Living here before Brexit
If your Spanish life began before 2021, the Withdrawal Agreement shields it. The proof is a TIE issued under the Agreement, successor to the old green certificate. If you still hold only the green paper, exchanging it for the card is the sensible step.
Moving out after 2020
For a Briton arriving today, the path is the one any non-EU national walks: a visa from a Spanish consulate before the move, such as the visa for non-lucrative residence, for people living on their own means, then the TIE in Murcia. Stays of up to 90 days in any 180 need no visa, but they do not allow you to live here.
A property purchase in the Region of Murcia does not change this: the investor visa route closed in 2025.
Daily life with a TIE
- Carry the card when you travel: it shows your residence at the border
- Use your NIE, printed on the card, with banks and the tax agency
- Keep the padrón up to date when you move house
- Watch the card’s expiry date and book the renewal in good time
In Murcia
British residents of the city, the Vega and the Mar Menor coast book their TIE at Cabezo Cortado or at a comisaría of the region that lists TIE issuance, such as Cartagena. Bring your old green certificate if you have one: it helps show when your residence began.
Questions people ask
I had a NIE before Brexit. Did it change?
Not a digit. What changed is the card that proves where you live, never the number itself.
My partner is British but I am an EU citizen. Which rules apply to them?
Possibly the EU family rules: being married to, or registered with, a European may open the family card route for them, which starts with form EX-19.