# NIE and Residencia for my wife



## sparkyfritz (Jun 16, 2013)

Hi all,

My fiance and I have recently arrived in Spain. I'm a dual national EU & USA and my fiance is American. I was hoping someone could offer some advice or suggestions on our situation. We will get married in August in the US and at that point we plan to get a residency card in Spain for my fiance as a family member of a EU citizen. Do I, as the EU citizen, need to have residency here in Spain in order for her to do that or just a NIE number? I work offshore and will probably be out of Spain for more than the 183 days so I plan to be just a non resident. Is it possible for my future wife to be a resident of Spain while I'm a non resident? I saw some other people posting similar situations and was wondering how they accomplished this. 
What is the difference between having a NIE number and residency?
Any help or advice is greatly appreciated!
Thanks


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

sparkyfritz said:


> Hi all,
> 
> My fiance and I have recently arrived in Spain. I'm a dual national EU & USA and my fiance is American. I was hoping someone could offer some advice or suggestions on our situation. We will get married in August in the US and at that point we plan to get a residency card in Spain for my fiance as a family member of a EU citizen. Do I, as the EU citizen, need to have residency here in Spain in order for her to do that or just a NIE number? I work offshore and will probably be out of Spain for more than the 183 days so I plan to be just a non resident. Is it possible for my future wife to be a resident of Spain while I'm a non resident? I saw some other people posting similar situations and was wondering how they accomplished this.
> What is the difference between having a NIE number and residency?
> ...


:welcome:

your wife, as she will be, would be exercising treaty rights as the spouse of 'an EU citizen_* residing in Spain*_' so yes, you would have to have registered as resident before she can

I'm pretty sure that you can register & she can start the ball rolling for her residency at the same time though

providing your paperwork is all in order, your resident registration certificate would be issued on the spot 

have a look at http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...-living-spain/2725-faqs-lots-useful-info.html

the first post explains the difference between the NIE & the resident registration certificate for an EU citizen

you, as an EU citizen, need to register as resident if you are here for 90 continuous days - your fiancee of course, can't stay more than 90/180 days atm


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## Guest (Jun 16, 2013)

I would offer my experience of being an american citizen, marrying a spanish citizen in the US, and coming to Spain to obtain residency.

But first, could you say what an "a dual EU & USA citizen" means? What is an "EU citizen"?


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

Oh gosh. 
Good luck. 

What country are you a citizen of? My understanding is that if she can become a quick permanent resident of that country through marriage she shouldn't have problems living in Spain. 

Residency through Spain might be more difficult. For example, for American marriages to be recognized you have to legalize and translate all the documents (if nothing has changed). I chose to get married here because I knew we were going to be living here and I didn't feel like waiting in the US for the consulate to recognize our marriage. I'm married to a Spanish citizen, if that helps.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

mysticsmick said:


> I would offer my experience of being an american citizen, marrying a spanish citizen in the US, and coming to Spain to obtain residency.
> 
> But first, could you say what an "a dual EU & USA citizen" means? What is an "EU citizen"?


I'm guessing he has a passport from an EU country

I'm British & hold a British passport - but I'm also an EU citizen - which means I have various rights in other EU countries which non-EU citizens don't have


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## sparkyfritz (Jun 16, 2013)

Hi

Thanks for the replies so far. It helps to hear from experienced people in these matters. 
To elaborate, I have an Irish passport (my mother was born there) and a US passport (where I was born). I've actually never resided in Ireland, not sure if that makes a difference for this situation.
We looked into getting married in Spain but as I recall I don't think we could because neither of us are residents here. So we'll get married in the US in August. Do I also need to inform the Irish government of our marriage in order to make the process go more smoothly in Spain? Would it be easier just for my fiance to get residency on her own rather than by marriage to an EU citizen?


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

Not at all. The EU citizen marriage is the golden ticket, it just means you're going to have to figure out which country will give her residency first: Spain or Ireland.

I know it's a pain, but if you're near a consulate, I'd make a trip to both the Irish consulate to ask ASAP. Also, since you're in Spain and will have to register if you're here more than 90 days I'd go to extranjería and ask them what's best too.

Make ABSOLUTELY SURE that you calculate your 90 days in EU / 90 days out of EU well. Extranjería has been getting tougher over the last years. 

