NIE verde in Spain: what it is, who needs it and how to get it

The NIE verde is not a residence permit or an identity document. It is a certificate showing that you have been entered in the Central Register of Foreigners, and only citizens of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland receive it. The document’s official name is the certificado de registro de ciudadano de la Unión; it is called “green” because of the colour of the paper. In correspondence with agencies you may see the abbreviation CRUE, from the initial letters of the name. It does not appear in official documents: neither the law nor the police website abbreviates the document this way, and in Spain itself these four letters mainly stand for the conference of university rectors.

For a reader with a Russian passport this is someone else’s procedure. It becomes yours in two cases: if you have acquired a second passport — Bulgarian, Romanian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Greek — or if your spouse is an EU citizen. In the second case the document will be a different one, and this is the main source of confusion on the subject.

Below: who gets what, which grounds the law recognises, how much it costs and why the demand to “show so much money” contradicts the text of the royal decree.

Moving with French or other EU citizenship: what to do step by step

With a passport from France, Bulgaria, Germany or any other EU country, you need neither a visa nor a residence permit to move to Spain: the right to live here comes from the EU treaties. The procedure is the same for all EU countries, and also for Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. How moving with a Bulgarian residence permit, long-term status or temporary protection differs is covered in our article on moving from Bulgaria to Spain.

1. Enter on your passport or national identity card. You do not need to register for the first three months.
2. Decide on your ground. The decree recognises four: employment or self-employment, sufficient funds with insurance, study, accompanying a family member. Details in the section “Who is entitled to register” below.
3. Complete municipal registration at your new address — how it works is explained in our article on municipal registration in Spain.
4. Apply in person within three months of entry: form EX18 at the foreigners’ office of your province or at a police station, fee of €12.00 on form 790, code 012.
5. Receive the green certificate with your NIE number — it is issued at the appointment.
6. If your spouse or children do not have EU citizenship, they submit form EX19 within the same period and receive a five-year family member card.

If you have French citizenship and are thinking about Spanish citizenship: a 2021 convention allows citizens of France and Spain to hold both passports. Details in our article on dual citizenship in Spain.

Three documents that are constantly confused

Document	Who it is for	What it gives	Fee
The NIE as such	any foreigner who needs a number for a transaction or taxes	only a number, with no right to live in Spain	€9.84
NIE verde, certificado de registro	citizens of the EU, EEA and Switzerland living in the country for more than three months	confirms registration in the register of foreigners and contains the NIE	€12.00
TIE for a family member of an EU citizen	spouses and relatives of an EU citizen who do not have EU citizenship	a five-year residence card with a photograph	€12.00

The difference is fundamental. An NIE number on its own does not give the right to live in Spain: it is also obtained by people who buy property without moving. More about it in a separate article: NIE in Spain: how to get a foreigner’s identification number.

Who is entitled to register

Article 7 of Royal Decree 240/2007 recognises four grounds. This is a closed list: there are no others.

• Employment or self-employment in Spain. The simplest ground: an employment contract or registration as autónomo (self-employed) settles the question of both income and healthcare, because it gives access to the public health system.
• Sufficient funds plus health insurance — for yourself and your family members, so as not to become a burden on the social assistance system. The insurance must cover all risks in Spain.
• Study at a public or recognised private educational institution, including vocational training. Plus insurance and a declaration of sufficient funds.
• Accompanying a family member who themselves falls under one of the three grounds above.

The decree separately describes when a person keeps worker status after stopping work: temporary incapacity, involuntary unemployment after a year of employment with registration at the employment service, involuntary unemployment after a fixed-term contract of less than a year — here the status is kept for at least six months — and vocational training related to the previous job.

How much money you need to show: an answer that does not exist

Articles on the subject usually give a specific amount tied to the IPREM indicator. The text of the decree says exactly the opposite.

With regard to sufficient economic resources, no fixed amount may be set: the citizen’s personal situation must be taken into account. In any case, this amount shall not exceed the level of resources below which Spaniards receive social assistance, or the amount of the minimum social security pension.

Royal Decree 240/2007, Article 7, paragraph 7

The practical conclusion. The law has no fixed threshold, only a ceiling: the authority may not demand more than the minimum pension or the social assistance threshold. In practice foreigners’ offices use the IPREM as a guide, and arguing at the counter is pointless — but it is useful to know that this is the authority’s guideline, not a legal rule: if you are refused, this very paragraph becomes the ground for an appeal.

The insurance itself, and how a private policy differs from the public system, is covered separately: health insurance in Spain and how healthcare works.

How to get it: procedure and deadlines

1. Keep within three months. The decree requires you to apply in person within three months of the date you entered Spain.
2. Book an appointment at the foreigners’ office of the province where you intend to live or, if there is no office, at the relevant police station.
3. Fill in form EX18 — the application for entry in the Central Register of Foreigners.
4. Pay the fee on form 790, code 012 — €12.00. You can pay at any bank or savings bank; you do not need to open an account, just present the form.
5. Bring your passport or national identity card — valid ones — and the documents for your ground: a contract, a certificate of registration as autónomo, an insurance policy and proof of funds, a certificate from the educational institution.
6. Receive the certificate on the spot. The law requires it to be issued immediately.

