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EU REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE · COSTA DEL SOL

The green certificate — your name in Spain’s book.

If you’re an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen staying more than three months, this small green paper is what makes you a resident on record — and it carries your NIE. We handle the EX-18, the padrón, the health-cover question and the maddening cita previa, and hand you the certificate the office actually accepts — in plain English.

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It’s not a TIE. It’s not a photo card. It’s a modest green sheet — and half of Spain’s admin quietly won’t begin until it exists.

A SHORT STORY (NOT ABOUT PAPERWORK)

The woman who drank at the bar for a year before anyone knew her name

There was a woman who moved to a small town and, every evening, took the same stool at the same bar. She tipped kindly, she knew the regulars by sight, she was as much a fixture as the clock on the wall. And yet, for the best part of a year, she was «the lady in the corner» — welcome, familiar, and entirely anonymous.

One quiet night the owner slid a battered ledger across the bar — the book where he wrote the names of the people the town considered its own. «Put your name in it,» he said. She did. Nothing about her evening changed; she drank the same drink on the same stool. But from that night the barman called her by name, kept her a seat, and let her run a tab. She hadn’t become part of the town by turning up. She’d become part of it the moment she was written down.

Belonging, it turns out, is half showing up and half being on record. She’d done the first for a year. The book did the second in one line.

The EU registration certificate is that line in the book. As an EU citizen you already have the right to be in Spain — nobody’s deciding whether you’re welcome. What the green paper does is write you down: name, address, NIE, the date you became a resident on record. Simple as it looks, almost everything else waits on it.

WHAT YOU NEED

The EU registration certificate requirements, in plain English

Four things. The one that trips people up isn’t the form — it’s proving the right category, especially if you’re not working.

You’re EU, EEA or Swiss

The certificate is only for citizens of the EU, the EEA (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein) or Switzerland who intend to stay in Spain more than three months. Your non-EU spouse, partner or relatives don’t use this form — they apply for the EU Family Member Card instead, which we also handle.

A reason to be here

If you work, you show employment or self-employment (a contract, an alta as autónomo, or company registration). If you’re not working — retired, living off means, studying — you show sufficient financial means so you won’t be a burden, plus full health cover.

Full health cover

Public cover if you’re contributing or entitled through work or a pension, or a full private policy from an insurer authorised in Spain. Non-working applicants must have comprehensive cover in place. We confirm which route fits you before you book the appointment.

The paperwork itself

Form EX-18, a valid passport or national ID, your empadronamiento (padrón) certificate, proof of the above, and the fee paid on tasa Modelo 790 código 012. We confirm the exact means figure and the current document list at the time you apply — the details move, the shape doesn’t.

The means threshold and documentary requirements are set by current Spanish law and confirmed at the time of application. The fee is paid on tasa Modelo 790 código 012.

HOW IT WORKS

From first check to permanent resident

1

Quick eligibility check

Ten minutes to confirm you’re on the EU route (not the TIE route your non-EU spouse would take), which category you fall under — worker, self-employed, means, student — and exactly what each one has to prove.

2

Dossier & the 790/012

We assemble the EX-18, your padrón, means or work evidence and health cover, then generate and settle the Modelo 790 código 012 fee so nothing is missing on the day.

3

Cita previa & appearance

We request the cita previa at the Oficina de Extranjería or Policía Nacional — the scarce, maddening part — and brief you on exactly what to hand over and say. The certificate is issued by the police, not by us; our job is to leave them no reason to say no.

4

After five years: permanent

The certificate doesn’t expire, but after five years of continuous legal residence you can register as a permanent resident — a stronger status. We flag the date so you claim it rather than forget it.

FREQUENTLY ASKED

The questions we get first

Is the EU registration certificate the same as a TIE?

No. As an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen you get the Certificado de Registro de Ciudadano de la Unión — a small green A4 paper (or, in some offices, a green credit-card-sized certificate). It shows your name, address, nationality, NIE and the date of registration. It is not a photo ID card and it is not a TIE. The TIE is for non-EU nationals. If someone tells you an EU citizen needs a TIE, they’ve confused the two routes.

When do I actually need it?

If you’re an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen planning to live in Spain for more than three months, registration is compulsory — you’re meant to register within that window. In practice you also need the certificate (and the NIE on it) for the ordinary business of living here: signing a long-term rental or buying property, contracting utilities, dealing with the tax office, or starting work. It’s the paper that turns you from a visitor into a resident on record.

What documents and fee are involved?

The core of it is form EX-18, a valid passport or national identity document, your empadronamiento (padrón) certificate, evidence for your category — a work contract, self-employment registration, or proof of sufficient means plus full health cover — and the fee paid on tasa Modelo 790 código 012. Because the exact means figure and the accepted evidence are set by current rules and updated over time, we confirm both at the time of application rather than quoting a number that may have moved.

I’m not working — how much money do I need to show?

Non-working applicants — retirees, the financially independent, some students — have to show sufficient means so as not to become a burden on Spain’s social assistance, together with full health cover for the whole period. There is a reference figure, but it’s tied to Spanish indicators and reviewed periodically, so we verify the current amount and the form your evidence should take (pension statements, bank balances, income) before you file. We’d rather confirm the live figure than have you rely on last year’s.

My spouse isn’t an EU citizen — do they register the same way?

No, and this is the most common mix-up. The non-EU family of an EU citizen — spouse, registered partner, children, dependent relatives — don’t use the EX-18 green certificate. They apply for the Tarjeta de Familiar de Ciudadano de la Unión (EU Family Member Card) under Royal Decree 240/2007, which is a photo card and a different process built on proving the family link. We handle that route too, and if a family is split across both, we run the two applications side by side.

Does the certificate expire or need renewing?

The green certificate itself doesn’t carry an expiry date the way a TIE does, so there’s no routine renewal. What does change is your status over time: after five years of continuous legal residence you can apply to register as a permanent resident, which is a firmer footing and worth claiming. If you move house you should also update your address. We keep the five-year date on file so it becomes a plan rather than a surprise.

Alberto García López

Reviewed by a lawyer

Reviewed by Alberto García López

Immigration lawyer · ICA Málaga, reg. no. 11.441

We check every page against current Spanish law. This is general information, not advice on your individual case.

Globalium is an independent law firm, not a government agency, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any public administration. Visas, permits and identification numbers are granted solely by the Spanish authorities, and you are free to apply to them directly yourself. Our fees pay for legal advice and representation, and are separate from any official fee or tax.

Signature of Alberto García López
LET'S GET YOU ON RECORD

Tell us your situation. We’ll get the file right.

A straight answer on which category you fall under, what you’ll need to prove, and how we request the cita previa — before you spend an afternoon in a queue for the wrong form.

Book a chat (in English)

+34 667 77 02 19 · infoglobalextranjeria@gmail.com

P.S. — being an EU citizen means you have the right to be here. The green certificate just makes sure Spain’s paperwork agrees with you. Best to get it said in writing.