Spain · Moving from the UK
Moving to Spain from the UK starts with a residence visa, applied for in person before you leave, because without one British citizens are visitors limited to 90 days in any 180. Once you arrive, you register on the town hall's padrón and apply for a TIE residence card within a month, then sort out healthcare, banking and your driving licence in the first 90 days.
Looking at a home in Spain? Four quick questions, then Rory tells you plainly what your budget reaches and whether the timing works.
See what fits →The shift from visiting to living in Spain falls into two busy windows: the visa months before you go and the first 90 days after you land. Three legal deadlines then run from your arrival or residence: one month to apply for the TIE, six months to exchange a UK driving licence, and twelve months to bring in belongings free of import duty and VAT.
| When | What to do | Who deals with it |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months before | Decide between living in Spain and wintering there as a visitor. Get a State Pension forecast and list every pension, account and investment you hold. | You; GOV.UK |
| 6 to 3 months before | Apply for the residence visa in person. Time the ACRO police certificate (no older than six months) and the medical certificate (issued within three months of applying). The consulate has two months by law to decide, longer if it asks for more documents or an interview. | Spanish consulate in London, Edinburgh or Manchester |
| 3 months before | Have pets microchipped and vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days before their health certificate. Start a dated, valued inventory of what you will ship. | Your vet; removals firm |
| Final month | Send HMRC form P85, tell your council and the DWP, and ask banks and pension providers what changes. Enter the EU within 10 days of the pet health certificate being issued. | HMRC; council; DWP; official vet |
| First weeks in Spain | Register on the padrón and collect the certificate. | Town hall (ayuntamiento) |
| Within one month of entry | Apply in person for your TIE; fingerprints are taken. | Foreigners' office or police station |
| By day 90 | Register your S1 with INSS and get a health card, open a Spanish bank account, register as an overseas voter and apply to exchange your driving licence. | INSS; bank; UK electoral office; DGT |
| Later deadlines | Your UK licence stops being valid six months after you become resident; belongings must be declared within 12 months to keep the relief. | DGT; Agencia Tributaria |
Timings without a legal deadline are suggestions. The deadlines come from Spain's immigration regulation (TIE), the DGT (licence) and the Agencia Tributaria (belongings); visa document rules come from the Spanish consulate in London.
Without a visa you are a visitor, allowed 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area; our 90-day rule guide helps you count them. The EU's Entry/Exit System, fully operational since 10 April 2026, takes your fingerprints and photo and logs every entry and exit, so your time in the area is tracked automatically.
Living in Spain needs a residence visa, applied for in person in the UK. If you will not work in Spain, that is normally the non-lucrative visa, which has an income test and a health-cover rule; the full requirements are on our Spain visa page. Buying a home no longer brings residence, because the investor 'golden visa' route closed on 3 April 2025 (Ley Orgánica 1/2025). The visa gets you in, but you still have to register once you arrive, and for a British resident of Spain only a TIE card gives exemption from EES registration at Schengen borders.
Padrón. Every British citizen resident in Spain must be on the municipal register (padrón municipal) at their town hall. Register at your usual address, whether you own or rent; you can only be registered at one. The certificado de empadronamiento you receive is needed for public healthcare and to register a vehicle, and offices often ask for one issued in the last three months.
NIE. Your foreigner's identity number is your unique personal identifier in Spain and must appear on the documents issued to you, including the TIE (Reglamento de Extranjería, article 205). How to apply for one before you move, for example to buy a home, is covered in our NIE guide.
TIE. If you arrive on a residence visa, you must apply in person for your foreigner's identity card within one month of entering Spain (Reglamento de Extranjería, article 37). Book the appointment with a police station or the provincial foreigners' office (oficina de extranjería); your fingerprints are taken, and GOV.UK says approval can take several weeks.
Appointments are the bottleneck. GOV.UK suggests checking the booking system regularly, logging in with a Cl@ve digital ID, or using a gestor or immigration lawyer, and says you can complain to the central government's representative in your province if none appear.
If you receive the UK State Pension, an S1 form moves the cost of your Spanish state healthcare to the UK. Ring NHS Overseas Healthcare Services and ask for the application form: +44 (0)191 218 1999, Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm and Saturday 9am to 3pm.
The Spanish consulate in London accepts the receipt for an S1 registered on the Social Security website as the health cover for a non-lucrative visa, so a pensioner can register first and use the receipt in the application. If registration stalls and you need urgent treatment, GOV.UK says to call Overseas Healthcare Services on the number above.
A GHIC or EHIC is not a substitute: both are for temporary stays, and Spain's health ministry says the European card cannot be used to establish residence. If you are not yet drawing the State Pension, private insurance, the paid convenio especial and what each costs are compared in our guide to retiring in Spain.
