# Getting NIE number before leaving for spain.



## Sarajanexx (Mar 20, 2012)

Im moving to an urbanization in ohriella costa on the 10th of may, and i am hoping to find work. I know i can get a NIE number from playa flamenca when i get there but would rather have it sorted out before i leave to save time, I found some infomation about it online but was wondering if anyone had done this and could let me know what to do. 

Thanks!!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

I'm pretty sure that the latest info is that you have to apply in person to the local foreigners office in Spain. Its not a long job, you simply have to go there and they'll either do it there and then or give you an appointment. Take a look at this previous thread, it may help http://www.expatforum.com/expats/spain-expat-forum-expats-living-spain/106533-nie.html.

Also if you're looking to find work, you'll need a social security number, which you'll need to get from the local unemployment office (used to be called IMEN???), this can be time consuming and you'll need an NIE/residencia first.

All that said, work is very rare in Spain at the moment so make sure you have plenty of savings to carry you for a good few months - or more

Jo xxx


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## Sarajanexx (Mar 20, 2012)

I read on the website if you are from the uk you can work in spain for two years without a social security number? Is that right or is it essential for employment? Ive called around the places close to where my home in spain is and they have said they have work from june onwards so allthough i want work as quickly as possible because ive never been unemployed since i was 14 Im not too worried. I really want everything to be in order before I go because I hate being in a panic!! :O


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## chrisnation (Mar 2, 2009)

*Nie*

It can be done at a Consulate General in UK - slowly. 

Depending on what part of UK you live in, you have to physically go there [London/Edinbugh/Manchester] with the documents required and £8 IN CASH. The Consulate then forwards it to the Police Station most appropriate for your destination in Spain and it is processed there. It takes "between 1-3 months", to quote the C.General info.

All this info can be had on the NIE page of the Spainish Consulate General. Here it is 

Consulado de España en Londres

They also have a page of instructions on how to fill the in form EX-15, which is downloadable from the info page.

Bizarrely, they say "don't apply if you intend to live in Spain". However, they go on to say that you apply if "... as a foreign national, the reason for your request is economic, professional or social"

That seems to cover all bases, then. I think that stating your intention is to buy property in Spain _should_ have them turning your NIE round chop-chop but bureaucrats don't have their brains wired like normal people ...

Best of Luck



Sarajanexx said:


> Im moving to an urbanization in ohriella costa on the 10th of may, and i am hoping to find work. I know i can get a NIE number from playa flamenca when i get there but would rather have it sorted out before i leave to save time, I found some infomation about it online but was wondering if anyone had done this and could let me know what to do.
> 
> Thanks!!


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Sarajanexx said:


> I read on the website if you are from the uk you can work in spain for two years without a social security number? Is that right or is it essential for employment? Ive called around the places close to where my home in spain is and they have said they have work from june onwards so allthough i want work as quickly as possible because ive never been unemployed since i was 14 Im not too worried. I really want everything to be in order before I go because I hate being in a panic!! :O




What website would that be?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

chrisnation said:


> It can be done at a Consulate General in UK - slowly.
> 
> Depending on what part of UK you live in, you have to physically go there [London/Edinbugh/Manchester] with the documents required and £8 IN CASH. The Consulate then forwards it to the Police Station most appropriate for your destination in Spain and it is processed there. It takes "between 1-3 months", to quote the C.General info.
> 
> ...


another poster here tried to do this towards the end of last year & was told that you can only now apply from outside Spain in order to buy or inherit property but not live in Spain - which fits with the _ "don't apply if you intend to live in Spain"_ bit

so there's no point applying before coming in any case

also - if the OP is going to be living here she needs to register as resident once here & will get a NIE number then - pretty quickly - many areas are issuing numbers on the spot now - & you only have to pay once, too


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## Sarajanexx (Mar 20, 2012)

Ive been told if i do it while im there i go to playa flamenca town hall then go across the road and they stamp the form and take the money then take it back to the town hall and they will give me the number. Does that sound right?


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## chrisnation (Mar 2, 2009)

*NIE in UK*

What I don't understand is, if one _does_ want to buy property in Spain, _gets_ the NIE from the C.General, and_ buys_ the property, one has jumped through the required NIE hoops.

At some point _later_, one might decide to live in Spain. What then? I can't see the NIE being rescinded. Surely, one _then_ goes through the residency process.

