Settled before the end of 2020
Anyone protected by the Withdrawal Agreement carries a TIE naming that Agreement, or a green certificate that can be swapped for one. Prints are taken at the station of your comarca, through a fingerprint sitting as for any TIE, and the card records rights that later arrivals lack.
Moving here today
A Briton relocating now needs a residence route of the same kind as any non-EU national: a work authorisation, a study visa, non-lucrative residence or another visa issued before departure. Fingerprints for the TIE follow arrival.
A purchase still calls for a buyer’s NIE, but property alone opens nothing: the golden visa disappeared from Spanish law in 2025.
Owners living elsewhere
Flat owners in Salou or Cambrils who visit for shorter spells only need the number, requested on the EX-15 at a station or at a Spanish consulate in Britain. Their time in Spain is then counted under the Schengen rules for non-EU visitors.
Queries on this procedure
My green certificate is still valid. Why swap it?
The paper keeps its value as proof, but the TIE carries a photo, names the Withdrawal Agreement and is simpler to present at borders and offices.
Where is the Agreement TIE issued?
Like every TIE: at Plaça d’Orleans, Reus or Tortosa, by comarca according to the Delegación del Gobierno.
Can a NIE still be obtained from Britain?
It can. Spanish consulates abroad take NIE requests from non-residents, convenient for buyers wanting the number before travelling to sign.