Last Updated on April 18, 2026 by Bruno Bianchi
What Does Gananciales or Separación de Bienes Mean?
We are starting the Spanish golden visa process and the attorney is questioning if our marriage is “en gananciales” o “separación de bienes”
Does anyone understand the US equivalents for this? Does it depend state by state, like if it’s a community property state?
Planning your move to Spain?
Get the free step-by-step roadmap used by 10,000+ expats — covering visas, budget, housing, and the mistakes to avoid.
Start the Moving to Spain Hub →Gananciales vs Separación de Bienes Explained
These are the answers of some Facebook group members:
“I think it may just be asking if you own your assets jointly or as separate individuals.”
“Gananciales is when both your assets are joint. Separación de bienes means your assets gained before marriage will return to each one of you if you separate. Did my best to explain this in English even though it’s my language but I’m just not familiar with those terms in English.”
“Every attorney thinks something different is the way things have to be done and many are incorrect or misinformed. Just provide a current marriage certificate, Apostilled by the state, and translated. It’s that simple. And the main person should get their visa or residence permit as the spouse is the one proving the connection with the marriage certificate. We had to get an update marriage certificate. They don’t say anywhere you can’t use your original but it does need to be under 3 months according to the UGE-CE.”
Not sure which city is right for you?
Compare cost of living, weather, expat community size, and lifestyle across 13 Spanish cities in our free guide.
Explore Cities →“We had to show a copy of our marriage certificate which we obtained in San Francisco and a copy of our previous divorce decrees. This was for the NLV through the SF consulate.”
Planning your move to Spain? Check out our complete Moving to Spain guide, learn about the Non-Lucrative Visa, explore the cost of living in Spain, and discover your Digital Nomad Visa options.
Get your free step-by-step Spain move plan
10 emails over 2 weeks covering visas, budget, housing & the mistakes to avoid.
Join 10,000+ expats who used this roadmap.
100% free · No credit card · Unsubscribe anytime
