# How do I get my NIE number?



## .JD (Aug 15, 2012)

Hello people,

We have now moved and settled into Las Delicias, the kids are in school and I have an office in Malaga, everything is going fantastically.

I now need to sort our NIE number so we can buy a car, have broadband installed and open a Spanish bank account. We have spoken to a few people about this and apparently the rules keep changing. 

What exactly do we need to do in order to get this sorted?

As usual, any help would be greatly appreciated 

JD


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

You go to your local police station. It seems that different police stations have different procedures but at ours we went before 09.00 and numbered tickets were given out - I think the first fifty people in the queue got tickets.
We had already downloaded the application form from this site - see Sticky- with all the documentation and photos needed.
The whole process was painless and took about an hour including waiting time.

I gather that now you have to produce proof of health insurance and income, which I believe must be at least around £6k p.a. per person in the family. 

Xavia knows all about it...


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

I had to go to Malaga police station when we lived in AldT. Maybe ask your agent where the nearest foreigners office is to you????

Jo xxx


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

As you are living here as residents, you should not apply for an NIE but apply for a 'residencia' (green A4 sheet or maybe a card sized version depending where you are).

That is, apply to be put on the list of foreigners. This will also generate the NIE but, more importantly, will get you the residencia all in one go.


As said previously, you will need proof of income and proof of health care for all the family - they will each, individually, need residencias.


Whilst some National police stations have an extranjaria office in them, this is not always the case. You need to find the foreigners office to apply for the residencia/NIE


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> As you are living here as residents, you should not apply for an NIE but apply for a 'residencia' (green A4 sheet or maybe a card sized version depending where you are).
> 
> That is, apply to be put on the list of foreigners. This will also generate the NIE but, more importantly, will get you the residencia all in one go.
> 
> ...


what he said 

there's a link on the FAQ s thread where you should be able to find the nearest extranjería


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

*NIE Pain*

My girlfriend and I just moved to Barcelona, she is British and I am Canadian. I have a 1 year travel/work visa. It's called the youth mobility visa and I can stay here for a year, the purpose is to travel but I can work to support myself.

I went to the office de extranjeros to get my NIE card. I need this to open a bank account so I can find/pay for an apartment, get a monthly cell phone plan, rent bici's, etc. My process was very easy, I only needed to show my visa and I was told to come back in 9 days to pick up the card.

However, my girlfriend was not able to get an NIE card. They told her she needed to have proof of work or study. We tried to explain she was doing neither. We have proof of income to support ourselves for the year but they didn't want to see it. They said without a work contract or enrolment for study, they would not give her a card.

I think being British the process was going to be easier for her than for me. Anyone else have this problem?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

joshjadavies said:


> My girlfriend and I just moved to Barcelona, she is British and I am Canadian. I have a 1 year travel/work visa. It's called the youth mobility visa and I can stay here for a year, the purpose is to travel but I can work to support myself.
> 
> I went to the office de extranjeros to get my NIE card. I need this to open a bank account so I can find/pay for an apartment, get a monthly cell phone plan, rent bici's, etc. My process was very easy, I only needed to show my visa and I was told to come back in 9 days to pick up the card.
> 
> ...



she is actually applying for a resident registration certificate, yes?

they will ask her for proof of income & healthcare provision - without those things she can't register as resident - I imagine you already had to do that to get your visa so that's why it was more straightforward


they shouldn't be asking to see proof of work - just income - can she prove sufficient income in her own right? I suspect that might be the issue - & she will also need either private healthcare provision or have an S1 form from the UK if she qualifies for one


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Depending on where the OP lives, I think he may also need to be registered on the Padron to buy a car.
My husband bought a new car earlier this year, and the garage could not register the car at the local town hall without a Padron which was less than 3 months old, so he had to ask for his not yet expired Padron to be updated.
When I bought my new car last year, I had to provide a full copy of the house deeds, as proof we owned it, and the NIE and Padron. This may vary depending on where people live in Spain.


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> she is actually applying for a resident registration certificate, yes?
> 
> they will ask her for proof of income & healthcare provision - without those things she can't register as resident - I imagine you already had to do that to get your visa so that's why it was more straightforward
> 
> ...


My spanish needs improvement but I understood the lady asking my girlfriend for proof of work or study. We also asked for the NIE card and looks like she really needs the residential certificate. 

We'll go back with printed financial records proving she can support herself and health care info and ask for the proper form. Hopefully our friend who can speak spanish can come with us as well as looks like my broken spanish is not going to cut it.

