Freedom of residence, but with paperwork
Citizens of the European Union, the European Economic Area countries and Switzerland are free to move to and live in Spain. That does not mean you can simply arrive and settle. If you want to establish yourself here on a more or less permanent basis, there are administrative steps to complete.
The rules are set out in Real Decreto 240/2007 (the Royal Decree on the residence of EU citizens). You can stay in Spain for up to three months with just your passport or identity card. If you are going to stay longer, you must apply to register with the Registro Central de Extranjeros (Central Register of Foreign Nationals) within three months of your arrival. When you register, you receive the EU citizen registration certificate (certificado de registro de ciudadano de la Unión), which shows your NIE, the foreigner identification number.
For EU citizens this is not an application for a residence permit, as it is for nationals of other countries, but a registration in which you show that you meet one of these requirements:
- Working in Spain, as an employee or self-employed.
- Having sufficient financial resources for yourself and your family and comprehensive health insurance in Spain.
- Being enrolled at an educational institution, with health insurance and sufficient resources.
- Being a family member of an EU citizen who meets one of the requirements above.
Family members who are not EU citizens do not receive the certificate but a residence card for family members of an EU citizen. After five years of legal and continuous residence, you can obtain permanent residence.
Healthcare: private insurance or a special agreement
If you do not work in Spain and do not receive a pension from another EU country that entitles you to healthcare here, you will need to show that you have health insurance. The usual option on arrival is to take out private insurance with comprehensive cover. After a period registered on the padrón (the town hall’s list of residents), you can also sign a special agreement (convenio especial) with the public health system, paying a monthly fee.
Administrative residence and tax residence are not the same
Having the registration certificate does not automatically make you tax resident, and not having it does not stop you from being tax resident. Under the Spanish income tax law (Ley del IRPF), you are tax resident in Spain if you spend more than 183 days here in the calendar year or if the main centre of your activities or economic interests is here. As a tax resident, you declare your worldwide income in Spain, and other obligations may affect you, such as reporting assets held abroad or wealth tax.
That is why it is worth planning carefully before you take the step: the timing of your move, selling assets in your home country or receiving a pension can all have different tax consequences. If you also own or are going to buy a home here, it is worth thinking about your will. I explain this under inheritance, succession and gifts.
If you want to get started, you can tell me about your case through the online consultation or by video call.