Uruguay Citizenship by Descent: Children and Grandchildren of Uruguayans

Many descendants of Uruguayans living in the United States, Argentina, Brazil or Spain don’t realize they can become Uruguayan without moving to Uruguay or waiting years. Uruguay citizenship by descent passes to children and, since 2015, to grandchildren. This guide explains who qualifies, the requirements and the process for each case.

Who qualifies for Uruguayan citizenship by descent?

Situation	Eligible?	Legal basis
Child of a Uruguayan father or mother (natural citizen) born abroad	Yes	Art. 74 of the Constitution and Law 16.021
Grandchild of a grandparent born in Uruguay	Yes, if their father or mother is or registers as a natural citizen	Law 19.362 (2015)
Child of a legal (naturalized) citizen born outside Uruguay	Not through this route	Only natural citizens pass on nationality
Great-grandchild of Uruguayans	Depends on their parents’ status	See below

What you obtain is natural citizenship, which includes Uruguayan nationality. It is different from the legal citizenship foreigners obtain through residence.

Children of Uruguayans born abroad

Children of a Uruguayan father or mother are Uruguayan nationals wherever they were born. For the Uruguayan State to recognize them, the process is to register the foreign birth certificate:

• From abroad: at the Uruguayan consulate for your place of residence.
• In Uruguay: at the General Directorate of Civil Registry, in the section that registers foreign birth certificates.

Once registered, the person can apply for a Uruguayan ID card and passport. See registration of foreign certificates in Uruguay.

Uruguayan citizenship for grandchildren (Law 19.362)

Law 19.362 of 2015 extended natural citizenship to grandchildren of people born in Uruguay, provided the link runs through a father or mother who is a Uruguayan natural citizen. In practice:

1. The Uruguayan grandparent must have been born in Uruguay, proven with their Uruguayan birth certificate.
2. The father or mother, if born abroad and not yet registered as Uruguayan, must first register their own birth certificate.
3. The grandchild then registers their birth certificate with the Civil Registry (or at a consulate).
4. ID card and passport. With the registered certificate, the grandchild applies for a Uruguayan ID card at the National Civil Identification Office and then for a passport.

There is no age limit: an adult grandchild can start the process at any time.

Uruguay citizenship by descent requirements

Children of Uruguayans

• Foreign birth certificate, apostilled or legalized and, if not in Spanish, translated by a certified public translator.
• Documents proving the Uruguayan parent’s status (Uruguayan birth certificate or ID card).

Grandchildren of Uruguayans

• The grandchild’s birth certificate, apostilled and translated, to be registered with the Civil Registry.
• The parent’s birth certificate: if born abroad, apostilled and translated (or their existing Uruguayan registration).
• The grandparent’s Uruguayan birth certificate, issued within the last 30 days.

Requirements may vary by consulate or office. Check the current list before you start.

After registration: ID card, passport and voting

• ID card: applied for at the National Civil Identification Office with the registered certificate.
• Uruguayan passport: with the ID card you can apply for a Uruguayan passport, in Uruguay or at a consulate. As a natural citizen, your passport shows Uruguayan nationality.
• Voter card and voting: to exercise citizenship rights such as voting, the Constitution requires settling in the country and registering in the Civic Registry with the Electoral Court.

Citizenship by descent vs. legal citizenship

	By descent (natural)	Legal citizenship
For whom	Children and grandchildren of Uruguayans	Foreigners living in Uruguay
Years of residence	None	3 or 5 years
Uruguayan nationality	Yes	No, original nationality kept
Where	Civil Registry or consulate	Electoral Court
Can be lost	No	Yes, by later naturalization elsewhere

If you have no Uruguayan parents or grandparents, the route is legal citizenship for foreigners. Either way you can keep your other nationality: see Uruguay dual citizenship.

Can great-grandchildren of Uruguayans qualify?

Law 19.362 refers to grandchildren. For great-grandchildren, eligibility depends on whether their father or mother was first recognized as a Uruguayan natural citizen: if so, the great-grandchild becomes the child of a Uruguayan. This needs to be assessed with the documents of the whole family line.

Common mistakes

• Grandparent’s certificate too old: it must have been issued within the last 30 days.
• Details that don’t match across generations (names, surnames, dates, places).
• Foreign documents without an apostille or certified translation.
• Trying to register the grandchild before the foreign-born parent.

FAQ

Ready to start?

At GlobalTax we review the documents for your whole family line, handle apostilles, translations and registrations, and support you through to your ID card and passport. Contact us.