Obtaining Your NIE Number in Spain |
For those of you who are thinking about buying a property in the Costa del Sol or another part of Spain,
or are wanting to become a resident of Spain, you will first need to sort out one
important piece of documentation: the NIE number.
The NIE number stands for Número de Identificación de Extranjeros,
which translates as the 'identity number for foreigners'. This is a
different piece of documentation to that which the locals have, which
is called a DNI number.
There are a number of reasons why you need to get hold of an NIE
number. Firstly, even if you are buying property in Spain but residing
in your own country, we would not recommend that you ever tried to
do so without first getting your NIE. For those residing in Spain,
it is also required to pay income and wealth taxes, and is also
necessary when applying for a business permit, buying a vehicle,
insuring a property or signing on to the national health plan.
Although there are a few methods of obtaining an NIE number, including
applying via a Spanish consulate in any country or applying through a
third party, this article focuses on applying in person for the NIE
in Spain.
Required Documentation For Your Spanish NIE
It is in your best interests to apply for the NIE at least one month
prior to signing the deeds of purchase on a property, as not having it
at this time may well incur fines at a later date.
Preparing the correct documentation is essential if you are to make
the process as smooth as possible, and it is therefore recommended
that you check that everything is in place before attempting to submit
the application.
You will require a passport with a photocopy, two passport photos
and two completed copies of official NIE application form which
can be downloaded online. It may also be necessary to have details
of an address in Spain, although this could simply belong to a someone
you know residing in the country.
As well as these documents, it is important not to forget to include
a separate document (along with a photocopy) that states why you are
attempting to acquire an NIE number. This could either be the private
contract of sale for the property or the deeds of purchase obtained
from the notary. It should also be noted that for property buyers who
are not members of the EU, the landing card, or declaración de entrada,
will be required on top of everything else.
Where to Get the NIE
We suggest that the best place to take all of the documents in order
to acquire the NIE number is to a designated police station in which
there is an immigration office, known as a departmento de extranjeros.
It is a good idea to try to find a police station in the area where you
are going to be buying the property, as this will make the whole
process a lot easier.
Collecting the NIE
After handing in all of the forms, you will be given a special
receipt called a resguardo. The official waiting time to collect the
NIE after receiving this receipt is 15 days, but as with anything of
this nature, it could well take a bit longer.
We would recommend paying a visit to the location where the
documentation was handed in after at least 15 days to see if it is
ready for collection. It is not customary for the Spanish authorities
to contact applicants to inform them that the NIE is ready to be
collected. Instead, the responsibility for this lies squarely with
the applicant. It is worth noting that if you turn up too early and
the NIE is not ready for collection, you will have to go through the
whole waiting procedure at the police station again.
It is worth considering, however, that you do not need to turn up
yourself to the police station, and that anyone in possession of the
resguardo can perform the action of collection the NIE. Once in
possession of the NIE, it should be kept safe at all times as you
will almost certainly need to refer to it in the future. However,
if it is lost then you can apply for another one through the same
process.
Related Documents: Starting A Business In Spain | The Spanish Social Security System
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