Your passport can mean the difference between travelling freely to pretty much any country in the world or being restricted by red tape and visa requirements. In some cases, there may even be places you can’t visit because of the passport you carry.
For this reason, a lot of people will look to get a second passport to make travelling easier. After all, who doesn’t want to get up and leave for the airport on a whim?
But while citizenship in Andorra means visa-free travel to 168 countries, you’re about to find out why it’s probably not the silver bullet you’re looking for.
Let’s see what it takes to get citizenship in Andorra. We’ll look at the pros and cons of an Andorran passport, the common paths to acquiring one, and more.
How Hard Is It to Get Citizenship in Andorra?
Getting Andorran citizenship is a doable but extremely lengthy process. You can’t simply buy your way into the country. Andorra doesn’t have a ‘citizenship by investment’ programme like Malta, Montenegro, Portugal, and many other countries.
Essentially, you have to really want it, because getting citizenship here takes time. And even then, depending on your personal circumstances, it may not be the right option for you.
Drawbacks and Advantages of an Andorran Passport
An important consideration is that Andorra does not generally permit dual nationality.
The nationality process includes evidence of losing existing nationality. A favourable conditional decision is not itself an unconditional passport grant; the law sets deadlines, evidence requirements and limited extensions. Consider what renunciation means for your own rights before applying.
The decision is personal and depends on your long-term plans. Andorran citizenship also brings benefits worth considering.
Along with the freedom to travel visa-free to 168 countries around the globe, your children will automatically be eligible for an Andorran citizenship as well.
Depending on where you’re from, giving your kids the gift of location freedom, which typically brings with it better career prospects, I’m sure you’ll agree that this is a really big advantage.
3 Ways to Get Citizenship in Andorra
If you’re wondering how hard it is to get Citizenship in Andorra, there are essentially paths:
- The general naturalisation route requires 20 years of principal and permanent residence, which may include interruptions, with the last five years meeting the continuous-residence condition.
- Qualify through the schooling route: the relevant ten-year residence history and schooling conditions must be met. Birth in Andorra is not a universal requirement for that route.
- The marriage route requires at least five years of the relevant residence, before or after the marriage, proof of integration and continuing cohabitation until the decision. It is not an automatic passport after three years.
For all of the above, a clean criminal record is a prerequisite. Without one, you may as well look elsewhere immediately.
Integration and documentary requirements depend on the route. Check the current nationality procedure, rather than assuming an interview alone replaces language evidence.
The 2026 reform requires an official B1 Catalan certificate, or recognised equivalent, for applicants under 70. The earlier suggestion of an English alternative should not be relied on. Law 8/2026.
Like most countries, Andorra’s looking for new citizens to be ambassadors—this isn’t a cash grab.
How Does Citizenship by Birth Work?
Birth in Andorra does not create an unconditional right to keep Andorran nationality. There are several statutory routes. For a child of foreign parents, article 6 links the position to a parent’s principal and permanent residence, including a ten-year condition; other family circumstances can be treated differently.
Where article 6 grants nationality provisionally, it must be confirmed under the residence and deadline conditions. Confirmation can happen before adulthood once the requirements are met, or within the year after majority; the 2026 law provides limited justified extensions in specified cases. It is not simply a passport that automatically becomes permanent at eighteen.
For a child born abroad, an Andorran parent’s own birthplace and family history can matter. The 2026 reform extends the routes through certain Andorran grandparents and residence histories. There is no general requirement that every such child first live in Andorra for five years.
What About Children of Naturalised Citizens?
Given how lengthy the Andorran citizenship process is, you’ll be happy to know that you can apply for your children’s citizenship in tandem with your own.
An adult child must qualify under a route that applies to their own circumstances. Being single and having five years’ residence is not a universal entitlement. The schooling route, for example, has specific residence and school-history requirements. Check articles 2,6,9–12 of the 2026 reform with the nationality service.
This is also the one area where dual citizenship is acceptable, albeit temporarily. The Andorran government will grant the child citizenship until such time that you (or your child once they turn eighteen) can provide proof that they’ve renounced their country of origin’s citizenship.
Andorran Citizenship: Is It Worth It?
Naturalisation is a long-term commitment, with residence and nationality requirements to consider.
The general route uses a 20-year residence history with a specific final-five-year condition. Family, schooling and other statutory routes have different requirements.
However, if you’re comfortable breaking ties with your country of origin there are some distinct advantages to making Andorra your home forever.