Thanks


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

joshjadavies said:


> My spanish needs improvement but I understood the lady asking my girlfriend for proof of work or study. We also asked for the NIE card and looks like she really needs the residential certificate.
> 
> We'll go back with printed financial records proving she can support herself and health care info and ask for the proper form. Hopefully our friend who can speak spanish can come with us as well as looks like my broken spanish is not going to cut it.
> 
> Thanks


maybe there was some confusion because she was with you & your requirements are different :confused2:

download form EX18 from our FAQs thread above & get her to fill that in - that's the form she needs & she needs her passport & a photocopy

they might want passport sized photos (shouldn't, but might) so take those & also your rental contract & a photocopy


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## stevec2x (Mar 24, 2012)

.JD said:


> Hello people,
> 
> We have now moved and settled into Las Delicias, the kids are in school and I have an office in Malaga, everything is going fantastically.
> 
> ...


Hi

fyi - we moved to Spain (Orihuela Costa) in May and opened a bank account after a few days. Although it was a bit confusing, we were able to do it with just a passport - so if you're still waiting for NIE I suggest you just walk into a bank and see what happens! Once we had an account it was simple to get broadband installed.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

stevec2x said:


> Hi
> 
> fyi - we moved to Spain (Orihuela Costa) in May and opened a bank account after a few days. Although it was a bit confusing, we were able to do it with just a passport - so if you're still waiting for NIE I suggest you just walk into a bank and see what happens! Once we had an account it was simple to get broadband installed.



We opened bank accounts before we got our NIE. Just had to show passport and proff of address in Spain.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

You can easily open a non residents bank account, as long as you change it once you have a residencia

Jo xxx


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## caseyprince (Oct 7, 2012)

snikpoh said:


> As you are living here as residents, you should not apply for an NIE but apply for a 'residencia' (green A4 sheet or maybe a card sized version depending where you are).
> 
> That is, apply to be put on the list of foreigners. This will also generate the NIE but, more importantly, will get you the residencia all in one go.
> 
> ...


Hi there-
We would need an NIE number as quickly as possible to set up broadband and buy a car. Do you think it makes sense to apply for the NIE first to get the required number and then the residencia?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

caseyprince said:


> Hi there-
> We would need an NIE number as quickly as possible to set up broadband and buy a car. Do you think it makes sense to apply for the NIE first to get the required number and then the residencia?


it takes no longer to get a resident registration cert than it does to get a non-resident NIE - so as long as you fulfil the income & healthcare requirements you might as well register as resident straight away - you just fill in a different form but take it to the same office - the NIE is issued at the same time

you need the EX15 for just the NIE & the EX18 for the res reg cert - both can be downloaded from our FAQs thread

if you don't fulfil the rquirements there's not much point buying a car or getting a broadband contract I suppose


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> it takes no longer to get a resident registration cert than it does to get a non-resident NIE - so as long as you fulfil the income & healthcare requirements you might as well register as resident straight away - you just fill in a different form but take it to the same office - the NIE is issued at the same time
> 
> you need the EX15 for just the NIE & the EX18 for the res reg cert - both can be downloaded from our FAQs thread
> 
> if you don't fulfil the rquirements there's not much point buying a car or getting a broadband contract I suppose


Another question with the NIE cards, I am a non EU citizen and my NIE expires in 3 months. What do I do after the 3 months?


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

joshjadavies said:


> Another question with the NIE cards, I am a non EU citizen and my NIE expires in 3 months. What do I do after the 3 months?


 You need to get a residencia. You'll need proof of income and healthcare cover to do that

Jo xxx


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

jojo said:


> You need to get a residencia. You'll need proof of income and healthcare cover to do that
> 
> Jo xxx


I'm confused, I was given the 1 year youth mobility visa to come to Spain. Once I was here I needed an NIE card which expires in 90 days. Now I have to apply for a residency card for which I need to prove finances and health care but I did all that to get the 1 year visa. What am I missing?

Thank you


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

joshjadavies said:


> I'm confused, I was given the 1 year youth mobility visa to come to Spain. Once I was here I needed an NIE card which expires in 90 days. Now I have to apply for a residency card for which I need to prove finances and health care but I did all that to get the 1 year visa. What am I missing?
> 
> Thank you



You're missing that its Spain lol!! You maybe should have asked for the residencia when you first applied for your NIE??? Altho its possible as you have a year visa that you'll be expected to just keep renewing the NIE every three months???

