If you are planning to do any legal activity in Spain (buying a property, applying for residency, accepting an inheritance, etc.), you will need a NIE number. But, what is a NIE? How do you get it? How much does it cost?
In this guide, we will answer the most common questions forigners ask about the spanish NIE.
What is a NIE?
The acronym “NIE” stands for “Número de Identidad de Extranjero“, which translates to “Foreigner’s Identity Number”, and it is an unique personal number assigned by the Spanish authorities to the foreigners upon request.
Important: The NIE is not a document or a card. It’s just the number that is assigned to the foreigner, despite that it is usually displayed in a certificate that the police department issues upon request.
What is the NIE for?
It is used to identify those foreigners in spanish legal transactions, such as home purchases and sales, tax payments, applications for residence permits, inheritances, etc. Think of it as a national insurance number or a passport number, but only for foreigners (spanish citizens have their own identification number, the “NIF”).
How much does it cost?
Applying for a NIE only has one unavoidable cost, which is the application fee, or tax, required by the spanish administration prior to the application. This fee is 9.84€ as for July 2025.
That being said, it is also true that in practice, most foreigners usually prefer to handle this application with the help of a professional, which implies some aditional costs due to the professional fees, which can vary a lot from one professional to another, ranging from €150 to €350 (or even more). And although this raises the total costs of the application, it is worth considering due to how dawnting can the spanish administrative processes get.
If you need a NIE and feel like using the help of a professional, please consider contacting us. We are experienced spanish lawyers and will definetly be happy to help. You can write us at info@oteizayzamudio.com.
How do you get a NIE?
First of all, in order to apply for a NIE you need to have a valid reason, because the spanish authorities won’t grant you a NIE in case you don’t really need it. So the first thing you should do is make sure you need it before the application.
Once you are sure you have a valid reason for needing a NIE, the next thing you need to do is to fill out some forms and pay the fees of the application.
Basically, there are two forms that you need to fill out:
EX-15: This is the actual application itself, and is the form in which you facilitate your personal data and explain the reasons why you apply for the spanish NIE.
790: This is the form for the payment of the fees we metioned above. You will need to fill it out in order to be able to pay the application fees.
Once you have those ready, you have to pay the application fees. Make sure to have a proper receipt (get the 790 form stamped by the bank, or a bank receipt).
Having done all the above, you will have to book an appointment with the spanish authorities, either at the national police offices or at a consulate.
In the appointment, you will be required to identify yourself through your passport (authentic document), and to provide the aforementioned forms, the proof of payment of the application fees and, also, a copy of your passport (of the full passport document in case of a non european citizen, and only the bio page in the opposite case).
If you have done all of this correctly, the police department will provide you with a NIE number within a few days (usually one week).
When does it expire?
The spanish NIE will never expire. Once you have it, that number is assigned to you forever. The only thing that will expire is the NIE certification document, which is valid for 3 months after it is granted. That doesn’t mean you won’t be able to use the spanish NIE when the certificate expires, as for most of legal transations you won’t be required to have a valid certification document (spanish authorities have their own data base with which they are able to check the validity of it).
Is the NIE equivalent to a residence permit?
No. Getting a NIE does not grant you the right to legally stay in Spain. In fact, it is a requirement not to be in Spain illegally when applying for the NIE.
We hope that all this information have been very useful to you. In case you prefer to let a professional handle all this process for you, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are able to help clients worldwide, and will be more than happy to assist you at any moment. Our contact details are:
Email: info@oteizayzamudio.com
Spanish phone number: +34 613 143 683
British phone number: +44 07561 517 615