Many people must follow just this route.




xabiachica said:


> another poster here tried to do this towards the end of last year & was told that you can only now apply from outside Spain in order to buy or inherit property but not live in Spain - which fits with the _ "don't apply if you intend to live in Spain"_ bit
> 
> so there's no point applying before coming in any case
> 
> also - if the OP is going to be living here she needs to register as resident once here & will get a NIE number then - pretty quickly - many areas are issuing numbers on the spot now - & you only have to pay once, too


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## Claire11 (Oct 17, 2011)

We got our NIE number in Fuengirola as that was the closest police station for us and it was no bother. You go in and get a form where you complete it and you get given a time to come back. You then come back the following day with the form completed and a copy of your passport. You hand the form and copy of passport to the person and they provide you with a ticket stating a time and a number. You then go back on that day with the ticket and wait for your number to be called out. Then the police stamp it etc...and give you another day to come back to collect your NIE number. We were there in total 4 times to the police station but we were never longer than 30 minutes at a time, depends on how busy it is. If you need any help let us know as we just did it 2 weeks ago so it's still familiar with us. xx


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## Guest (Apr 3, 2012)

Sorry - just caught up with this thread. I recommend you email your nearest consulate. Ours was very helpful indeed and it seems the whole transaction can be handled by post. However....they send the documentation to an address in Spain, not your address in the UK, and they point out that this can take some time. I don't know about you but I'm not keen on important documentation wending its way very slowly through the Spanish bureaucracy and then postal system. Give me a queue and a person in front of me every time.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

meetloaf said:


> Sorry - just caught up with this thread. I recommend you email your nearest consulate. Ours was very helpful indeed and it seems the whole transaction can be handled by post. However....they send the documentation to an address in Spain, not your address in the UK, and they point out that this can take some time. I don't know about you but I'm not keen on important documentation wending its way very slowly through the Spanish bureaucracy and then postal system. Give me a queue and a person in front of me every time.


exactly - so much easier & less painful to do it when you get here


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Sarajanexx said:


> I read on the website if you are from the uk you can work in spain for two years without a social security number? Is that right or is it essential for employment? Ive called around the places close to where my home in spain is and they have said they have work from june onwards so allthough i want work as quickly as possible because ive never been unemployed since i was 14 Im not too worried. I really want everything to be in order before I go because I hate being in a panic!! :O


When I eventually got a job, I had to have a social security number or they wouldnt employ me - as simple as that! Also without one and without paying into the spanish system you wont be covered by Spanish health care. So if you are lucky enough to be given a job, without a contract you wont be given a contract of employment or be eligible for state health care

Jo xxx


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## chrisnation (Mar 2, 2009)

*Queues*

I am so bad with queuing. I once spent A WEEK in a queue of one - me! in India going every day to the Police HQ of Himachal Pradesh State in Simla, waiting all day, being turned out at 5pm being told to come back next day ...

I can't help thinking of the fantastic waste of everybody's time - especially mine - as these people sailing desks push paper from one side of the room to the other and back - and for why? 

I'm beginning to think that Eu165 for a single NIE I saw on some website may be money well spent..







xabiachica said:


> exactly - so much easier & less painful to do it when you get here


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## Romina (Dec 3, 2012)

Hi Everyone!!! 
I was reading the thread about the NIE number, when and how to get it and if it is worth it to obtain it before going to Spain. The NIE number is intended for tax and identification purposes, it will never due, that means you only request it once, if later you decide to relocate to Spain it will also be linked to your Residency permit. The NIE number is also needed to register in the National Health Service or Seguridad Social, for your GP (medical doctor). If you will be relocated with children, they will be needing it too.

The NIE Application process is not as complicated as the Residency Permit one, but the Spanish bureaucracy and the lack of organization in the Administration can make things complicated and even exhausting. You will need to go to the National Police Station to request for an appointment to apply for the NIE, which will usually be given for the coming week (very often you will have to make queues) once you are there, hoping all presented documentation is enough ( Spanish are well known for their famous " FALTA UNO") you will be given another appointment to collect it. 

(SNIP)


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## Whiteen (Mar 30, 2013)

Sarajanexx said:


> Im moving to an urbanization in ohriella costa on the 10th of may, and i am hoping to find work. I know i can get a NIE number from playa flamenca when i get there but would rather have it sorted out before i leave to save time, I found some infomation about it online but was wondering if anyone had done this and could let me know what to do.
> 
> Thanks!!


Yes do it before you go. I think you can do it in London and Manchester but I did it in Edinburgh at the Spanish consulate. You need to make an appointment and bring photocopy of passport and sae and the fee is about 7.50. You can download the forms online with instructions for filling out. If you do it in Spain they only take ,I think 70 per day and you can not make an appt you have to queue and wait.
the woman in the consulate office in Edinburgh, Adela is delightful, friendly and helpful.


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## samthemainman (Aug 15, 2012)

I'm sure people have had their horror stories. Some places make you book appointments and come back at different times but the majority do it on the spot now - for both the NIE and combined NIE and EU Citizen Resident Registration.

If you get your paperwork and photocopies sorted beforehand, queue early, you can sometimes get the whole lot done in 30 mins. Registering as resident involves more schlepping around getting proof of income or funds and healthcare, but NIE only is a doddle.

Brave it and good luck!!


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