 15,000 endorsed applications, a figure well above the Consulate of Mexico City, which followed in second place, with more than 8,500.
Popularly known as the Nietos Law, the Democratic Memory Law opened the possibility for more descendants of Spaniards to choose to take advantage of Spanish nationality.
One of the sections that has increased the number of applicants is that it includes the adult sons and daughters of those Spaniards whose nationality was recognized within the framework of the Historical Memory Law of 2007.
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