Can Spain grant nationality to citizens of Gibraltar?

Last Monday, Minister Albares appeared before the Congressional Foreign Affairs Committee, declaring the existence of substantive progress in the negotiations on the future relationship with Gibraltar. After so many years of theatrical negotiations, how could there be no progress and we continue wasting time? Or is this what is intended: kick the can down the road and continue as we are, which isn't so bad for some?

It is said that there is a fair amount of understanding on environmental and tax issues. Allow me to doubt it. Fiscal harmonization is flatly denied from Convent Place.

And collaboration on the preservation of the common environment has always been nil due to the lack of common will, which prioritizes other issues. The very recent and more than pertinent criminal complaint from the Algeciras District Prosecutor's Office regarding landfills on the eastern face of the Rock demonstrates just the opposite.

I conclude. Any obstruction of the agreement and the removal of the Fence comes only from London and Gibraltar. It's obvious, whether for military, economic, or pure nationalist reasons. Or all at once.

It does seem certain that progress has only been made regarding free border passage. First, through the de facto measures currently allowed, in clear violation of Schengen regulations. In the future, with other measures to come, allowing free movement in a manner less crude and flagrantly illegal than the current one.

And among these surprise measures to improve the lives of non-EU Gibraltarians, there is one that is not new, that hasn't been widely discussed, that was already in place at the time, and that, I dare to guess, has been put back on the table.

Thus, the Franco government, when deciding to close the border fence in 1969, approved through Decree Law 13/1969 the granting of facilities to civilian residents in Gibraltar. Among them, and as a principal measure, was the granting of Spanish nationality to Gibraltarians who requested it, without having to renounce their British nationality. Article 1 of this law stipulated that all persons born in Gibraltar and residing there would be considered equivalent to those born in Spanish territory, for the purposes of the provisions of Article 18, paragraph 1, of the Civil Code. Article 3 extended this right to their relatives.

It is true that, at the time, this decree was understood as an attempt to undermine the sovereignty and identity of the Llanitos, and it was not accepted for reasons of nationalist identity, and due to the obvious futility of the measure with a closed Verja. Only a few accepted the Spanish nationality card. Today they are fortunate.

But it is undeniable that such a decision, applied today, would be a real advantage for Gibraltarians, who would once again enjoy the benefits of being a member of the EU, without renouncing their British identity. That would certainly be a step forward for them, with free border crossings as EU members.

And, of course, the measure would be approached with respect, as a generous invitation without impositions, and always with the utmost respect for the respective governments.

Likewise, this measure would serve as a true rapprochement with Spain, as a legal reflection of the reality of fusion, coexistence, and integration that characterizes the Gibraltarians' unique personality, which has always known how to take the best from each society. It would emphasize that its purpose is humane, without touching the territorial level.

And it would only regulate and create civil rights for those who are entitled to them, due to the historical, cultural, and logically geographical connection between the Rock and Campo de Gibraltar, and for those who share families, neighborhoods, languages, businesses, history, present coexistence, and a common future destiny.

And because if Gibraltar is Spanish, Spanish nationality can only be granted to those born there. Pure ius sanguini and ius soli, as Fernando Bethancourt explained to me in Roman Law. At the same time, it would dismantle an old mantra from the political discourse of Gibraltar's various governments: that Spain seeks to impose its desire for sovereignty over the will of the people of Gibraltar. This measure demonstrates the opposite, focusing on people rather than policies, presenting itself as an individual right that does not require renouncing either ideologies or nationalities.

I know that some more radical ones would dislike the measure because of its political repercussions; but it's not confrontational; it's seduction, because being Spanish, and therefore part of the EU (as well as British), would make life easier for many. And in the face of stagnation and old, useless policies that have only benefited a few, it is time to be bold and imaginative, reconfiguring the relationship with Gibraltar in the 21st century, based more on people and less on flags.

Traducción del artículo Conceder la nacionalidad española a los gibraltareños publicado por Europa Sur el 9 de mayo de 2025.