You should also complete municipal registration: without empadronamiento in many provinces you will not be able to register with a doctor or prove your address. How this works is explained in our article on municipal registration in Spain.

What exactly you will be given

The law lists the contents of the certificate item by item: name, nationality, address, NIE number and date of registration. That is all.

• The document has no photograph and is not an identity document. An EU citizen’s identity is proven by their passport or national identity card; the certificate only proves registration.
• It has no expiry date. It is not a card that gets renewed: the entry in the register has no time limit as long as you live in the country.
• The format depends on the province. Some issue a green A4 sheet, others a green credit-card-sized card. Legally it is the same document.
• Address and details are changed by application. If you move to another province, you report it and receive a certificate with the new address.

A spouse and children without EU citizenship

This is the most common case for our readers: one spouse has acquired an EU passport, the other has a Russian one. The second spouse gets not a certificate but a card — the tarjeta de residencia de familiar de ciudadano de la Unión.

What	How
Form	EX19
Application deadline	three months from the date of entry
Documents	valid passport, proof of the family relationship with an apostille and sworn translation, the registration certificate of the EU-citizen spouse, three colour photographs on a white background
Production time	up to three months from the date of application
Card validity	five years, or the EU citizen’s period of residence if shorter
Given to you straight away	a receipt of application, which is enough to prove legal stay

An important detail from the decree: the decision on such a card has retroactive effect. Residence is considered legal from the confirmed date of entry as a family member of an EU citizen, not from the date the card is issued.

The decree considers family members to be the spouse, a registered partner, direct descendants under twenty-one and older ones if dependent, and dependent parents. An unregistered partner does not qualify. What registering a partnership in Spain involves is explained in our article on pareja de hecho.

After five years: permanent residence

After five years of continuous legal residence in Spain, both the EU citizen and their family member gain the right of permanent residence. The key feature of this right is that it no longer depends on the Article 7 conditions: income, insurance and employment will no longer be checked.

The decree also lists cases where you do not need to wait five years:

• a worker has reached pension age or taken early retirement — provided they worked in Spain for at least the last twelve months and have lived there continuously for more than three years;
• a worker has stopped working because of permanent incapacity after living in the country for more than two consecutive years; if the incapacity results from an accident at work or an occupational disease with a Spanish pension, no period of residence is required at all;
• after three years of work and residence, the person works in another EU country while keeping their residence in Spain and returning at least once a week.

For an EU citizen this is not “permanent residence” in the sense understood by holders of an ordinary residence permit: they already have the right to live in the country under the EU treaty. A comparison with the Spanish path for third-country nationals is in our articles on Spanish residence permits and Spanish citizenship.

British and Swiss citizens

Swiss citizens are treated in the same way as EU citizens under the 1999 agreement on the free movement of persons: the procedure for them is the same.

UK citizens, after the UK left the EU, receive not the green certificate but a TIE card under the Withdrawal Agreement — that is what it is called in the list of fees, and it costs the same €12.00. Those who registered before Brexit exchange the old certificate for this card.

Frequently asked questions

Is the NIE verde a residence permit?

No. An EU citizen has the right to live in Spain under EU law, and the certificate only confirms that they have been entered in the register of foreigners. Nobody issues them a permit.

Can I live in Spain without it?

For up to three months, yes — no registration is needed. For longer than three months the decree expressly requires you to register. In practice, without the certificate you cannot open a bank account, be taken on at work or get a health centre card.

How much does it cost?

A €12.00 fee on form 790, code 012. For comparison: assigning an NIE number at the person’s own request costs €9.84.

Does it need to be renewed?

No, the certificate has no expiry date. It is replaced when your address or details change, and after five years of residence you can request a permanent residence document.

I have French citizenship. Do I need a visa and a residence permit to move to Spain?

No. A French citizen, like a citizen of any other EU country, needs neither a visa nor a residence permit. If you stay longer than three months, you must submit form EX18 within three months of entry and obtain the green certificate — the procedure is described above.

I am a Russian citizen. Can I get an NIE verde?

No. The green certificate is issued only to citizens of the EU, EEA and Switzerland. A Russian citizen can get either an ordinary NIE as a number, or a residence permit on one of the grounds, or, if their spouse is an EU citizen, a card as a family member of an EU citizen.

Can the certificate be used as an identity document?

No, it has no photograph. Your identity is proven by your passport or your country’s national identity card, and the certificate is carried together with it.

Official sources

• Royal Decree 240/2007 — Article 7 on the grounds and application deadline, Article 8 on the family member card, Article 10 on permanent residence
• Registration certificate on the National Police website — form EX18, where to apply
• Current immigration fees — €12.00 for the certificate, €9.84 for assigning an NIE

This article is for information purposes only and does not replace legal advice. Document requirements vary by province, and fee amounts are revised: check them as of your application date.