Just to follow up:

Today, I went through the second-stage that one must pass through before obtaining the Residency card for family members of E.U. nationals.

One month after my visit to Extranjer?a, I was supposed to present myself at the Comisar?a de la Polic?a Nacional on Bosch & Guadalajara near Metro Diagonal in order to be fingerprinted and obtain the paperwork necessary to pay the administrative fee.  After waiting 3 hours, I was quickly processed by one person in less than 3 minutes.  I was fingerprinted. Then, I was given a ticket which I needed to bring to pick up my card in another office on Rambla de Guip?zcoa along with proof of payment of the administrative fee.

I was not asked for any more photocopies, nothing… and no questions were asked about having overstayed my original visa.

😊

thats great!! So do you have to wait 40 days for your card??

Do you know if you can work legally now until your card arrives?

Congratulations!

Hi Karen, I have to wait for the card :-(  Essentially, I have to wait another 30 days before i can pick it up at the designated office..

Will let you know if that promise holds up…

so far no glitches, hope it keeps up that way

😊

karen301081 - 07 April 2008 07:23 PM

thats great!! So do you have to wait 40 days for your card??

Do you know if you can work legally now until your card arrives?

Congratulations!

Hi there,
My husband picked up the card after 40 days and he went in and was literally 5minutes inside the immigration office to pick up his card. Its valid for him to live and work in the EU for 5 years.
Is your situation the same as ours?

I am sure everything will work out for you.

I will give you all the information that I have about getting married and obtaining a residency card here in Spain.  I am American, and my husband is Spanish (Canary Islands, Gran Canaria).  I have just finished up this rather grueling process and hope I can help anyone going through the same thing.  First, getting married.  Congratulations, prepare for more waiting and red tape than you have ever experienced.  What I needed (I had a civil, not religious, marriage):

-Valid Passport, 2 photocopies AND the original for verification (no need for translation, all relevant data in your passport is in English. Spanish, and French)

-Birth Certificate WITH the Apostille (there are several services that do this, look online, but make sure you get it for Spain).  This will have two sheets, your birth certificate, and a cover page with issued by your the Secretary of State of your State with a signature and seal affirming that the birth certificate is real, true, and correct.  This document must then be translated by an official (licensed) translator to be valid.  Do yourself a favor, request two copies.  This can be expensive.

-“Padron de Habitantes”.  Says who you are and your address in Spain.  For this you must go to your local Ayuntamiento (town hall).  Bring your Passport and a photocopy.  If the house is rented, bring the contract.  If it is owned, bring a light or water bill.  Go with the owner/leaseholder.  Pay the fee, fill out the form, and they will give you this paperwork.

-Declaration of Freedom to Marry “bans”.  This is just a piece of paper that says you are single and free to marry.  If you are divorced, you need translated proof.  Go to your local American Consul or Embassy and they will create this document for you.  It says that posting bans is something the States does not do, and that you are swearing in front of a witness that you are free to marry.  It will be in Spanish. 

-Residency over the last two year period.  Again, this is something the Consul or Embassy will do.  It is a sworn statement saying where you resided over the last two years.  Again, they will make it is Spanish.

-Your future spouses DNI (copy and original) and birth certificate (copy and origina)l. 

The application for marriage is to be made in your local Registro Civil (civil registry).  Bring all this paperwork (make copies of EVERYTHING), all Originals (they often check originals and then accept the photocopy after placing a stamp saying “original verified”).  Both applicants need to be present. 

Tricks and tips:  Go to your civil registry TODAY to make the appointment.  After spending 3 months preparing paperwork we went to the civil registry to be given an appointment to make the application 4 months into the future.  Also, specifically ask what will be needed to apply.  My list is complete if your are getting married in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and will probably be fine in most places, but Spain’s autonomous communities are just that, autonomous.  That is to say that LAWS VARY FROM PLACE TO PLACE.  Do yourself a favor and ask at the source (civil registry), do not find yourself surprised and waiting months more just because you are missing one little piece of paperwork. 

Make appointments with your Consul or Embassy.  They normally provide same day service but do not necessarily honor “walk ins”. 

Order your Apostilled birth certificate ASAP.  Look into official translation services (your consul or embassy can normally make a recommendation if you don’t know where to start), check prices, make an appointment, and get a firm table table for how long it will take. 

Remember that all ID documents should have at least 6 months of life left before expiring, and all paperwork, translations, and sworn statements should be no more than 3 months old.

The Process:  After the application is received, you will be called about having an interview.  They want to make sure the relationship is real.  They will ask basic questions of both partners about family, likes, dislikes, gifts, scars, and work.  Then they compare the answers…it should be easy if you are a real couple.  It will be in Spanish.  After passing this last step, you will be called, told your application is approved, and asked to select a date from what they have available.  Select a date, plan a wedding, and be sure to bring your passport (and your Spanish partner their DNI) on the big day.  We were given our Libro de Familia (Family Book) right after we said “si, quiero”, but I have been told this is unusual, and that it can normally be picked up from the civil registry after a few weeks. 

This post is running long, so I will start a new one to talk about the Residency Card.

Now, for the Residency Card.  As you are now married to a Spanish Citizen and presumably applying in your home community, you will be asking for a Tarjeta de Residencia de Familiar Comunitario.  This is done is your local Extranjeria (foreigners office).  Mine took walk-ins during the morning, but again, an appointment is always golden.  What you will need:

-Your partner must be with you when you make the application to sign it.  Fill out the application together, and sign.  Make sure your Spanish partner has their DNI and a photocopy.  They will check the original and take the photocopy.

