Moving to Spain from Germany: no visa, but the order matters.

What stays easy

No visa. One registration, and it is quick.

As an EU citizen you can live, work and retire in Spain without a visa or a work permit. The difficult part is not getting permission. It is doing things in the right order, so that nothing at home keeps running behind you.

Your first weeks in Spain

Five things, in this order.

• Register as an EU citizen. If you will stay more than three months, apply in person at the Foreigners’ Office (Oficina de Extranjería) or a designated police station, within three months of arriving. You receive the EU registration certificate, the ‘green certificate’, which carries your NIE. The fee is small (currently about €12) and the certificate does not expire. Book the appointment online, because waiting times vary by province.
• Show you can support yourself. You will say whether you are working, self-employed or studying, or that you have enough means and health cover for you and your family. There is no visa-style income formula, but you do need to be able to back up what you declare.
• Register at the town hall (padrón). Empadronamiento is your proof of address in Spain and opens the door to the health centre, school places and many local services.
• Sort healthcare and tax early. The public healthcare route that applies depends on whether you work, are retired or receive a pension from home. If you spend more than 183 days a year in Spain you will generally become Spanish tax resident, taxed on your worldwide income.
• Moving for work? Ask about the Beckham regime. It offers a flat 24% on Spanish employment income up to €600,000 for six tax years. You must not have been Spanish tax resident in the previous five years and you must apply within six months of starting work. Conditions apply, so take advice before you sign a contract.

Before you leave Germany

Before you leave Germany.

• Deregister (Abmeldung). Do it at the Bürgeramt within about two weeks of leaving. It is your proof of departure for insurers, banks and the tax office, and skipping it can leave Germany treating you as still resident.
• Health insurance. Statutory cover usually ends when you deregister, and your insurer may ask for proof of cover in Spain. If you are retired and receive a German pension, you can generally stay with your German statutory fund within the EU. If you have private cover and might return, ask about an Anwartschaft, which holds your place but does not pay for treatment.
• Pension. German statutory pensions can be paid to a Spanish bank account. You will be asked to return a life certificate once a year.
• Contracts and notice periods. Most leases need three months’ notice, and moving abroad does not shorten it. Cancel phone, energy and insurance contracts in good time.
• Tax. Germany and Spain have a double taxation agreement, but it does not remove the need to plan. Which country can tax which income depends on the type of income and where you are resident. Get written cross-border advice before your last day in Germany.

Coaching and guidance only, not legal, tax or immigration advice. Rules change, so confirm each point with the official authority or a licensed adviser before you act.