If your fiancee is independently wealthy, that might help her get residency by her self. I don't know if that will give her permission to work, though.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

sparkyfritz said:


> Hi
> 
> Thanks for the replies so far. It helps to hear from experienced people in these matters.
> To elaborate, I have an Irish passport (my mother was born there) and a US passport (where I was born). I've actually never resided in Ireland, not sure if that makes a difference for this situation.
> We looked into getting married in Spain but as I recall I don't think we could because neither of us are residents here. So we'll get married in the US in August. Do I also need to inform the Irish government of our marriage in order to make the process go more smoothly in Spain? Would it be easier just for my fiance to get residency on her own rather than by marriage to an EU citizen?


as a non-EU citizen it would be _seriously _difficult for your partner to get residency in her own right - going the 'spouse' route is probably the easiest of all

I'm not sure what you need for her - but if you look at the link for the relevant form on this thread I'm pretty sure that there's a link from it which tells you http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...-living-spain/2725-faqs-lots-useful-info.html

if not, the your nearest Spanish consulate could tell you


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## Guest (Jun 16, 2013)

elenetxu said:


> for American marriages to be recognized you have to legalize and translate all the documents (if nothing has changed). I chose to get married here because I knew we were going to be living here and I didn't feel like waiting in the US for the consulate to recognize our marriage. I'm married to a Spanish citizen, if that helps.


I did this dance last year:

1 - The couple wishing to be married must have a marriage license issued by the county where the marriage will take place.

2 - After the ceremony the individual presiding over the ceremony and the couple sign the marriage license.

3 - The individual presiding over the ceremony then takes the signed marriage license to the County Recorder's Office.

4 - The County Recorder's Office can then issue a certified copy of the marriage license.

5 - The certified copy of the marriage license is then taken to the Secretary of State's office where the marriage took place to receive an Apostille, thus making the document internationally accepted.

6 - And finally, comes the translation.


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## Guest (Jun 16, 2013)

xabiachica said:


> your nearest Spanish consulate could tell you


This might be the very best advice you can receive. Your situation is unique and the rules and regulations are written with the average circumstance in mind. We received clear and excellent advice from the consulate in San Francisco.


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

But if they're already in Spain, wouldn't the best answers come from the extranjeria in a local city?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

elenetxu said:


> But if they're already in Spain, wouldn't the best answers come from the extranjeria in a local city?


oh yeah.... forgot they were already here....


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## neddie (Jun 11, 2012)

...While on a very recent visit to Spain i went to 'Oficina Extranjera' in Cadiz to find out exactly what i ( a holder of a Brit Passport) and my wife ( a holder of a US passport) would need to present to the office when applying for residency as a couple who would not be working.

My wife would need to provide the following:

a) A valid passport with photocopies of ALL the pages.
b) Proof of health insurance.... original of the policy plus a copy. Safest to have an official translation.
c) Proof of income and or bank balances, savings etc.. Have a translation and a copy.
d) A copy of NEI.
e) Original marriage certificate with a translation. An official copy of the marriage certificate must be dated and signed no longer than 90 days prior to your residency application !!!! Regarding marriage, as we were married in New York a "Marital Status Declaration" is also required. The date on this was also not to be more than 90 days old. This i think can be obtained from a British Consulate in Spain and from what i understand the consulate can provide it in Spanish but i am not sure on this point. Best to contact a consulate as to how to go about this ( i have not done this yet). 

I am not sure if a 'padron' was required from her as they wanted one from me.

I would have to provide:

a) Original passport plus a copy of the inside ( data pages only)
b) Proof ( in Spanish ) of income/finances.
c) Proof of health insurance......original policy plus copy.
d) Certificate of padron....original plus copy.
e) Copy of NIE. Much to my amazement the guy who interviewed me did my NIE application there and then. All i had to do was go to a bank to pay the fee and get a photo copy of my passport......returned to the office and walked up to the guy who interviewed me.........even though he had another customer with him he dropped what he was doing and gave me my paperwork.....shook hands and was off !!!!!

Different offices may have different requirements.

So as not to cause confusion, while i hold a Brit Passport i do not qualify for Brit health insurance and hence would have to obtain private insurance


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