https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Spain in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed If you want to be able to work in Spain, whether as an employee or self-employed, you will need to register with the country's social security system. Find out the step-by-step process and the documents you'll need to do it. https://www.thelocal.es/20230711/guide-how-to-register-with-spains-social-security-system Tue, 11 Jul 2023 09:35:06 +0200 guide-how-to-register-with-spains-social-security-system The padrón certificate is a handy multipurpose document you receive when you register with your local town hall in Spain. It can often be frustrating having to apply for it in person, so are you able to apply online instead? https://www.thelocal.es/20220704/can-i-get-my-padron-online-in-spain Mon, 04 Jul 2022 16:59:43 +0200 can-i-get-my-padron-online-in-spain You need your social security number for several Spanish admin processes, including applying for a health card. So if you don't have it written down, where can you find it? https://www.thelocal.es/20250827/seven-ways-to-find-your-spanish-social-security-number Wed, 27 Aug 2025 11:36:48 +0200 seven-ways-to-find-your-spanish-social-security-number Find out what the NIE is in Spain, what it is not, why you'll need one, what it's used for, common misconceptions and how to apply. https://www.thelocal.es/20230425/14-things-you-should-know-about-spains-nie-number-for-foreigners Tue, 25 Apr 2023 15:30:04 +0200 14-things-you-should-know-about-spains-nie-number-for-foreigners Spain's digital nomad visa is already proving to be a very popular way for non-EU nationals to move to the country. So how long does it actually take to apply for? https://www.thelocal.es/20230929/how-long-does-it-take-to-be-approved-for-spains-digital-nomad-visa Fri, 29 Sep 2023 12:11:31 +0200 how-long-does-it-take-to-be-approved-for-spains-digital-nomad-visa While it's not usual for Spaniards to change their last names when they get married, it is possible for foreigners who want to do so. These are the steps to follow and the requirements you have to meet. https://www.thelocal.es/20230727/how-to-change-your-surname-after-marriage-or-divorce-in-spain Thu, 27 Jul 2023 12:03:56 +0200 how-to-change-your-surname-after-marriage-or-divorce-in-spain The Spanish government is removing administrative barriers to foreign investment and streamlined bureaucracy in a bid to entice investors from abroad. https://www.thelocal.es/20230705/spain-takes-steps-to-make-foreign-investment-easier Wed, 05 Jul 2023 11:19:11 +0200 spain-takes-steps-to-make-foreign-investment-easier Generally speaking, foreigners who wish to take up Spanish citizenship must sit and pass two exams in order to be successful. However, there are a few groups who are exempt. https://www.thelocal.es/20230627/how-to-avoid-sitting-the-language-and-culture-exams-for-spanish-citizenship Tue, 27 Jun 2023 10:59:44 +0200 how-to-avoid-sitting-the-language-and-culture-exams-for-spanish-citizenship Spanish bureaucracy is notoriously slow and convoluted but there are an increasing number of official matters that can be carried out online now, saving time and headaches for foreigners. https://www.thelocal.es/20210112/beat-the-queues-25-official-matters-you-can-do-online-in-spain Tue, 12 Jan 2021 18:36:08 +0100 beat-the-queues-25-official-matters-you-can-do-online-in-spain Endless waits for appointments, four million unanswered calls and a website that often doesn’t work. Tens of thousands of people in Spain are enduring huge bureaucratic delays when claiming welfare benefits from the Social Security system. https://www.thelocal.es/20230303/four-months-to-get-an-appointment-huge-delays-at-spains-social-security Fri, 03 Mar 2023 12:36:26 +0100 four-months-to-get-an-appointment-huge-delays-at-spains-social-security Spain's Justice Ministry is reportedly unclogging the bottleneck of more than 300,000 citizenship applications that has caused foreigners to wait two or three years longer than they should for an answer, all thanks to a digital application. https://www.thelocal.es/20221102/new-app-looks-set-to-solve-spains-huge-citizenship-backlog Wed, 02 Nov 2022 14:53:58 +0100 new-app-looks-set-to-solve-spains-huge-citizenship-backlog Whether it's applying for the NLV, family reunification or golden visa, or getting residency and padrón documents once you're in Spain, processing times for non-EU nationals tend to involve a lot of waiting. Here's how long each official process usually takes. https://www.thelocal.es/20221026/how-long-do-spains-main-visas-and-residency-processes-take Wed, 26 Oct 2022 12:26:13 +0200 how-long-do-spains-main-visas-and-residency-processes-take Thousands of doctors, engineers and other highly skilled foreigners are being prevented from working in their fields as they wait for years for their non-EU qualifications to be recognised by Spain’s convoluted bureaucratic system, a nightmare labelled as protectionism and “Kafkaesque”.  https://www.thelocal.es/20221010/homologacion-how-spain-is-ruining-the-careers-of-thousands-of-qualified-foreigners Mon, 10 Oct 2022 11:51:11 +0200 homologacion-how-spain-is-ruining-the-careers-of-thousands-of-qualified-foreigners Forget waiting weeks for appointments and standing in queues at your local DGT office - here are 23 official matters you can do online if you have a Spanish driving licence. https://www.thelocal.es/20210319/beat-the-queues-23-official-driving-matters-you-can-do-online-in-spain Fri, 19 Mar 2021 17:26:13 +0100 beat-the-queues-23-official-driving-matters-you-can-do-online-in-spain The Spanish government's recruitment comes as part of a drive to deal with 190,000 outstanding applications, including many UK nationals' post-Brexit residency documents, with the aim of reducing waiting times across Spain. https://www.thelocal.es/20220826/spain-hires-300-extra-civil-servants-to-deal-with-foreign-office-backlog Fri, 26 Aug 2022 15:50:29 +0200 spain-hires-300-extra-civil-servants-to-deal-with-foreign-office-backlog If you thought that not being a native Spanish speaker was preventing you from fully understanding official texts in Spain you’d be wrong, as a new study reveals that 78 percent of 'Spanish legalese' isn't clear to Spaniards either. https://www.thelocal.es/20220608/spanish-legalese-is-so-wordy-most-spaniards-dont-understand-it-new-study-reveals Wed, 08 Jun 2022 15:29:35 +0200 spanish-legalese-is-so-wordy-most-spaniards-dont-understand-it-new-study-reveals