# Certificate of cohabitation/convivencia and home visits from the police



## director1 (Dec 28, 2013)

Hi everyone,

My wife and I will be moving next month to Spain, where I will apply for the tarjeta de residencia. We will rent a flat and will empadronar ourselves wherever we end up living. We have been told that sometimes after you put in the application for empadronamiento at the padron that the local police may come to check up on you to look for proof that you are living together, interview your neighbours about your activities, an so on. This is so they can issue a certificado de convivencia. Does anyone have any experience with this? When I told my wife that this might happen she just broke into laughter and said that she cannot imagine any local police precinct in Spain sending out officers round to do a conviviencia checkup on a couple.

Does this actually happen in practice or is it just something they can do but rarely actually do? And has anyone ever been through it? What if you’re not at home when they come? Or if one of you is out shopping when the police stop by - or worse, out of the country at the time (I travel abroad a lot for work)? And what if you’ve only just moved there - how on earth will the neighbours know anything about you?! This strikes us as a bit draconian of a procedure so just trying to get a handle on what it actually is!

Thanks in advance for any words of wisdom...


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

The town hall issued ours, no Police visit, but ours is a small community where every one knows everyone, and it was over 11 years ago when we obtained the certificate.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

director1 said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> My wife and I will be moving next month to Spain, where I will apply for the tarjeta de residencia. We will rent a flat and will empadronar ourselves wherever we end up living. We have been told that sometimes after you put in the application for empadronamiento at the padron that the local police may come to check up on you to look for proof that you are living together, interview your neighbours about your activities, an so on. This is so they can issue a certificado de convivencia. Does anyone have any experience with this? When I told my wife that this might happen she just broke into laughter and said that she cannot imagine any local police precinct in Spain sending out officers round to do a conviviencia checkup on a couple.
> 
> ...


I don't know anyone this has happened to............


we did have the police come to check that we lived at our address a long time when we were applying for the school bus & free school meals - they also checked that it was more than 3km door to door home to school. That was the qualifying requirement.

apparently there had been a spate of kids 'living with family' outside the 3km limit


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

When my wife, a Non EU citizen, applied for Residencia, we had to prove we lived together. As we were on the padron, the town hall issued the cert. No visits etc.

However, Director if you are both EU Citizens, you do not have to prove you live together when either/both of you register on the EU Citizens Register.

If however, you are intending register as a couple, (not married) a couple of guys I know, had several visits when they registered 'as a couple' and the police also questioned neighbours. That was in Benalmadena,


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

larryzx said:


> When my wife, a Non EU citizen, applied for Residencia, we had to prove we lived together. As we were on the padron, the town hall issued the cert. No visits etc.
> 
> However, Director if you are both EU Citizens, you do not have to prove you live together when either/both of you register on the EU Citizens Register.
> 
> If however, you are intending register as a couple, (not married) a couple of guys I know, had several visits when they registered 'as a couple' and the police also questioned neighbours. That was in Benalmadena,


that would be it then - they're married, but he's non-EU, so there's a chance they'll need this - but unlikely they'll get a visit if they register together on the padrón, from what you say


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

xabiachica said:


> that would be it then - they're married, but he's non-EU, so there's a chance they'll need this - but unlikely they'll get a visit if they register together on the padrón, from what you say


I did know about Director's or his wife's nationality. But unless USA citizens get different treatment as a result of agreement between USA and Spain, then I would assume like my wife that they would need the cert from the town hall that they are living together. But as I said, we did not get any visit to confirm it.

It has just occurred to me. When my wife renewed her residencia after 5 years, we had to prove we were still married. In Spain with the Family Book that is straightforward, but for others, Brits anyway, there is no way of proving you are still married, unlike proving you are divorced, a court order. 

I had to go before the British Consul and tell him, and then for a fee, I think it was 300 euros, he gave a cert to say I had 'said we were still married'. So like the EU Reg cert, a 'piece of useless paper.' If I had lied the consul had no way of knowing !


Good luck Mr and Mrs Director.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

larryzx said:


> I did know about Director's or his wife's nationality. But unless USA citizens get different treatment as a result of agreement between USA and Spain, then I would assume like my wife that they would need the cert from the town hall that they are living together. But as I said, we did not get any visit to confirm it.
> 
> It has just occurred to me. When my wife renewed her residencia after 5 years, we had to prove we were still married. In Spain with the Family Book that is straightforward, but for others, Brits anyway, there is no way of proving you are still married, unlike proving you are divorced, a court order.
> 
> ...


if you're using a computer rather than a mobile device app, & you look at the flags shown on a member's posts, that is usually a good indication of where they are from - the vast majority of our members put the true info


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

I've heard of home visits and interviews when applying for Spanish nationality


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Pesky Wesky said:


> I've heard of home visits and interviews when applying for Spanish nationality


that would make sense


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

Pesky Wesky said:


> I've heard of home visits and interviews when applying for Spanish nationality


We have applied, no interviews or home visits yet.


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Hi, this info might help you, as I believe you are both non EU citizens,
Golden Visa law granting non-EU citizens Spanish residency - Let us help | Spain Property
If you are resident in Spain, all the world wide incomes should be declared,for tax purposes, any business operated from Spain I think has to be registered, and legally acceptable.
You might be better to get a visa for a holiday in Spain and speak to a Spanish lawyer about the technicalities of living here and operating a business, setting things up in Spain sometimes requires lots of hurdles, and red tape.
Tax avoiders, even Spaniards themselves, and many EU guests in Spain, who have been 'working on the black' have been sought out lately as the Spanish government have been reclaiming, and sometimes placing heavy fines on them, and they do use police to check this out.


