Spanish NIE Application FAQ

Our Service

What is a NIE?

An NIE Number is a tax identification number to be used in Spain. Prior to purchasing a property, selling a property, obtaining a mortgage, starting up a business or working in Spain, it is a requirement by law that every individual possess an NIE Number. The application process is laborious and time consuming, and without the use of a service such as ours, would require normally two trips to Spain, and over 10 hours of waiting in queues, along with the filling out of complex application forms.

The actual NIE Number, when produced from a National Police Station in Spain is printed out on a piece of paper, and this sheet of paper is often used as a form of identity. Once you have been issued an NIE number, it is yours for life.

Everywhere on the internet it says that you have to apply in person for your NIE Number? Is this true?

Yes, this is certainly the case. Without question the Spanish law states very clearly that the person must apply for the documents in person. However, the Spanish law also clearly states that a legalised, Spanish power-of-attorney document enables any individual to be represented by another for all legal purposes in Spain (as long as it is declared as such within the power-of-attorney). Therefore through virtue of these combined laws, we are able to apply for a NIE number on your behalf without the need for you to be in Spain.

A translation of the Minister of the Interior website's 3rd paragraph, 2nd point which is detailing who may apply for an NIE Number clearly states:

• Those (applications) that are presented in Spain by the representative appointed by the applicant with evidence that the applicant is not in Spain.

You should also note that, regardless of the clearly stated laws, many local branches of the national police throughout Spain choose not to allow this, which is why some lawyers are unable to act on your behalf for this purpose.

How long does the procedure take?

Once we have received your documents (POA and copies of passports - both legalised) the NIE number is obtained within 10 business days (which equates to normally 2 weeks, exceptions made for public and bank holidays).

Prior to sending the documents to us, they must be notarised (by a Notaary Public in your area) and then stamped with the Hague Apostille. Through a series of notaries that we work with throughout Europe and the UK, this process can be expedited to be as quick as 3 business days.?

What will be the total cost of applying through you?

Our standard fees are as follows:

• NIE Application - 130 € / each (Taxes included)
• Postage Costs: from 6 € (post office) to 15-45 € (courrier)
• Power of attorney and legalisation costs - anything from 45 € to 200 €

Please use our fees calculator to get an exact quotation.

Do I need to send photos for my NIE number card?

No you do not need to send photos to apply for the NIE number.

The NIE number is in fact not a card at all. Rather it is a sheet of A4 paper bearing your details (as outlined on your passport) as well as an official stamp from the National Police of Spain. This original document is an extremely important item of identification in Spain, even though it does not include any photo. Your passport and/or eventually your residence card used in conjunction with your NIE number is generally sufficient for most functions to do with government & taxation in Spain(such as purchasing a property in Spain, paying taxes, selling a property in Spain, etc.).

Do you return the original documents (POA and copy of passport)?

We can of course return these documents to you together with your NIE application. However, we would like to keep them in order to be able to apply for your NIE number again in the event it gets lost in the post, or you happen to lose it.

What happens if the NIE gets lost in the post?

In this very rare instance, we would simply re-apply for a duplicate with the same power of attorney and passport copy.

What happens if I have lost my NIE Number?

Applying for a duplicate NIE number is the same process as applying for the first time. One thing to watch out for however, albeit most of the time this goes without saying, is that the same details are put on the second application form as the first because if not, they police will have problems in issuing the same number if they cannot prove 100% that it is the same person.

I am an EU Citizen, what documentation do you need from me?

As an EU citizen, in order to obtain an NIE Number on your behalf, we will require only a notarised, legalised power of attorney document (which we will draft for you) and a notarised, legalised copy of your passport. There is nothing further required.

I am an NON-EU Citizen, what documentation do you need from me?

As a non-EU citizen, in order to obtain an NIE Number on your behalf, we will require a notarised, legalised power of attorney document (which we will draft for you), a notarised, legalised copy of your passport (photo and info page only), a full copy of your passport (all pages - email or fax is fine for this purpose), documented evidence (or proof of) why you require an NIE Number. In the case of a property purchase, a private purchase contract, a letter from a mortgage company, or similar type of document will suffice. If you are uncertain about exactly what type of documentation is required, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Power of Attorneys

What is a Power of Attorney?

A Power of Attorney is a document that (when notarised) is legally binding and grants an individual (or group of individuals) the right to act on behalf of a person for the stipulated tasks or responsibilities that are outlined within the Power of Attorney itself.

Note that one should take great care in sigining any power of attorney to ensure that the "Powers" granted are ONLY for the purpose that is intended. For the purposes of NIE Number Direct, the power that is required is simply:

"... to REPRESENT the person granting Power of Attorney before any public office and in particular the offices of the Ministry of the Interior with the object of obtaining a Certificate of Non Residence and a Foreigners Identification Number."

