How to get your NIE number in Spain

What a NIE actually is

Your NIE is your personal ID number as a foreigner in Spain. (The letters stand for Número de Identidad de Extranjero — "foreigner's identity number.") Once it's given to you, it's yours for life. It never changes, and it never expires.

Here's the part people get wrong. The NIE is just a number. It does not give you the right to live in Spain, and it doesn't prove that you live here. It's simply the number Spain attaches to anything official you do — opening a bank account, buying a home, starting a job, paying tax. Think of it as your admin ID, not your permission to stay.

Do you actually need one?

If you're doing anything more than a holiday, yes. You'll need a NIE to:

• Open a Spanish bank account
• Buy a home — and often to rent one
• Sign a work contract, or set up as self-employed (an autónomo)
• Pay tax, or buy a car
• Put utilities, internet or a phone contract in your name

Children need one too, if they're named on a property deed or part of a residency application.

NIE or residency? Don't mix them up

This is the bit that trips people up, and it depends on where you're from. The NIE is only the number. Having it does not let you live in Spain. Living here is a separate step:

• If you're an EU citizen (Danish) or EEA (Norwegian, Icelandic): you register as a resident and get a small green certificate. Its official name is the Certificado de Registro de Ciudadano de la Unión. Your NIE is printed on it.
• If you're from outside the EU (for example, Russian) and staying more than about six months: you get a TIE — a plastic ID card for foreigners. It shows your NIE too.

The useful takeaway: you can get a NIE on its own first — say, to buy a home before you've even moved — and sort out living here later. This guide covers that standalone NIE. (We cover the green certificate and the TIE in the residency guide.)

Two ways to get it

1. In Spain

At a foreigners' office (an Oficina de Extranjería) or a police station that handles foreigners (a Comisaría de Policía). You book a time first — that booking is called a cita previa. This is the route to choose if you're already here.

2. At a Spanish consulate, before you move

A consulate is Spain's official office in your home country. This route is useful if you need the NIE to buy property before you relocate. Each consulate does it a little differently, and it can take a month or more.

Either way, the form, the fee and the documents are the same. Only the booking and the pickup change.

What you'll need

• Your passport, plus a photocopy of the photo page. (EU/EEA citizens can usually use a national ID card instead.)
• The EX-15 form, filled in. This is the one application form for a NIE. Write it in Spanish, in capital letters, and bring the original plus one copy.
• Proof that you've paid the fee. This is a stamped form — more on it in the steps below.
• Proof of why you need it — for example, a home reservation contract, a job offer, or a letter from your bank.
• From outside the EU? Also bring proof that you entered Spain legally (an entry stamp or visa).
• Some offices also ask for two passport photos.
• Sending someone in your place? They need a power of attorney — a signed legal document that lets them act for you — stamped by a notary (and, if signed abroad, apostilled).

Step by step

1. Book your appointment (the cita previa)

   In Spain, you book it on the official government website. Abroad, you book through your consulate. One heads-up: getting a slot is the hardest part right now. See the note just below.

2. Fill in the EX-15 form

   Tick the box for "NIE." Tick why you need it, and write one short reason in Spanish — for example, "Compra de vivienda" ("buying a home"). Then tick where you'll hand it in. Don't sign it yet — wait until you're told to at the appointment.

3. Pay the fee

   You pay using a form called Modelo 790, código 012. On the official police website, choose the line "Asignación de NIE a instancia del interesado" (that just means "give me a NIE"). Fill it in, leave the NIE box blank, and print it. Pay at any Spanish bank — they'll stamp your copy. Keep that stamped copy. The fee is about €12 in 2026; check the exact amount when you print the form.

4. Go to your appointment in person

   Bring every document, plus copies, and arrive about 15 minutes early. They might ask why you need the NIE — just answer simply. You'll leave with a stamped form or a receipt (a resguardo).

5. Get your NIE

   Most offices email it to you as a PDF, usually within about 5 to 15 days. Save it somewhere safe. You'll be asked for this number again and again, for the rest of your life in Spain.

Easy mistakes to avoid

• Signing the EX-15 too early. Wait until they tell you to.
• Bringing only photos on your phone. Offices want paper copies.
• Forgetting the stamped payment receipt. No receipt, no appointment.
• Being vague about why you need it. Give one clear reason.
• Filling the form in English, or in lowercase. It has to be Spanish, in capitals.

Common questions