Jo xxx


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

jojo said:


> You're missing that its Spain lol!! You maybe should have asked for the residencia when you first applied for your NIE??? Altho its possible as you have a year visa that you'll be expected to just keep renewing the NIE every three months???
> 
> Jo xxx


Ahhhhhhhhh so confusing


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

joshjadavies said:


> Ahhhhhhhhh so confusing


the NIE number itself won't run out or change - it's the certificate which will expire

I think you need to get back to the extranjería & ask them - although I suspect that the visa in your passport is sufficient


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

xabiachica said:


> the NIE number itself won't run out or change - it's the certificate which will expire
> 
> I think you need to get back to the extranjería & ask them - although I suspect that the visa in your passport is sufficient


For joshjadavies;

Just thinking abut this (somewhat obliquely), why do anything? 


For caseyprince;

You have an NIE number which will never change - quote this when getting ADSL (a form of broadband).

As for buying a car, quote the NIE but you will probably need padron as well.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> Just thinking abut this (somewhat obliquely), why do anything?
> 
> You have an NIE number which will never change - quote this when getting ADSL (a form of broadband).
> 
> As for buying a car, quote the NIE but you will probably need padron as well.


that's what I was thinking tbh -he has the visa in his passport which proves he has the right to be here - & what is he ever going to need to actually show the NIE cert for in any case?


they have been letting people register on the padrón here without a resident cert for the past couple of months (though who knows how long that will last?)


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> that's what I was thinking tbh -he has the visa in his passport which proves he has the right to be here - & what is he ever going to need to actually show the NIE cert for in any case?
> 
> they have been letting people register on the padrón here without a resident cert for the past couple of months (though who knows how long that will last?)


I needed the NIE to get an apt, a monthly Mobil plan, pay electricity, open a bank account. Now that I've done all that I'm pretty much set. However I want to stay legit as my girlfriend is British and is attempting to get her residencia card. After 1 year we are going to apply as pareja de hecho. Just want to make sure I'm doing things correctly so I don't run into problems a year from now. 

Although maybe we could apply for pareja de hecho as soon as she gets her residencia card since we have proof of living together in Canada.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

joshjadavies said:


> I needed the NIE to get an apt, a monthly Mobil plan, pay electricity, open a bank account. Now that I've done all that I'm pretty much set. However I want to stay legit as my girlfriend is British and is attempting to get her residencia card. After 1 year we are going to apply as pareja de hecho. Just want to make sure I'm doing things correctly so I don't run into problems a year from now.
> 
> Although maybe we could apply for pareja de hecho as soon as she gets her residencia card since we have proof of living together in Canada.


 I thought you were on a one year youth mobility visa??? Doesnt that mean you have to return to Canada in a years time - regardless of your status in Spain??

Jo xxx


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## joshjadavies (Jan 22, 2012)

jojo said:


> I thought you were on a one year youth mobility visa??? Doesnt that mean you have to return to Canada in a years time - regardless of your status in Spain??
> 
> Jo xxx


Well my hope was registering as pareja de hecho would allow me to stay.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

joshjadavies said:


> Well my hope was registering as pareja de hecho would allow me to stay.


 I'm not up on visas etc, but I thought you would have to have a fiance/spouse visa to do that?????????????

Maybe someone who knows will correct me/you???


Jo xxx


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

jojo said:


> I'm not up on visas etc, but I thought you would have to have a fiance/spouse visa to do that?????????????
> 
> Maybe someone who knows will correct me/you???
> 
> ...


I'm pretty sure there was some sort of law change within the past year - I remember looking it up for some reason or other..............

I believe that people can register as _pareja de hecho _now, & that as long as one of them is an EU citizen then the other can apply for residency on the same basis as a spouse

@ joshjadavies - I'd probably start looking into this seriously when your girlfriend has registered as resident


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

xabiachica said:


> I'm pretty sure there was some sort of law change within the past year - I remember looking it up for some reason or other..............
> 
> I believe that people can register as _pareja de hecho _now, & that as long as one of them is an EU citizen then the other can apply for residency on the same basis as a spouse
> 
> @ joshjadavies - I'd probably start looking into this seriously when your girlfriend has registered as resident



yes, I thought that they could do that as long as he was on the correct visa to start with - not the youth mobility thing?????

But yes, Josh needs to make sure his girlfriend can get the residencia first and foremost 

Jo xxx


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

jojo said:


> yes, I thought that they could do that as long as he was on the correct visa to start with - not the youth mobility thing?????
> 
> But yes, Josh needs to make sure his girlfriend can get the residencia first and foremost
> 
> Jo xxx


that I'm not sure about - although he is here legally for now, so maybe that's OK - he really needs to find out for sure


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## Jumar (Mar 14, 2012)

Does anyone (GusLopez?) know what the office in Lorca require to sign on the register, and have are they up to date with the system at the moment. Thanks.


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