There are two main healthcare requirements for the Non-Lucrative Visa.   Firstly you must be free from any of the diseases listed under the International Health Regulations 2005, and secondly you need to have unrestricted access to healthcare in Spain.

Doctors Letter or Medical Certificate for a Non-Lucrative Visa Application

The first requirement is satisfied by obtaining a Doctors letter or medical certificate.  The Doctors letter or medical certificate can be provided by your own GP, or a private Doctor either in the UK or Spain.  The letter or certificate has to be signed by the issuing doctor, have their medical practice stamp, and their registration number.  In the UK this is known as a GMC (General Medical Council) number.

Fortunately these days, if you don’t know the Spanish language, translating basic documents is relatively easy.  There are abundant translation apps such as the popular Google Translate which a quite accurate.  Of course, if you need to have a Spanish translation of a more detailed or official document, you’ll need to get someone to do the translation for you.

There are various types of official document translations and certifications that you might need when living in Spain or during the process of applying to do so.  E.g. for visa and residency applications.

Sworn Translations

These are translations done by an official translator who is legally authorised as a translator.  Sworn translations, are accompanied by a signed declaration from the translator attesting to the accuracy and authenticity of the translation. The translator appears on an official list of certified translators and interpreters approved by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The translator will sign and certify any translations they complete.

Sworn translations have a formal status with authorities, so these are what you have to get when you need to translate documents for things like visas, residency applications, social security etc.

The are quite a few steps and costs involved to import and register and car from a non-EU country in Spain.

First and foremost EU conformity, import and registration costs must be taken into account as these can make the import and registration in Spain impossible or too expensive to be worth while.

This said, under EU rules if you are moving from a non-EU country to live in an EU country, such as Spain, you can bring your possessions including cars, and avoid paying the costly duties and taxes and having to pay for expensive EU conformity certification.

These transfer of residence rules give you up to12 months form the date you get your residency to import your car and avoid paying customs and VAT.  However you only have 60 days from the date you take up residency, to register your car and avoid registration tax (if it applies).  

Spain’s Golden Visa offers residency to individuals who make a real estate investment in Spain of €500,000 or more.  The Golden Visa scheme has been in existence since September 2013 when legislation for the ‘residency by investment scheme’ was passed.  The aim being to attract foreign investors at a time when the economy of Spain was not in a very good place.  Since it’s inception, over 25,000 foreign investors have benefited from the scheme.

The scheme is open to nationals from non-EU or third countries, and has so far been most popular with investors from China, Russia and the USA.

What does Spain’s Golden Visa Offer Property Investors?

Nationals of non-EU countries require a visa to enter Spain, if the stay is intended to be more than 90 days.  The Schengen visa in most cases cannot be used to apply for residency in Spain.

There is an exception when an immediate family member is joining a family member who already lives in Spain and holds Spanish residency.   In all other circumstances a citizen of a non-EU country must apply for, and obtain a long stay visa through the Spanish Embassy in their home country.

Since UK has now left the EU, UK citizens / British nationals also have to apply for a visa if they want to live or work in Spain.

Once the visa has been issued, the applicant can travel to Spain and apply for residency and get their TIE, ‘tarjeta de identidad de extranjero‘.

The following is a summary of the main types of long stay visas that citizens of non-EU countries can apply for.

ISA’s are very tax efficient ways to save or invest, as you pay no tax on savings interest, (not that you get any these days), and virtually no tax on investment returns. They are therefore usually the first type of saving or investment account that people will have.  For this reason, and the fact that there is a generous annual allowance to save into them, you like many other may have built up sizeable amounts in ISA’s.

You may also have reached, or be approaching retirement, and relying on this tax efficient ISA nest egg, to provide extra income to supplement your pension.  For some, an ISA may even be their ‘pension’.

ISA’s and moving to Spain

So if you’re moving, or have moved to Spain, can you keep your ISA?  The short answer is yes.  According to gov.uk:

If you open an Individual Savings Account (ISA) in the UK and then move abroad, you can’t put money into it after the tax year that you move (unless you’re a Crown employee working overseas or their spouse or civil partner).

You must tell your ISA provider as soon as you stop being a UK resident.

However, you can keep your ISA open and you’ll still get UK tax relief on money and investments held in it.

You can pay into your ISA again if you return and become a UK resident 

Great – you can keep your ISA, and continue to benefit from it’s tax efficiency!  Well not exactly.  When you move from the UK to Spain, you also move from the UK tax system to Spain’s tax system.  So you will continue to get UK tax relief, however your ISA will (or should), get Spanish tax treatment.

The NIE (Número de Identificación de Extranjero), meaning –  Foreigners Identification Number, is the identification number issued to people who are not a Spanish nationals.