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## director1 (Dec 28, 2013)

fergie said:


> Hi, this info might help you, as I believe you are both non EU citizens,
> Golden Visa law granting non-EU citizens Spanish residency - Let us help | Spain Property
> If you are resident in Spain, all the world wide incomes should be declared,for tax purposes, any business operated from Spain I think has to be registered, and legally acceptable.
> You might be better to get a visa for a holiday in Spain and speak to a Spanish lawyer about the technicalities of living here and operating a business, setting things up in Spain sometimes requires lots of hurdles, and red tape.
> Tax avoiders, even Spaniards themselves, and many EU guests in Spain, who have been 'working on the black' have been sought out lately as the Spanish government have been reclaiming, and sometimes placing heavy fines on them, and they do use police to check this out.


Hi Fergie*–*Thanks for your response. I'm an American married to a Spaniard, am planning on settling in Spain with my wife and have a bank account with nowhere near €500,000 in it. So I'm not sure that your link applies to me. My police check question was about something entirely different –*convivencia. Do you have any knowledge about this?


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Apologies director1, it didn't state in your first post you are married to a Spaniard, that should make it easier getting registered as a resident, however as you are returning to Spain, the tax situation has changed in the past two years, and would be worth you finding out more about it, once you arrive.


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## director1 (Dec 28, 2013)

director1 said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> My wife and I will be moving next month to Spain, where I will apply for the tarjeta de residencia. We will rent a flat and will empadronar ourselves wherever we end up living. We have been told that sometimes after you put in the application for empadronamiento at the padron that the local police may come to check up on you to look for proof that you are living together, interview your neighbours about your activities, an so on. This is so they can issue a certificado de convivencia. Does anyone have any experience with this? When I told my wife that this might happen she just broke into laughter and said that she cannot imagine any local police precinct in Spain sending out officers round to do a conviviencia checkup on a couple.
> 
> ...


I should have clarified: I am an American citizen and my wife is a Spanish citizen.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

director1 said:


> Hi Fergie*–*Thanks for your response. I'm an American married to a Spaniard, am planning on settling in Spain with my wife and have a bank account with nowhere near €500,000 in it. So I'm not sure that your link applies to me. My police check question was about something entirely different –*convivencia. Do you have any knowledge about this?


you're going to hate this reply - but if you're going to live in Spain you might as well get used to it now, before you come

the only answer we can give you is 'it depends'

larryzx has been there & done it - but what happened where he lives might not be the same wherever you end up living

I wouldn't worry about it though, tbh - if you're genuinely married, they aren't likely to find anything amiss, are they? Even if they _do_ do a home visit - but I think your wife is more than likely correct & it just won't be required


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## director1 (Dec 28, 2013)

xabiachica said:


> you're going to hate this reply - but if you're going to live in Spain you might as well get used to it now, before you come
> 
> the only answer we can give you is 'it depends'
> 
> ...


Thanks Javeagirl! Ah yes, the "it depends" – yeah, my sense is that it is something I will need to start getting used to before the big move. 

I'm just wondering what the whole police check thing involves. I lived in Argentina a while ago and I had heard of them doing similar things, but being kind of invasive about it. I'm not really worried about something being amiss though –*I'm more worried about not actually being there when they stop by! We both travel a lot for our jobs, and I tend to be away 3 weeks out of 4 in a given month travelling for work…


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## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

It's been a while since I had to sign on to the padron, but the times that I did it they definitely didn't come by my house or neighborhood to check if I was there! The town hall is more than happy to have people sign on because that means more money for the town. And with the strapped resources that town halls have now in the crisis I don't think they can be spending too much time checking up on the veracity of every new empadronamiento. 

You'll probably have to overcome more than one hurdle to get your residency card but this isn't something that I'd be worried about.


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

director1 said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> My wife and I will be moving next month to Spain, where I will apply for the tarjeta de residencia. We will rent a flat and will empadronar ourselves wherever we end up living. We have been told that sometimes after you put in the application for empadronamiento at the padron that the local police may come to check up on you to look for proof that you are living together, interview your neighbours about your activities, an so on. This is so they can issue a certificado de convivencia. Does anyone have any experience with this? When I told my wife that this might happen she just broke into laughter and said that she cannot imagine any local police precinct in Spain sending out officers round to do a conviviencia checkup on a couple.
> 
> ...



Director, I haven't read any more than this first post but I'm going to say what I imagine most posters are saying: 

You are totally overthinking this whole residency deal. (That's a lot coming from me, given that I'm a major worrier too.) 

The fact that your wife laughed should tell you everything. As long as it's pretty clear you know and are married to your wife, I seriously doubt you'll get a visit like that. The only reason they would send the cops to check out your apartment is if it seems like you have 20 people _empadronado_ there. This does happen, which is probably why you found that bit of information. 

Chill, man. Things are a lot easier than they seem.


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

One more thing: Do you have any bills from this year or last with both of your names on it as well as your address? On the off chance that you are asked if you've been living together while abroad, those MIGHT help your case. Again, they are not likely to be requested, but might be good to have just in case.


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