How do I go about legalising my notarised documents with the Hague Apostille Stamp?

Regardless of where you live, many notaries will offer this service to you for an additional fee. Many also are capable of obtaining the Apostille much faster than via standard post. If you do not happen to live near the appropriate government body for your country, then it may be wise to contact us for a list of notaries in your area.

 If you are living in the UK you can do one of the following: 

• Send the documents to the FCO in London with a stamped addressed envelope – this process takes about a month.  For detailed information about how to do this, please follow this link: FCO Applications by Post Page
• Go in personally to the FCO where they offer a same-day service.  Note the FCO is located at:  The Legalisation Office - Old Admiralty Building - The Mall - London SW1A 2LG The Public Counter
  
• Ask your notary if they can provide this as an additional service to you.

If you are living in Ireland:  

• Send the documents to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Dublin with a stamped addressed envelope – this process takes about a month.  For detailed information about how to do this, please follow this link: How-To
• Go in personally to the DFA where they offer a same-day service.  Note that there are now two locations in Ireland where you can do this:
• • Passport Office Cork  -  Consular Services - 1A Southmall Cork - 021 4944 765
  • Consular Section - Department of Foreign Affairs - Hainault House - 69 - 71 St. Stephen's Green - (01) 408 2174
    
• Ask your notary if they can provide this as an additional service to you.

If you are living in another country:

• Contact us for more information

 It is important to note that the various methods of legalising your documents have different associated costs.

How much does a Notary charge for a POA?

POA costs vary from country to country:

In the UK you can expect to pay:

• English Notary Fees: 100 pounds
• Apostille aquisition: 27 pounds per document
• Sending of the documents to our office via standard registerred post: 5 pounds
  

In Ireland you can expect to pay

• Irish Notary Fees: 80 Euro
• Apostille aquisition: 20 Euro per document
• Sending of the documents to our office via standard registerred post: 10 Euro

For other countries, please contact us.

How do I go about finding a Notary?

• If you are in the UK, you can find a notary. throught the The Notary Society. If you wish us to reccomend a Notary in the UK, please jump to the next FAQ.
• If you are in Ireland, follow this link to find a list of notaries in Ireland.
• If you are in Spain, please visit the notariado.org website.
• For other countries, please contact us.

Can you recommend a Notary in the UK?

We sure can. We currently work in association with the following Notaries. They offer an extremely professional service and have experience in dealing with power of attorneys for NIE applications. Their rates are also very reasonable.

Applying in Person

Can't I just come to Spain and apply for it myself? How complicated is it?

Of course anyone that can enter Spain legally can apply for their own NIE number. To do this, they must present themselves at the National Police Station in whatever town they are living. Unfortunately, contrary to countries such as England and Ireland, there is very little standardization for exactly how the physical process of application works from one police station to the next, so if you chose to apply in person, please make sure you find out beforehand which are the requirements to apply for a NIE Number at your local police station. This will save from having to arrange several trips to have your application presented, with the corresponding lengthy queues.

What will be the total cost of applying in person in Spain

The breakdown below is an estimate of what will cost you apply in person in Spain.

• Airplane Tickets (flight to APPLY for the NIEs): 60 - 300 € per person
• Airplane Tickets (flight to COLLECT the NIEs): 60 - 300 € per person
• Transport to and from the airport - 40 - 120 €
• Hotel Room - 50 - 200 € per double room per days (2 days required)

Applying in person can cost you anything between 300 € and 1,000 €, not to mention the time you will be wasting travelling and queueing up!

I've been told I can apply through the Spanish consulate. Is this true? If yes, what benefits does your service offer over applying through a Spanish consulate?

Yes, this is entirely true. The primary benefit of using our service as opposed to applying through a Spanish consulate is speed. The average time required for an individual to obtain their NIE number via applying through a Spanish consulate is 12 weeks. This varies from one country to the next, we encourage people to contact their closest Spanish consulate first and enquire about their turnaround time.

Can I get a temporary NIE number at the consulate to sign the deeds of my property?

This is not possible. The NIE that you are issued initially is the same NIE for the rest of your life. Even if you lose the document and apply for a new one, the same number will be issued to you again. Therefore there is no such thing as a temporary NIE.

If you need the NIE for signing title deeds in Spain, as soon as we have submitted the application, we can send a stamped copy to the sellers, mortgage broker, lawyer or whomever is demanding the NIE as proof that the NIE is on the way. This usually pacifies the situation until the document is issued.