Moroccans, Venezuelans, and Colombians Lead Nationalisations in Alicante

In Alicante, for the second consecutive year, there have been over 10,000 acquisitions of Spanish nationality. The province concluded 2024 with 10,042 such processes, positioning itself as the fourth territory with the highest number, following Valencia (14,232), Madrid (48,288), and Barcelona (52,618).

In recent years, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of Spanish nationalities granted, rising from 7,014 in 2022 to over 10,000 recorded in both 2023 and 2024, according to data from the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE).

Among the foreigners who have most requested nationality, Africans and South Americans account for about seven out of ten applications in 2024. Moroccans represent the largest group acquiring nationality, with 2,062 of the 2,707 cases from Africa. Algerians also stand out, with 443 applications. Among Moroccans, 1,435 were born in Spain but did not have nationality, while 623 were born in their home country.

Regarding South America, Colombia is the leading nationality in terms of obtaining citizenship, with 1,568 people, followed by Venezuela with 1,187, and Ecuador and Argentina with 507 and 491 citizens respectively, according to INE data. The case of Colombians and Venezuelans differs from Moroccans, as most citizens acquiring nationality were born in their respective countries.

In the European Union, excluding Spain, a total of 624 people acquired nationality, with the largest groups being from Romania with 243. Outside the EU, there were 866 cases, half of which were Russians and 263 Ukrainians.

In Asia, the majority group consists of nationals from Pakistan, with 240 successful applications, followed by 108 from India. Among the nationalities with fewer cases are one person from Oceania, an Irish, a Norwegian, a Swiss, and a Dane.

The INE statistics also filter the number of Spanish nationality acquisitions by age groups. Children aged 0 to 9 were the largest segment, with over 2,300 cases of acquiring Spanish citizenship. Following them are individuals aged 30 to 44, with over 900 processes in each group.