Spain has been and continues to be a very important destination for migratory movements. Both its location and its climate or even its language can be ingredients for its attractiveness. But after landing the plane, disembarking from the ship or turning off the car engine, what are the first three things you should do when you come to Spain?
At Audacia Abogados, we carry out our work with foreign citizens and that is why we refer to giving you some tips if you want to live for a long period of time in this country.
The first thing is that you must find a place to live and register through the registration certificate. This document is vital, both so that you can promote your residence permit and so that your children can enroll in school and you can start building your new life here. The also called padrón, supposes that you are registered as a person who lives in a certain dwelling in the municipal term of a Spanish city. It is normal that you cannot buy a home right away, so you must sign a rental contract, which would help you to manage the registration in Torrevieja. You should keep in mind that staying with countrymen and trusting that it will be enough is not always a good option. You must thoroughly review your chances of renting a home in order to formalize the rest of the documentation necessary to live legally in Spain.
The second most important thing is that you process to obtain the NIE number. It is a tax identification number that becomes your stamp in Spain and that will be incorporated into your residence permit, allowing you to buy or sell a home, open a bank account, etc.
The third, most important thing is that you contact a lawyer specialized in Immigration Law. Why? Because many times, for the sake of saving, we trust any acquaintance, countryman or simply person from a bar who advises us on how to legalize ourselves, and that is our biggest mistake. Immigration law requires that we act quickly and knowing well the procedure that corresponds to us (asylum, community, etc.) since otherwise we can miss the deadline and with it the opportunity to obtain our residence permit much easier. An error in this field, being advised by an "advisor" or a "friend who has been here a long time" can not only cause us to lose our moment, but it can condemn us to remain illegal and from there to any arrest by the authorities to be expelled from Spain. If you come from a country outside the European Union, this can mean a ban on returning to any country in the union for a period of up to 5 years.
You must bear in mind that legality reigns in Spain, here it is not possible to skip the steps or count on the help of someone you know in a relevant position. Therefore, you should always do things right, starting with your registration certificate, then obtaining your NIE number and finally contacting an expert lawyer in the field who will advise you and take your file. These are the first three things you should do when coming to Spain.
At Audacia Abogados we hope to have helped you, you can contact us here.
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