NIE certificate renewal

[PaulWat]

Hi,
Myself and my wife obtained NIE certificates (via our solicitor) when we purchased a property here three years ago.  We spend around five months of the year in Fuerte and have not applied for residency status, although we are registered on the padron with the council, Antigua.
When we went to the council office in Caleta to obtain a Certificado de Viaje it was pointed out that our NIE certificates had only been valid for three months from issue and they needed renewing.
Up until now whenever we have been asked for our NIE numbers we have just stated them or showed the certificates and these have been accepted.
Is it strictly necessary to renew the NIE certificate every three months? And, if so, what is the procedure for doing so?

[Windermeregolfer]

Morning

Ditto, we got ours through our lawyer in 2016 as part of the property purchase process.  I have just checked ours and the is no mention of an expiry date or valid for period on it.  So I will also be interested in others replies.

I do know, at my cost, that the Padron has to be renewed every six months. 

[Johnrgby2]

Morning

Ditto, we got ours through our lawyer in 2016 as part of the property purchase process.  I have just checked ours and the is no mention of an expiry date or valid for period on it.  So I will also be interested in others replies.

I do know, at my cost, that the Padron has to be renewed every six months.

Morning John

I do not believe the NIE has to be renewed, certainly not for a resident, I used mine with traffico about 3 weeks ago and it is more than  3 years old and had no problem. also, The Padron has to be renewed every 3 months, which I did not know until July when we renewed ous for the first time since 2015 and was told to renew every 3 months.

[Deso]

Morning chaps,

My NIE is from 2008 and I used it yesterday when I taxed the car, no problems. I believe they went through a spell of issuing the 3 monthly ones but have now gone back to permanent ones.

On the Padron front John, when you renewed yours did you have to fill out the form again or did they just issue a new one from your existing details?

Paul, it is easier to get someone who speaks Spanish and knows the system to take you to the National Police Station. I have PM'd you with info on someone who can do it for you.

[Johnrgby2]

Morning chaps,

My NIE is from 2008 and I used it yesterday when I taxed the car, no problems. I believe they went through a spell of issuing the 3 monthly ones but have now gone back to permanent ones.

On the Padron front John, when you renewed yours did you have to fill out the form again or did they just issue a new one from your existing details?

Paul, it is easier to get someone who speaks Spanish and knows the system to take you to the National Police Station. I have PM'd you with info on someone who can do it for you.

Hi Neil

No they just renewed them at a massive cost of €1

[Logitechtom]

My understanding, from our solicitor when we purchased our property, is that your first NIE (on a sheet of white A4 paper) is only valid for three months. You should then apply for a re-newal which is valid for three years and is printed on a sheet of green A4 paper.

However, we were told it just wasn't worth it, so not to bother.

I've never had to produce my NIC, except when applying for my padron and bus pass. In all other cases, I just give the number and it is excepted without question.

Tom.

[Lexeus]

British citizens who plan on living here after April 2019 really should be getting their papers in order, you need a residence permit not just a NIE tax ID, I will copy and paste my previous two explanations below:

When anyone first moves to Spain they must first request to be issued with a NIE which is used for tax purposes and alike in place of a Spaniards DNI. This is not the same as the green card residence permit, it is just an ID number, where as the green card is a permit to reside in Spain. It is common for Spanish bureaucrats to incorrectly call the green permit a NIE, they are not the same thing, but Spaniards have a DNI that is the same for both and they don't understand there are differences.

If you are resident on the island for more than 3 months then you are required to register as a resident and you will be issued with a little green card "CERTIFICADO DE REGISTRO DE CIUDADANO DE LA UNION" which states that you are "Residente comunitario en Espana"

After 5 years of continuous residence you should then apply to exchange the green card for a permanent residence permit.

_____________ 2nd Explanation ______________


It is important to differentiate between a NIE and a Residence Permit. Do not fall into the trap of believing that the Spanish people who work in all the government offices must know what they are talking about. The history as I understand it is that some time ago there was an actual photo ID given out to foreigners called a NIE and it effectively was a DNI for foreigners, but with application of EU law and cost cutting the system has changed and people who just say NIE are wrong.

The key is:
NIE is an ID used for tax purposes, it is issued to foreigners on request and will never change, but physically it is nothing beyond a A4 piece of standard white printer paper with a stamp to say it's a legitimate proof of the tax code for your passport. You may have a NIE even if you have never stepped foot in Spain.
Residence permit is a legal permit to reside in the country for more than 3 months. It does also state your NIE, because that is your unique ID number, but the point of the document is the proof of legal residence. Just as my health insurance documents state my Name, DateOfBirth and NIE, but that doesn't make them a NIE or a residence permit does it?!

My first NIE was only valid for 3 months, and then I had to go back and get another one the next time I needed to prove my NIE and the process was identical the 2nd time (including the costs). As I understand there was a brief period of few years around 2015 where they were issuing NIE certificates with only 3 months validity but now they are having indefinite validity.

Once you have a green residence card you can use that to prove your NIE instead of the white A4 piece of paper.

[spitfire58]

Hi Alex,
I thought it was up to 180 days in a year before you had to declare residency ??

[Windermeregolfer]

Hi - My Antigua Padron clearly states expires in SIX months.

[Logitechtom]

Your Padron (Empadron) is quite separate from residency permit/NIE etc.  Your Padron is your registration with the local authority that you own or rent (long term) property within that local authority area. It actually helps the local authority as it counts towards their head count when getting grants from other authorities, but it is NOT connected with your right to reside here.

Tom.

[Lexeus]

If you spend longer than 3 months in any EU country you are required to request a residence permit.

If you are present in Spain for 183days or more in any calendar year then you automatically become Tax resident. This is not the same as a residence permit, it just means the taxman can claim taxes from you.

Registering on the Padron is required as proof of your physical address in Spain in order to apply for a green residence permit, on it's own it has no EU recognised legal status though. As others have said it just increases central government funding in that councils area.

[Johnrgby2]

Hi - My Antigua Padron clearly states expires in SIX months.

Morning John

I have just checked mine, and there is no expiry date on it, however, I am certain I was told 3 months which expires in about three weeks, so I will go in and check and report back.

[Lexeus]

In Pajara it's 2years

[Logitechtom]

If you register for on-line access to your local council (see various posts on this forum concerning the process), then you can renew your Empadron and travel discount form just by a few clicks and then you print it out at leisure.

Tom.

[Johnrgby2]

If you register for online access to your local council (see various posts on this forum concerning the process), then you can renew your Empadron and travel discount form just by a few clicks and then you print it out at leisure.

Tom.

This is Antigua, the pencil was only discovered last week   

[spitfire58]

If you register for online access to your local council (see various posts on this forum concerning the process), then you can renew your Empadron and travel discount form just by a few clicks and then you print it out at leisure.

Tom.

This is Antigua, the pencil was only discovered last week   

Nice one John 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂

[Windermeregolfer]

Hi - My Antigua Padron clearly states expires in SIX months.

Morning John

I have just checked mine, and there is no expiry date on it, however, I am certain I was told 3 months which expires in about three weeks, so I will go in and check and report back.

Hi JohnR

it is at the very bottom as a footer

[Lexeus]

Windermeregolfer,

my initial reaction to the padron certificate stating it expires in 6 months would be that this statement "at the very bottom as a footer" relates to the validity of the certificate it self in relation to use for proof of your current address in Spain. The other comments here, such as my statement that in Pajara you must renew empadronamiento every 2 years, are talking about how often you must reregister as a resident of that town, but just because that certificate is no longer valid it doesn't mean they have removed you from the padron.... am I onto something there maybe?