Once you have your NIE and padrón certificate, open a Spanish account and ask the bank what it needs from you as a resident. To move your State Pension to it, give the International Pension Centre the new bank details, such as the IBAN, by phone or letter; changes cannot be sent by email.
There are good reasons to keep a UK account. HMRC sends refund cheques only to UK addresses, and most can only be paid into a UK bank account in your name or your nominee's, so naming a relative as nominee helps.
Your UK bank or pension provider should contact you if it needs to change how it pays you now that you live in the EU, but ask each one before you go. Once you are tax resident in Spain, your UK accounts and investments may also need reporting to the Spanish tax agency; the thresholds are in the tax section of our retirement guide.
A UK licence stays valid in Spain for six months from the date you become resident, and to keep driving after that you must exchange it for a Spanish one (DGT). The UK is on Spain's list of countries with an exchange agreement, concluded by an exchange of notes in Madrid dated 15 March 2023, and the swap involves no theory or practical test.
Apply to the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) well before the six months are up, because processing takes time and you need the Spanish licence to drive legally. You will need a check code from the DVLA, or from the DVA for a Northern Irish licence.
Two catches: you cannot renew or replace a UK licence while you live in Spain, and a licence you obtain after becoming legally resident in Spain cannot be exchanged. If you hold a UK Blue Badge, return it to the authority that issued it.
Pets. A dog, cat or ferret needs a microchip, fitted before or with its rabies vaccination, then a wait of at least 21 days before an official vet issues an animal health certificate. The certificate must be used to enter the EU within 10 days and covers onward travel within the EU for six months (GOV.UK, as of September 2026). A pet passport issued in Great Britain is not accepted, Spain does not require tapeworm treatment for dogs, and no more than five pets can travel in a private vehicle unless you are attending or training for a competition, show or sporting event.
Belongings. Household goods can enter free of import duty and VAT under transfer-of-residence relief if you have lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months and have owned and used the goods for at least six. You claim it on the import declaration itself, backed by a detailed list of the goods with estimated values and rough purchase dates.
Declare the goods within 12 months of settling in Spain, or before the move if you undertake to settle within six months and lodge any security deposit customs asks for. For a year afterwards they cannot be lent, pledged, hired out or transferred without telling customs, and alcohol, tobacco and commercial vehicles are excluded (Agencia Tributaria). As proof that you have left the UK, it accepts a document notifying a UK authority of your move, such as your tax or pensions office, with your TIE or TIE application as proof of residence in Spain.
Keep copies of every notice you send, because they are the evidence Spanish customs asks for. If you later return to live in the UK, deregister from the padrón, tell the foreigners' office and your health centre, and ask NHS Overseas Healthcare Services to cancel your S1.
Weighing up a home in Spain?
Rory speaks to every buyer before anyone is introduced: fifteen minutes, your budget and your timing, and a straight answer on whether it fits.
Talk to us about Spain →To live there you need a residence visa, applied for in person at a Spanish consulate in the UK before you travel; people who will not work in Spain normally use the non-lucrative visa, which has an income test and needs health cover. After arriving, you register on your town hall's padrón and apply for a TIE residence card within one month of entry.
Not to live there. Without a visa, British citizens are visitors limited to 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area, and the EU's Entry/Exit System, fully operational since 10 April 2026, records each entry and exit. People who were already living in Spain before 1 January 2021 have Withdrawal Agreement rights and follow different rules.
For six months from the date you become resident. After that you must exchange it for a Spanish licence to keep driving, which the UK–Spain agreement allows without a test. Apply to the DGT before the six months end, with a check code from the DVLA (or the DVA in Northern Ireland), because a UK licence cannot be renewed while you live in Spain.
Yes, if you are leaving the UK to live abroad permanently. If you do not normally file Self Assessment, use form P85; if you do, complete the residence pages (SA109) with your return. HMRC then works out any refund due for the tax year you leave. Tell your council as well, so Council Tax stops.
Yes. Your dog needs a microchip, a rabies vaccination given at least 21 days before an official vet issues an animal health certificate, and you must enter the EU within 10 days of that certificate. A pet passport issued in Great Britain is not accepted, Spain does not require tapeworm treatment, and up to five pets can travel in a private vehicle.
Yes, if you qualify for transfer-of-residence relief: you must have lived outside the EU for 12 consecutive months and owned and used the goods for at least six. Declare them within 12 months of settling, with a detailed inventory, and do not lend, sell or hire them out for a year without telling customs. Alcohol, tobacco and commercial vehicles are excluded.
Last checked 2026-09-28. Rules and rates change; this is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm your own position with an independent Spanish lawyer or tax adviser before you act.