Minimum height requirement to join Spain's Armed Forces is scrapped

Spain has scrapped the minimum height limit necessary to join the country’s Armed Forces. The move comes just a few months after the rule was also scrapped for the National Police.

The order has been in force since 2019 and established height limits of 1.55 metres for women and 1.60 metres for men, while anyone taller than 2.03 metres was not allowed to join.

But the Ministry of Defence announced this Thursday, April 13, that the rule would be eliminated for anybody wanting to joining the Armed Forces and Guardia Civil.

The height limits however will still be in place for both men and women "when this is an essential and determining requirement for occupying posts in certain units".

It comes as the Ministry of Defence aimed to provide equal opportunities to everyone and to encourage people wanting to join the Armed Forces.

The Interior Ministry announced last October it would eliminate the minimum height requirement to join the National Police, which until now was set at 1.65 metres for men and 1.60 metres for women.