RESIDENCIA & NIE APPOINTMENT HELP!

Having struggled myself to find information online of how to navigate my way through obtaining my NIE number I came across the following information on an expat website. Therefore, the below is only a rough guideline of my personal findings and I am open to suggestions of helpful hints and tips that may be passed on- or do correct me if I'm wrong in certain areas! There is also a lovely lady on the island called Tracy Knight- who has made it her duty to help expats sort this kind of stuff out for a small fee! Check out http://www.translationsmallorca.com/

Regardless of whether you are a resident or not, and what passport you hold, if you have a physical presence in Spain equal to a 183 days in a calendar year cumulatively, you are considered a ¨Tax Resident¨ and required by law to file a tax return and pay taxes in Spain on your worldwide income, (refer to article 9 of Spanish Personal Income tax Act 34/2006). There are distinct advantages to being a resident not the least being able to participate in all the social programs- including healthcare. The initial ¨Residencia¨ lasts for 5 years only, after which it must be renewed for a ¨Permanent¨ one. There is no expiration date on this first one, only an issuing date, which is usually at the bottom of the form/card. It is the responsibility of the holder to calculate 5 years forward to determine the expiration date and thus the renewal date. Failure to renew on time means starting the process from scratch. In 2014, an electronic appointment system was introduced to secure appointments at the administration offices in Palma de Mallorca - 'Oficina de Extranjera', Address: Calle Felicià Fuster, 7, 07006 Palma de Mallorca, Islas Baleares. Hours: Monday 9AM–2PM, Tuesday 9AM–2PM, Wednesday 9AM–2PM, Thursday 9AM–2PM, Friday 9AM–2PM, Saturday Closed, Sunday Closed. You must book an appointment ONLINE to start the process of recieving your NIE number and/or Residencia. Please be aware that you can be made to wait for three months for the appointment and it is important that you obtain a Social Security number from the local council offices if you plan on working whilst you wait for your appointment.

These forms are is in Spanish/Catalan so below are instructions in English for navigating your way through the tricky website!

To enter the government website click on this link https://sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es/

1

Take the cursor to the top right corner where it says 'Bienvenido', click on the down arrow and select 'Welcome'. This will give some pages in English but not all. Scroll down to 'EXTRANJERA' in the left hand column and click on this. You will move to the next page (see 2 below).

2

Scroll down to the 'CITA PREVIA EXTRANJERA' in the left hand column and click on the link on the right hand side. Acceda. (to 3 below)

3

Scroll down to the last item on the page and ensure that you have the correct software (see Important Notice above) click on the link Access to the Procedure which will take you (to 4 below)

4

The first box will take you to the appropriate province by clicking on the downward arrow to the right of the first box. Scroll down and click on 'Illes Baleares'.

Scroll down to the next box and using the down arrow on the right click on 'Certificado de residente o no residente' Finally click on the link 'ACEPTAR' which will take you (to 5 below).

5

Here you will see a lot of information and a link to the application form. At this stage DO NOT USE THIS LINK (as there is a link at the end of the procedure). Continue on (to 6 below) by clicking on the link on the right at the bottom of the page.

6

This will take you to the start of the application process.

1. If you are renewing or already have a NIE number enter this or your Passport number if you are applying for the first time.

2. Enter your name

3. The year of your birth.

4. The country of your birth from the drop down menu.

5. Enter the digits in the authentication number in the box below.

6. Click on 'ACEPTAR' . If everything is OK you will move to 7 below. .

7

Click on the left hand link 'SOLICITAR CITA' which will take you (to 8 below)-

8

Paso 1.de 5 This confirms the location of your appointment appointment as you will note. Click on 'SIGUENTE' to move on

Paso 2 de 5 Check your details as these confirm your email address/phone number for confirmation of your appointment and click on 'SIGUENTE' to move on

Paso 3 de 5. Select one of the appointments and click on 'SIGUENTE' to move on

Paso 4 de 5 Check the details of your appointment and click on the two check boxes below to confirm that these are correct and then click on 'SIGUENTE' to move on to the last page.

No. de Justification de Cita. This page is not numbered but it is most important that you print this or make a note of the Confirmation number of the appointment as this will be needed either to cancel the appointment or change it.

The Appointment itself:

Waiting time included, you should plan to spend one to two hours to organize your NIE number/Residencia. But do get there early to give yourself enough time to figure things out!

Before you are actually assigned your NIE number, you will have to pay ca. 9,45€. In the Oficina de Extranjería, you get the payment form. Take it to a bank (often, banks accept cash payments only at certain hours and on certain day and so you might even have to open a bank account). Once that is paid, you return to the Oficina de Extranjería, where you will get a certificate showing your NIE number. If you are a non EU citizen, you might also need to hand in a notary certification why you would like to get your NIE (i.e. property purchase). This kind of certification costs about 60€. So, to summarise, you should take 10 Euros cash with you on the day and be prepared to walk to this specific bank nearby which you will be given a map to guide you (though could be worth having some extra cash for a taxi if walking is an issue, it took me 15 mins to walk there and 15 mins back...). The bank receiving deposits changes daily so make sure you are sure which one to go to!

Don't forget to take with you- your passport, your housing rental contract, decent passport photos, and any other relevant ID. PLUS photocopies of everything which they will take from you. They don't photocopy for you on the day so you may be sent away again if you do not have these!

You must also PRINT and fill out the Application Form and take it with you to your appointment. This can be found on the government website when you make your appointment. But there is also a link to that here for you: http://extranjeros.empleo.gob.es/es/ModelosSolicitudes/Mod_solicitudes2/15-Formulario_NIE_y_certificados.pdf