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Renewing a non-lucrative residency (NLV)

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We explain everything you need to renew your non-lucrative permit without problems

As we mentioned in our previous post about non lucrative visas, the initial residency is granted for a period of one year after which, if you want to remain in Spain with the same type of permit, you must apply for the renewal. 

CONDITIONS FOR RENEWING A NON-LUCRATIVE PERMIT

While the initial permit is granted for a year period with the renewal this temporary residency will be valid for 2 years.

To be able to renew a non-lucrative residency, the applicant must fulfil all the requirements initially met, for the duration of the new residency term of two years.

Mainly, the requirements are:

  • No criminal records
  • Sufficient economic means
  • Health insurance 
  • Live in Spain continuously 
  • Children of school age enrolled
  • Administrative fees paid

Below you have some considerations for each one of these items:

Renew a non-lucrative residency

SUFFICIENT ECONOMIC MEANS

For the initial residency, the amount requested is 400% IPREM. For the two-year period, the amount will double to 800% IPREM.

If the proof of economic means is done by savings or credits, the amount must cover the whole amount required for the two year period. Whereas, if the proof is provided from pensions, dividend, rent or other regular payments, not originated from a lucrative activity, the requirement is to have a monthly amount of 400%. 

In 2022 the monthly IPREM amount will be 579.02€.

CONTINUOUS RESIDENCE

To be considered continuously residing in Spain, you cannot leave the country for more than 6 months in a year period. 

In case of being out of Spain for more than 6 months, your residency can be revoked and therefore you cannot renew it. 

The annulment is not automatic, and the process starts at the moment the immigration office realizes that the renewal applicant has been out of the country for more than what is allowed. This would prevent the renewal process moving forward. 

HEALTH INSURANCE

As a rule, health insurance is requested for the residency permit, when the applicant is not a beneficiary of the Spanish public health system. 

The main requirement is to have health insurance with similar coverage as the services provided by the National Health System. Commonly, the health insurance will be private, but there are exceptions to this rule.

Ideally, care services including all primary attention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation activities as well as emergency health transport as part of basic care are preferable considering that those are the services included in the common portfolio of basic care of the SNS. 

CHILDREN OF SCHOOL AGE

If as a resident you have children in your family unit also living in Spain of school age, they must attend school. 

Proof of schooling will be requested at your renewal. 

PAID FEES

Every residency process has a correspondent fee to be paid as a requirement. 

If those fees are not presented with the application, they will be requested by the administration. 

VERY IMPORTANT: After 180 days in Spain, you become a fiscal resident. Compliance with your tax obligations might have an impact on your application in case you are not up to date with it. 

APPLICATION:

The renewal request is addressed to the immigration office from the locality the applicant lives in. 

It can be requested online, in person or in a public register.

The timeline to submit this application is 60 days before the permit expires and 90 days after.

Documents to be presented in the renewal are mainly:

  • EX01 form signed
  • Complete passport
  • TIE 
  • Proof of economic means
  • Health insurance
  • Paid fees

Those documents will vary depending on the personal circumstances of the applicant. E.g.: If they have family members, children, change their home address, etc. 

CHANGING YOUR STATUS 

In the case of not meeting the requirements for the renewal, what can be done?

The immigration act allows you to modify your non-lucrative permit to another type of residency once the initial year is due. 

In case you cannot meet the requirements for renewing but have a job offer or a business plan meeting all the needed requirements, you can request a modification of your status and change your residence authorization to a residency and work authorization. 

You can consult the requirements for each one of the residencies on the links below:

If you are not sure about your possibilities, book an appointment with us so we can review your options:

NLV next steps

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What to do after receiving a non-lucrative visa? (NLV)

In this previous post we listed some of the characteristics of the NLV and discussed its main requirements such as economic means and health insurance. 

If you are applying for the first time for this residency, this permit is granted for one year and it is renewable twice for two-year terms each time. 

When you apply from abroad and your application is successful, the embassy or consulate issues a visa that will enable you to enter Spain. Normally, this visa is issued for a period of 90 days in which you are expected to enter the country. 

But if the initial permit is granted for 1 year, why is the visa issued only for 90 days?

The non-lucrative visa is a national visa and as such, by general rule, they are issued for a maximum period of 90 days. 

Other national visas can be issued for a longer period because the law established this exception in their specific cases e.g.: Student’s visa can be issued up to 180 days.

How do I get my permit for a year from the 90 days visa? 

Once in Spain, you are expected to apply for a TIE which is an ID card. This card is the final step and once issued, it will display your details, address and the duration of your permit. 

TIE NLV

How to apply for my TIE?

To apply for your TIE you need to book an appointment online with the office in the locality you are living in to submit the application. 

In the selected date, you must attend in person to the appointment with original and copy of your passport, correspondent signed form (EX-17), paid fees and photos size 26x32mm. 

On some occasions, you will be requested to present your registration in the town hall (empadronamiento) to prove you are living where you stated. We recommend to always look to register prior to the appointment. 

At Extranjeros Hoy we can help you book your appointment; prepare the forms and fees you need to bring along to the appointment and guide you on the town hall registration. Contact us if you are interested.

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BREXIT – Changing your driving license in Spain

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If you are moving permanently to Spain and wondering what happens with your driving license, here is some information that might be helpful:

As we all know, on December 31st the transition period will come to an end and as of January 1st, the rules that used to be applicable to UK nationals as part of EU will change. (detailed information here)

When it comes to your driving license, until January 21st your British driving licenses are valid. You are not required to do any administrative procedure until then. 

As of January 21st, the applicable law is the one to non-EU countries and according to it, the validity of a driving license is for 6 months from the date of entry into Spain. 

