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EXPLAINED: Everything you have to update when you change address in Spain

Whether it’s getting new official documents, calling up or going online to register a change on the system, moving home within Spain involves quite a bit of paperwork you should know about. 

Published: 22 November 2021 13:41 CET
Updated: 3 October 2023 10:27 CEST
processes when you change address in Spain
There's a lot of paperwork involved in moving home in Spain, not just lugging heavy furniture. (Photo by LOIC VENANCE / AFP)

Padrón 

If you’re already based in Spain, you’ll be familiar with the town hall registration process called empadronamiento in Spanish. 

Even if you’re moving home within the same city or town, you should update your padrón document as they need to have a record of where you live for a number of official processes.

READ ALSO:

Residency document 

Spain’s Immigration Department does not state that changing an address is a justifiable reason for updating a residency document, whether it’s a green residency certificate or a biometric TIE card. 

However, some extranjería offices or police stations will say that it is necessary to get a new document. 

What is for certain is that foreign residents in Spain, whether EU or non-EU residents, should at least notify police of their change of address by getting an appointment at their local immigration office. 

In the case of Spanish IDs (DNI) and passports, it’s not mandatory to change the documents but it is recommended and free of cost. 

Driving licence 

Even though Spanish driving licences don’t usually include the driver’s address, anyone who moves home in Spain should update their details at the Directorate General of Traffic (DGT).

That’s because the DGT needs the correct address to send you fines and other important notifications relating to deadlines, changes etc. 

You’ll also have to change your vehicle’s address as this determines how much you have to start paying in driving tax (Impuesto de Circulación) in your new town or city, and as a resident you may gain some advantages in terms of parking in the street. 

The process is free of charge and you will need to show a rental contract, padrón or similar document to prove the change of address. 

It’s one of a number of driving processes that can be done online. 

READ MORE: 23 official driving matters you can do online in Spain

Bank

Unless you want strangers to have access to any post you receive from your Spanish bank, it’s advisable to update your details at your closest bank branch and change your postal address.

READ ALSO: What are the main reasons bank accounts get blocked in Spain?

Social security and tax

In order to be assigned a doctor at the health centre closest to your new home, you’ll have to update your social security details either in their offices or online. 

If you change regions within Spain, this will also involve applying for a health card for your new autonomous community. 

Changing your fiscal address is just as important, especially if you relocate to a different autonomous community in Spain as each one has its own tax conditions. 

But even if you don’t move to another region with different fiscal requirements and just move to another part of your city or province, you should technically make sure to change your fiscal address as Spain’s tax agency needs to have an updated address to which to send you notifications by post. 

This applies to contracted workers and in particular self-employed workers, as they are entirely responsible for handling their own fiscal matters.

READ MORE: How do I change my tax address in Spain and when is it illegal?

Bills and subscriptions

If you don’t want to pay the water and electricity of the person that moves into your former home, you should make sure you let your suppliers know that you’re no longer renting or owning the property in question, and that direct debits should be paid by the landlord, new tenant or new owner. 

You’ll also have to do the same with your internet. Depending on your new home’s existing installation, you may be able to simply let your existing provider know without the need to cancel your subscription or for a new technician to be sent over, but first you should check how good their coverage is in your new neighbourhood. 

If you have property insurance you will have to update your address too and provide extra information such as the size of your new home.

Don’t forget either about changing your postal address for Amazon and similar online services. 

TIP: The government’s cambio de domicilio (change of address) website is extremely handy as once you update your new address it will send this to a number of Spain’s public administrations, such as the DGT traffic authorities, the social security department and the Agencia Tributaria tax agency. 

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VISAS

INTERVIEW: ‘There are three main alternatives to Spain’s golden visa’

What happens to foreigners on Spain’s golden visa now that the scheme will be scrapped? How about those in the process of applying and non-EU nationals considering buying a home and moving to Spain? The Local spoke to several experts to get the lowdown on what changes.

Published: 11 April 2024 13:09 CEST
INTERVIEW: 'There are three main alternatives to Spain's golden visa'

On Monday April 8th, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced that it will soon no longer be possible for foreigners to obtain Spanish residency by buying a €500,000 property in the country.

The latest government figures suggest that 14,576 wealthy non-EU nationals have obtained the golden visa by buying a half-a-million-euros home since the scheme launched in 2023, with a particularly big surge in visas granted over the last two years, which “raised the alarm”. 

The government says it’s about reducing price speculation in the property market but for the opposition it’s purely a political “smokescreen” at a time of rising property and rent prices that are affecting locals but not higher-earning foreigners in Spain. 

Q&A: When and why is Spain axing the golden visa?

“It won’t have the desired effect of freeing up property because golden visa holders are not competing usually at the prices where locals are being priced out; the culprits are Airbnb-style rentals.” Graham Hunt, who runs Valencia Property and has helped numerous clients process their golden visas, told The Local Spain.

“Most golden visa buyers we have had to buy a place to live in and not as a speculative investment. A few buy under the limit then complement it with a second rental property or garage space to make up the €500,000.”

