Planning Your Move to Spain

If you spend any time in UK-to-Spain forums, you’ll have seen the same point come up again and again: when planning your move to Spain the timeline matters, especially if you’re selling your UK main home.

Many people aim to complete the sale before they become Spanish tax resident*, because once you’re resident in Spain, the tax treatment of a property sale can change.

That principle is widely discussed. What’s less talked about is the practical reality: property sales don’t run to neat dates, and visa timelines aren’t perfectly predictable. If you don’t plan the sequence properly, it’s easy to end up with a timeline that feels “fine on paper” but becomes stressful (or expensive) in real life.

Spain’s recent healthcare decree concerning access to the public healthcare system has attracted considerable attention in expatriate forums, social media groups and among British and other non-EU foreigners already resident and those planning to move to Spain

The law in question — Royal Decree 3/2026, published in the Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) — has led some to conclude that Spain has introduced a new route for Brits and other non-EU foreigners to access public healthcare.  That interpretation is mistaken.

The decree does not change the position for the vast majority of foreigners living in Spain, including those who hold legal residence or are applying to. Rather, it addresses a very specific situation: access to healthcare for people living in Spain who DO NOT have legal residence status.  Some might refer to these as illegal immigrants.

There are many great reasons to retire from the UK to Spain and statistics suggest that many know this.  In recent years there has been a noticeable increase in the number of British nationals choosing to leave the UK and start a new life abroad. Migration data suggests that close to one million British citizens moved overseas in the three years to the end of 2024, and more than 250,000 leaving in the most recent year alone.

For many retirees, the reasons are easy to understand. The appeal of a better lifestyle, rising living costs in the UK, and ongoing debate around tax, fiscal policy and politics are all prompting people to reconsider where they want to spend the next stage of life. For some, these factors simply encourage them to bring forward retirement plans they were already considering — and Spain continues to be one of the most attractive destinations.

If you’re retired (or close to it), you’ve earned the right to design your next chapter intentionally. For many people, Spain isn’t just a “nice idea” — it’s a practical, lifestyle-upgrading move that can make day-to-day life simpler, healthier, and more enjoyable.

Given that Spain is both the most popular holiday destination for Brits and the number one place in Europe for UK citizens choosing to relocate, it’s hardly surprising that many of those leaving the UK ultimately end up here.  Below are 10 genuinely strong, great reasons to retire from the UK to Spain — especially the coastal stretch from Valencia down through Andalucía to Cádiz.

After moving to Spain your first tax declarations are due the year after you become tax resident in Spain.  The tax year in Spain runs with the calendar year, 1st January to 31st December and the basic rule is that you become tax resident when you’ve spent 183 days in the year in Spain.

Your tax obligations arise for the fiscal year in which you become resident in Spain, not from the date you got your residency.

Here we provide a useful summary and information of the first tax declarations for anyone who doing their Tax in Spain for the first time.

British citizens / UK nationals now have to follow the same process as other non-EU national citizens of third countries to get Spanish residency, i.e. there is a requirement to first obtain a visa.

The financial means required for a British Citizen / UK national to obtain a residency visa, is a lot higher than it was when the UK was in the EU.  A single applicant needs to have around €30k per year in either income or savings, whereas a citizen of an EU country €7k p/a income is sufficient.

British nationals also have to obtain a police criminal report to prove they have no criminal record, get official supporting documents legalised, and obtain medical certificates to show they are free from any infectious diseases.

The day the UK left the EU changing the requirements and costs for British nationals to get residency in Spain is becoming a fading memory.  For many British nationals the Non-Lucrative Visa is the route to Spanish residency.

We initially published this article early in 2021 not long after Brexit, when this was the ‘new norm’ for Brits.  Now with it very much the ‘norm’, for British nationals, we revisit the Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa costs and requirements, and highlight the most recent changes.

We cover the general requirements in our article Spanish Residency Requirements for British Citizens and UK Nationals.

Here we drill down further into what th Spanish residency requirements for British nationals and the costs in real terms.

Spanish Residency Requirements for British Nationals as Citizens of Third Countries

If you’re planning on making a permanent move from the UK to Spain, one practical (and often emotional) decision is whether to bring your UK car with you. While some assume it’s easier to sell their vehicle and buy a Spanish car on arrival, the reality is that in many cases, bringing your UK car when moving from the UK to Spain can save you money, offer better value, and simplify your move.

Here we cover the pros and cons of bringing your UK car when relocating to Spain, outlining when it’s financially worthwhile, and highlighting situations where it may not be the best option.

When and Why Bringing Your UK Car to Spain Is Often Worth It

Understanding and planning fiscal residency and Spanish tax is a very important when making the transition to become a resident in Spain.  Tax in Spain is very different to the UK, and has become even more complicated since the UK left the EU as the way certain types of income are treated changed.

Here we provide an overview of the tax related requirements and key points that most need to consider when becoming a Spanish resident.

Update 10th March 2025 

ETIAS will start operations in the last quarter of 2026.
No action is required from travellers at this point.
The European Union will inform about the specific date for the start of ETIAS several months prior to its launch.

Source – the Officical ETIAS Website: https://travel-europe.europa.eu/etias_en

So, no change for some time yet, there is however a change for non-EU travellers to Spain in that they may be aksed to demonstrate sufficient financial means for their stay. In 2025, the minimum required is €118 per person per day. For stays of nine days or more, a minimum of €1,065 or its equivalent in foreign currency is necessary.

The ETIAS Visa Waiver is a visa waiver program created by the European Union to protect and strengthen its borders.  It copies the US Visa Waiver Program which provides prior travel authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).

ETIAS stands for European Travel Information and Authorization System.  The main goal of the ETIAS visa waiver for Europe, is to identify possible threats or risks associated with visitors traveling to any of the Schengen Area countries. The ETIAS visa waiver will be needed to enter a Schengen member country.  It was originally planned to be in place by the end of 2022, however has been constantly delayed.  All visitors that currently do not need a visa to enter Europe will be expected to apply for an ETIAS travel authorization.

Registering Classic Cars in Spain

The process of assigning a registration number to a Classic Car in Spain is more or less the same as that for a normal car.  However the car will have to go through more vigorous checks before it can be passed.  There is no differentiation in regard to age of vehicle and the registration number issued.  So a 50 year old classic Ferrari brought to Spain from another country, and a brand new Nissan Micra, could end up with consecutively numbered plates.

This is quite different to the UK for example, where vehicle registration numbers have a year marker, so you can know the cars are from the number plate.  Spanish vehicle registration numbers have no age identifier.

From a Classic Car perspective, this means that, if you’re bringing your pride and joy 1964 Mercedes SL to Spain, when you register it, you will end up with a registration number that doesn’t fit with the age of the car.  The registration will be just like any other regular new cars registered at the same time. Not great for prestige.