What does it means for UK citizens:

  • If you are already a resident, you should apply to change your driving license for a Spanish one before the end of the transition period. 
  • If you are moving during the transition period, we recommend you to start the procedure as soon as possible, however, you would need to consider your entry date in Spain to know for how long your permit would be valid. 

PROCEDURE:

The interested person or someone on his/her behalf, would need to present the application in person at the DGT (equivalent to the DVLA). 

The appointment can be booked online at the DGT website or by phone (060).

Below is the documentation to start your application:

  • Form  (click here to download)
  • Id document (Passport and EU certificate), after transition period, your new TIE will be required.
  • Proof of residence. Here you can either present a certificate from the city hall (empadronamiento) or authorize the DGT to consult it with regards your address.
  • Driving license
  • Updated photo, size 32×26 cm 
  • Administrative fees of 28.30€ already paid

If you prefer or need to have someone else applying on your behalf, be aware that a specific authorization must be issued. 

Once you apply for your Spanish permit, the DGT will keep your old driving license and issue a provisional one, valid in the whole of Spain, to be used until the permanent one arrives via post to your home address. 

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If you’re interested, do not hesitate to contact us. 

BREXIT: Spanish legal residence for non-EU citizen, but as a UK national relative

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The Withdrawal Agreement stipulates the terms for The United Kingdom to leave the EU and as expected, it also impacts the principle of free movement granted to every EU citizen. 

As explained previously, it has been decided that British citizens would keep their freedom of movement in the terms of EU law until 31st December 2020, when the transition period is over. It includes, as expected the family members that would re-join the UK citizen in any EU country. 

In order to regulate an administrative process that would make the application of Article 18.4 from the Withdrawal Agreement feasible, the Spanish Government issued a legal instruction on July 4th that describes how to apply for a residency in Spain before Jan 1st 2021 and how to update the old TIE (tarjeta de identidad de extranjeros). 

If you are a family member of a British citizen but you are a national from a non-EU country, these are the steps to obtain/update your residency in Spain:

BREXIT: Spanish legal residence for non-EU citizen, but as a UK national relative

In EU law, communitarian family members of a certain degree are entitled to re-join the EU citizen to any country he/she decides to live if some minimum requirements are met.  

As mentioned before, the Withdrawal Agreement ensures that this free movement principle will be applicable to UK nationals until the end of the transition period and consequently, the family members rights are also included in this grace period. 

Below you can find all the possible scenarios and steps to follow if you are re-joining a British citizen and you are a family member in any of the following degrees:

  • Spouse
  • Son/daughter under 21 years old or older depending economically on the parents
  • Any family member that depends economically on the UK citizen
  • Any family member that has a severe incapacity and needs to re-join
  • Domestic partner registered or proven

Here are some possible scenarios:

Scenario 1:

Family member already with a legal residence for less than 5 years: 

In this case, the new document would be requested directly at the designated police office, present the following documents:

  • Form EX-23
  • Passport (original and copy of all pages,)
  • Fees payment (Form 790 code 012)
  • Photo

This document would be valid for 5 years and fall under the temporary category. 

In certain cases in which the interested party could demonstrate they have been in Spain for 5 years, a permanent residence could be requested. 

This permit would display the law in which iit s based and therefore it would include “emitido en conformidad con el artículo 18.4 del Acuerdo de Retirada”.

Scenario 2:

UK citizen family member with an expiring temporary Spanish residence card (end of the initial 5 years) 

In this case a two-step process would take place.

First of all, apply for permanent residence at the foreign office. Once granted the status, it would be necessary to have the TIE issued at the police station.

Sept 1: Immigration office

To file the petition, the person interested either must go in person to the immigration office or apply online. 

These are the documents to be presented:

  • Form EX-21
  • Passport (original and copy of all pages)
  • Documents that prove the continuity of the residence in Spain during these 5 years. (It will depend in each case and circumstances)

Once granted the right to the permanent residence, the TIE must be requested.

Step 2: at the police office

Same procedure described in scenario 1 in which the form 23 has to be presented with the mentioned documents to have the TIE issued. Additionally the administrative resolution must be presented as well. 

This TIE will also display the law that regulates it plus with the indication that it is permanent. 

It will be valid for 10 years and after this period it will be automatically renewed. 

Scenario 3:

Non-EU family member already living permanently in Spain. 

In this case, the residence document is already issued with the validity of 10 years and therefore a new TIE displaying the withdrawal agreement and the permanent status would be needed. 

The procedure would be the same in the first scenario and the request is presented by the person interested at the police office. 

Scenario 4:

UK family member, national of a non-EU country without a residence permit in Spain

In this case, also a two steps procedure would be needed. First to apply for the temporary residence and once granted, request the TIE expedition. 

When applying for residency, the applicant can submit the petition personally at the immigration office or online. 

In any case, the documents to follow the petition are:

  • Form EX-21
  • Passport (original and copy of all pages)
  • Document proving the degree of relatedness 
  • Economic means 
  • Health insurance in case that the UK citizen that grants the right to apply to this permit does not work in Spain. (Non-lucrative residences, pensioners, students)

Check here the requirements to obtain a legal residence in Spain under the EU law

Once the immigration office issue the administrative resolution granting the right to reside legally in Spain, then a TIE would need to be requested. 

As we mentioned before, to request the TIE the interested person needs to attend the police station to file in the application under form 23, passport, paid fees and photo. 

It will a temporary residence, valid for 5 years. Once it is due, it has to be renewed. 

We hope that this information is useful and helps to clarify some doubts. If you have any questions or concerns, we can help in the whole process. 

If interested, do not hesitate to contact us.

**Read this post in Spanish HERE!

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