Although a €500,000 property is certainly not within reach for most foreigners in Spain, the end of the golden visa scheme as we’ve known it means there are fewer visa choices for foreigners.

For Hunt, “a simple reform requiring golden visa residents to live for more than six months per year in Spain thus becoming tax residents would have sufficed to make it more lucrative for the government, while at the same time closing some of the loopholes of origin of funds which may have been a problem with Russian and Chinese applicants”.

The golden visa is the only visa that doesn’t require foreign residents to become tax residents in Spain, nor spend a minimum amount of time in Spain to keep residency (1 day a year to renew).

Maryem Essadik, an immigration lawyer for international law firm Marfour, told The Local: “this visa has brought a lot of foreign capital to Spain and the new measure stops the arrival of foreigners with great economic means and a high level of consumption”. 

So what now for those who already have a golden visa and those in the process of applying for it? Is it too late to get Spain’s golden visa at the last minute? And what other Spanish visas could high-income third-country nationals opt for?

What does this mean for people who already have the golden visa?

“Those who currently hold a golden visa will NOT be affected,” Gerard Martínez of immigration law firm Balcells Group stressed to The Local Spain. 

“They will keep their residency card and this measure will not affect them”.

Immigration lawyer Maryem Essadik added that “the residency authorisation of existing golden visa holders through investment in real estate is a guaranteed right and the new law cannot be more unfavourable than the terms applied to them at the time”.

Essadik told The Local that a clear and recent example of this happening is when “UK nationals legally residing in Spain when the UK left the EU were not affected, even though many had to carry out exchanges of their permits”.

Does anything change for people in the process of applying for Spain’s golden visa?

“In principle, applications being processed are assessed according to the law that was in force, unless retroactive measures are established by the new law,” Essadik states.

“It’s too early to go into detail, we have to wait for the law to be approved.”

Gerard Martínez of Balcells is more optimistic: “Those in the process of applying should not be affected either. The government will define a deadline until which this visa can be obtained, so those in the process can have enough time.”

Is it too late to buy a €500,000 Spanish home and apply for the golden visa? 

The golden visa was known as being perhaps the fastest residency authorisation to obtain in Spain – between 10 and 20 days – but of course you also have to factor in that choosing and purchasing a €500,000 property can take time.

“We still need to understand the timings the government sets for its modification,” Martínez admits, “but right now it is not too late, so now is the best time to obtain it, as we don’t know if in x months that option will still be available.”

According to Spanish daily El Periódico de España, the intention of Spain’s Housing Minister is to cancel the golden visa scheme as quickly as possible and to fast-track this process by attaching the legal amendment to another law, the upcoming modification of the Spanish Land Law (Ley de Suelo) which has already overcome some legal hurdles.

It’s worth noting however that the golden visa amendment isn’t a done deal yet and that legislative changes in Spain tend to take longer than expected. 

What are the alternatives to Spain’s golden visa?

“It depends on the circumstances of each person,” Hunt of Valencia Property told The Local Spain.

“But the easiest one if someone doesn’t need to work is the non-lucrative visa (NLV), and if they do need to work then they need to get themselves in a position to apply for the digital nomad visa (DNV).”

Martínez of Balcells Group agreed that the NLV and the DNV are two of the best choices, but added another important alternative: “the golden visa’s other investment categories will still work, so those higher net-worth individuals may still obtain residency by investing in Spanish companies or in Spanish debt”.

Although this is yet to be 100 percent confirmed, it does appear that the only category of the golden visa scheme that is set to be removed is that relating to property, as this is what the government has deemed problematic in terms of price speculation. 

Therefore, investing €1 million in shares in Spanish companies, or €2 million in government bonds, or transferring €1 million to a Spanish bank account, will still be likely to obtain Spanish residency through the golden visa for the time being.

READ ALSO: What the end of Spain’s golden visa means for foreigners

How do the non-lucrative visa and the digital nomad visa compare to the golden visa?

Spain’s golden visa has been considered the ‘easiest’ Spanish residency visa to obtain because it doesn’t take long to be processed, and as mentioned earlier it didn’t have the requirement of becoming a Spanish tax resident and no risk of losing residency for being out of the country (1 day a year). 

However, the non-lucrative visa and the digital nomad visa are two worthy alternatives for people with plenty of savings or high incomes. 

The non-lucrative visa doesn’t allow you to work but gives you Spanish residency if you can prove €28,000 in funds to cover your costs for the year, and €7,200 for every extra family member included on the residency application, as well as providing comprehensive medical insurance. 

Proving financial means and medical cover are also required for the golden visa.

Other perks of the NLV include the right to invest in Spain, freedom of movement around the Schengen Zone, a lower financial burden than the golden visa and the option of swapping over to a work of self-employed visa.

If you want to work from Spain, the digital nomad visa requires €2,646 in monthly earnings to be eligible, it enables you to live in the country for five years, you can also bring family members with and your partner has the right to work as well, among other perks such as freedom of movement around Schengen nations.

Non-lucrative vs digital nomad visa: Which one should you choose to move to Spain?

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