The New Exam for Becoming a Spanish Citizen

After October 29 of this year, if you want to apply for Spanish citizenship you will have to pass a test to prove you have basic knowledge of the Spanish language, culture, politics and society. Knowing this you may ask yourself, “Who has the authority to choose the questions on the exam?” Well, there’s no need to worry; the institution in charge in this case is the Instituto Cervantes.

And, what kinds of questions are included on the test, you may ask. There are 25 questions; 60% of them will be about topics related to government, legislation, and civil participation in Spain and 40% will be about history, culture and society. Below, we’ve included some questions as examples of what you may find on the test (of course they are not actual questions from the test, but they will give you an idea of what you might find there). By the way, if you want to know more about our history and culture, see our courses.

1. At what age is it obligatory to have an ID in Spain?
a) 12
b) 18
c) 14

2. What is the name of the program dedicated to daily news broadcasts on TVE?
a) Telediario
b) Telenoticiario
c) Informativo

3. Who is the Prime Minister of Spain?
a) Mariano Rajoy
b) Felipe VI
c) Jesús Posada

4. EU citizens and residents in Spain from some countries with reciprocity agreements can vote in these types of elections …
a) General
b) Municipal
c) Regional

5. What does Penélope Cruz do for a living? Is she a…
a) Musician
b) Singer
c) Actress

6. What is the most famous festival in Cadiz and the Canary Islands?
a) Carnival
b) Semana Santa (Holy Week)
c) Tomatina

And 19 more questions like these. Oh! And we almost forgot… the answers. Here they are:

1. B; 2. A;  3. B;  4. B;  5. C;  6. A