-Bring your passport as well, but make a photocopy of EVERY page.  Yes, EVERY page.  I have no idea why, but that is what they want and need.  They will check the original and take the photocopies.

-Your Libro de Familia and a photocopy of the first four pages (that have the number and marriage information).  Again, the original is checked and photocopies taken.  If you have yet to receive your Libro de Familia you cannot make the application.  It can be picked up in your local Registro Civil (civil registry) shortly after the wedding (I was given mine right after the wedding, but I have heard this is rare).

-Certificado de Matrimonio LITERAL (literal marriage certificate).  Yes, your Libro de Familia is technically your marriage certificate, but they also want the nuts and bolts copy.  This can be picked up in the Registro Civil as well.

-Certificado de Convivencia con informe policial (A certificate that says you live with your spouse and verified by the local police).  This, for me, was the killer.  I did not know I needed it, and the police wanted 45 days to do it.  You have to go to your local Ayuntamiento (town hall), ask for the certificate (very similar to the padron de habitantes) and ask who to talk to about the police confirmation.  Most likely you will be directed to a police station office within the town hall.  Tell the officer what you need and they will give you a piece of paper that says when you can pick up their verification.  In the meantime they will come to your house at a random time to make sure you actually live there and talk to your neighbors to confirm you live with your spouse.  Pick up the verification, and attach it to the certificate to fulfill this requirement.

That is all you need for the application.  Again, MAKE PHOTOCOPIES of everything.  When I submitted the application, I was missing a couple of things, and was able to amend my application.  I was given a waiting period of 90 days to process my application (late entries and all), and told that I would be mailed my approval.  The approval did not come in 90 days, so I went to the Extranjeria and they had it there waiting…they had simply neglected to mail it, it was ready in 70 days. 

Now, the approval is NOT the residency card.  With the approval you have to go to a police station, normally a specific one within the building, and jump through some more hoops.  I was very lucky, after picking up my approved application the scheduling master tried to give me an appointment with the police station 2 months into the future.  Deciding this was crap I just went to the indicated police station within the building and stood in a line and they processed my application.  The first part of application processing is just verifying your person (have your passport) and address in Spain.  They will then give you a “Tasa” which is a piece of paper that you must take to a bank and have verified by means of paying ten Euros (paying for the card).  With the verified (paid) Tasa and 2 passport sized photos you return to the indicated police station, get fingerprinted, and are issued your temporary (a piece of paper with your name and NIE) residency card.  Within 30-45 days they will call you to pick up the permanent card.  Congrats!!! It’s over.

Misc. Advice: 

I was very lucky with the police station stuff.  Ask the people at the foreigners office about getting an appointment with the necessary police office. 

If you already live with your partner before the marriage try to get your police informed certificate ASAP.  45 days is a long time to wait, and they have the right to archive your application for a residency card after 10 days if the application is not complete. 

If they take even a day longer than the quoted time go to the office.  There is something wrong, and showing up in person will likely be the only way to figure out what (or you could have a nice surprise like me and be given your approval).

You can amend (add) things that you are missing to your application without your partner, you only need your partner present during the initial application process

Spain’s communities are autonomous, so laws vary from place to place.  Ask questions early and at the source to avoid nasty surprises and long waits.  My information and experience was in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

Always make appointments when possible and photocopies of EVERYTHING.  Always have your passport with you. 

YOU WILL NOT GET DEPORTED!!!!  ONCE MARRIED TO A SPANISH CITIZEN THEY WILL LEAVE YOU ALONE AND HAVE NO RIGHT TO DEPORT YOU, DENY YOUR APPLICATION, OR HARASS YOU IN ANY WAY FOR OVERSTAYING YOUR ORIGINAL VISA.

Good luck, it can be frustrating, but well worth it.  I hope that I have helped some confused people headaches and stress involved with dealing with Spanish Bureaucracy.

Hi , I’m British engaged to a Spaniard. We live in Madrid. Went to the consulate yesterday and were told to go to the following site http://www.gov.uk. Looked there even before yesterday and still confused and I feel desperate. We know what documents we need but we are struggling trying to get a certificate of no impediment (certificado de no impedimento), I’ve been reading stuff on the Internet for the past 2 months but things are no clearer. We are debating whether to marry or enter civil union, pareja de hecho (recognised in Spain for heterosexual couples , what we are, but not in UK). We have an appointment on 12 September 2013 at the civil registry near where we live in Madrid capital.
Better to marry in UK? How can we get the CNI? I have to renew my healthcard in Spain and think marriage or civil union is a way.
Please help . More information (clear) would be great . We’d love to marry in Madrid. The other option we thought of is civil union (pareja de hecho) which is for both heterosexual and homosexual couples in Spain but for homosexuals only in UK and we’re heterosexual. Pareja de hecho is only valid in Madrid region, not outside Madrid and not in the UK. Healthcard renewal is urgent for me I’m disabled (was assessed regards disability in Madrid) and my disabilities require seeing a specialist. Are there any Brits here, and how did they get past all the paperwork and manage to marry? Or get recognised as pareja de hecho? We are trying to get my healthcard ASAP. I’m legal here, and have Residencia (green certificate from police)
Please reply soon, need this sorted