The National Police, (Cuerpo Nacional de Policia), handle the issue of NIE’s, and any one planning to carry out a transaction in Spain, e.g. buying a car, holiday home, or various other interests, needs to have one.

The NIE identifies you whenever you do something official, or which involves the authorities.  For example paying taxes, buying a property; signing a document at Notary; starting a business; or becoming a director of a Spanish company.

The NIE is not a fiscal (tax) residency identification – you can have a NIE and be fiscal resident in another country, however it is used to link payments to you that may be due, including tax amongst others. Both EU citizens and non-EU citizens are issued with NIE’s, and if you become resident, you keep the same NIE when you apply for your residence certificate or card.

The TIE, Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero, is the Spanish identification card for citizens from third countries (non-EU) who reside in Spain.  Since July 2020 British UK nationals moving to Spain have also had to apply for this card, as the UK is no longer in the EU.

If you already have a Spanish residency certificate, you do not have to apply for the TIE, but you can voluntarily exchange your certificate for the card.

Both the Spanish and UK Government websites and their Consulate pages confirm that the green residency certificate, A4 and credit card sized, remain valid for UK nationals and prove the holders residency and retained rights under the withdrawal agreement, having settled in Spain before the UK left the EU.  However considering the issues some have encountered during the recent Covid19 travel restrictions, e.g. multiple incidences of authorities and airlines not understanding the rules and denying certificate holders entry to Spain, it is advisable to get the TIE.

Aside from this the card is a full bio-metric national ID card, therefore so much more useful than the paper certificate.  The card also has the words ARTICULO 50 TUE, a reference to note that the holder was resident in Spain before the end of the transition period and has retained rights.

The TIE, Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero, or foreigners ID card, is the Spanish identification card for citizens from third countries (non-EU) who reside in Spain.

Once you have arrived in Spain with the relevant visa or otherwise meeting the eligibility for Spanish residency, you can begin the process to apply for your foriegners ID card, ‘tarjeta de identidad de extranjero‘.

Applying for the TIE ‘Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero’ Foreigners ID Card

The process of getting a TIE has three parts.  The first stage is the residency, and if applicable, visa application, which is made either through the main Foreigners Office in the province where you live in Spain, or at the Spanish Consulate of your home country.  How and where you apply depends on you situation and the type of residency you qualify for and are applying for.

The second stage is completed at a National Police Station in the area that you live, and when the card is ready after a few weeks, it is collected from the police station .

All stages of the process must be done in person of the process have to be done in person.   At the second stage you provide your fingerprints and a photograph for your biometric ID card.  The whole process can take anything from 3 to 6 months depending on what type of residency you have applied for.

The initial application can be presented in person or by an authorised representative, and can be done face to face at the Foreigners Office, or submitted online.  In most places, you have to call the foreign office to make an appointment to present your application.

First Stage – TIE Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero Residency Application & Documentation Required

The online submission system is works well, and the Foreign Office encourages the use of this system.  To submit your application you need to have a digital signature and certificate in place.  If you don’t have one, you can authorise someone else or a company to complete the online submission on your behalf.

Official translations of documents that are not in Spanish must be provided.

Additional documents to support your application

The Foreign Office or consulate when reviewing applications apart from checking that qualification and eligibility, may also request further information validating your arrival and situation in Spain.

When your application is received, a receipt will be issued confirming that it has been presented.  It will then be reviewed accordingly at the foreigners office.  If for any reason your application is not immediately accepted, 10 working days will be given to supply any additional information that may have been asked for to continue with the application.

Notification of the approval of your application will usually be sent within 3 months, and you have one month to make an appointment and complete the second stage application at the National Police Station.

Second Stage TIE Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero Application – Getting Your Card

The second stage of the TIE application process is relatively straight forward, and appointments are readily available in most areas at the Foreigners Offices and National Police Stations.

For your second stage application you need to have a pre-booked appointment.

You can make an appointment through the following link:

Proceso automático para la solicitud de cita previa

For your appointment you will need:

*EX application form (as with the first stage the form number varies depending on type of residency)
*Your first stage approval notice
*Passport and a copy ( a copy of your passport and the application is acceptable if you are in the process of renewing it)
*Small passport (carnet size) photo 32mmx28mm
*Current proof of address (padron)
*Modelo 790 form with €12 tax paid and stamped by the bank, or with payment receipt attached

When you present your application your fingerprints will be taken, and if everything else is in order, you will be given confirmation of your processed application and told to make an appointment to go back and collect your card in 5 to 6 weeks.  Some Police station operate collection without appointment, and just have allocated days or times for collection of TIE cards.

Link to all EX residency / TIE application forms: https://extranjeros.inclusion.gob.es/es/modelossolicitudes/mod_solicitudes2/