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Guide for Expats in Spain Learning the Language in Spain
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More on Legal Issues in Spain
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Who needs to empadronarse in Spain? Anybody residing in Spain – legally or illegally – should register with their local community’s padrón (city roll/city register). The information provided is strictly confidential, so non-EU citizens without legal residence should not worry about registering. Each city or district requests the information for statistical purposes – the more people registered, the more money that district receives to provide benefits to its residents (legal or not).
When you empadronarte (register with the town hall), you’ll receive a volante de empadronamiento free of charge. This temporary certificate is proof of your stay in Spain. You can request a certificado de empadronamiento, possibly for a fee, if you want the official document. The certificado de empadronamiento is needed as proof of your place of residence when dealing with certain judicial, military, or foreign bodies.
However, the temporary certificate will do for most local processes (e.g., getting license plates, obtaining a discounted pass to the municipal sports complex, etc.).
For non-legal residents, the main benefit of empadronamiento is that you can verify your stay in Spain in cases of general amnesties or mass-normalization of immigrants. (For example, in 2005, Spanish president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero granted residency to illegal immigrants who could prove – among other things – that they had been empadronado in Spain since Aug. 8, 2004.)
Being empadronado is also a requirement for certain activities, including: Enrolling your children in local schools. Getting married in your local (Spanish) community. Applying for a local health card. Voting in your community’s elections.
How to empadronarse Go to your local ayuntamiento (town hall) or, in bigger cities, the junta municipal (neighborhood administrative office). Some cities (such as Madrid) allow you to register online or submit documents by post – though the times I tried doing it, there was always some sort of snag (the system was down, I had to fax in accompanying documents, or I wasn’t eligible because of one reason or another). The easiest thing is to apply in person – you may have to waste an hour or two waiting in line, but you’ll be certain that everything is order, and you’ll get your volante de empadronamiento immediately. |
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What to bring Completed hoja de empadronamiento, which is available at the ayuntamiento or junta municipal or online (in some cities). ID (passport, national identity card, NIE, etc.) – original and one copy. For passports, a copy of the photo page is sufficient. For ID cards that are double-sided, you need a copy of each side. Proof of where you live in Spain (a lease with your name on it or the deed to a house you own). If your name is on the lease, you also need to bring a copy of a utility bill in your name. If you are renting a room in a shared flat and your name is not on the lease, you can bring in a copy of the lease and have your flatmate or landlord verify that you are living there. For this, they will have to sign your hoja de empadronamiento and give you a copy of their ID. They do not need to accompany you when you register (but they can if they want to).
What happens next? If you are a non-EU citizen and do not have permanent residence in Spain (autorización de residencia permanente), you need to renew your registration every two years. Those with permanent residence and/or EU citizenship do not need to renew their empadronamiento.
If you move to another address in the same community or leave Spain, you should notify the town so they can modify your registration or remove you from their list.
If you move to a different town or city in Spain, you do not need to remove yourself from the registration of your old town. It is done automatically when you empadronarte in the new town.
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