If you are moving your life to the Spanish side of the frontier, this is the section that tells you what actually happens when you try — not the brochure version. Getting an NIE, registering as a resident, finding a flat, having your salary taxed in the right country, putting the electricity in your own name: every one of these is more friction than it should be, and almost none of it is explained online in English. We explain it here, sourced and dated, because on this stuff an out-of-date guide does not just mislead — it costs you money or an appointment you cannot get back.
The cornerstone guide below covers the whole cross-border setup — tax, healthcare, the commute, the trade-offs — and is the right place to start. The individual guides (NIE, the TIE for British citizens, renting, the tax question) are being published one at a time, and each gets a date the day it goes up. If there is only one guide here for now, that is because we would rather publish one we have checked than five we have not.
Start here
If you would rather not do this alone
We know someone. Patricia is local, she does this paperwork for a living, and she speaks the language of the counter clerk that you and your translation app do not. She books the cita previa, fills the forms, and goes with you to the office so that nobody at the window sends you home over a missing photocopy. She is not a lawyer and she does not do visa cases — she handles the in-Spain steps: appointments, forms, empadronamiento, and standing next to you when it counts.
- NIE / green certificate (EU citizens): €80 if the trámite is done at the La Línea police station, €110 if it has to be done in Algeciras — the higher price is the car run to the Extranjería office there and back.
- TIE / residencia (British citizens): from €120 in La Línea, from €150 in Algeciras. The British process has more steps and more documents than the EU one, so it takes her longer. (Provisional — confirm the exact figure with Patricia.)
We do not take a cut. We recommend Patricia because she is good at this, not because anyone pays us to. Her prices are hers and can change — agree the figure with her before she starts. Government fees (the tasa) are separate and are paid to the bank, not to Patricia. This is a personal recommendation, not professional or legal advice.
This section is a resident’s account, not professional, legal or tax advice. For residency and cross-border income in particular, take qualified advice on your own circumstances.