Arriving
NIE, padrón, residency: the order that would have saved us months
NIE number, empadronamiento and residency document on the Costa del Sol — the order we did it in, what belongs in the folder, and how it works with children in tow.
Paperwork, offices, the first weeks
Arriving
The move itself was the easy part. What came afterwards took us six months: applying for numbers you can only get with another number, appointments that don't exist online, and forms that are called something different in every province. Here is the order we ended up doing it in.
Arriving
NIE, padrón, residency: the order that would have saved us months
NIE number, empadronamiento and residency document on the Costa del Sol — the order we did it in, what belongs in the folder, and how it works with children in tow.
Arriving
Paediatrician, A&E, health card: how we sorted healthcare for three kids
The public health system in Andalusia, your assigned paediatrician at the centro de salud, private top-up cover, emergency numbers and pharmacies — from the daily life of a family of five.
Arriving
Car, licence, ITV: the admin nobody warns you about
Registering your driving licence, importing or buying a car, ITV roadworthiness tests, insurance, municipal car tax and child seat rules in Spain — from a family on the Costa del Sol.