If you’re planning on carrying out any legal transactions in Spain, you may have been told you need an NIE or NIF to comply with Spanish law. These are identification numbers required by the Spanish authorities and obtaining one can require the assistance of a Spanish lawyer. At Saville Notaries, we regularly assist clients by notarising and legalising powers of attorney that authorise their Spanish lawyers or representatives to apply for these numbers on their behalf.
- Individuals: NIE (Número de Identificación de Extranjero). This is the “Foreigner Identification Number” issued to non-Spanish individuals who need to interact with the Spanish legal system. It is required for activities such as buying property, setting up a business, inheriting assets, signing an employment contract, or opening bank accounts. After it is issued, the number is used in a similar way to a Spanish national’s ID number and appears on all official documents issued to the holder by public institutions.
- Companies: NIF (Número de Identificación Fiscal). The term “NIF” refers to the “Tax Identification Number” in Spain. Companies or non-individual entities will need a NIF, and they cannot exist legally or pay taxes in Spain without one. It is required for activities such as hiring employees, applying for licenses, singing contracts or issuing invoices.
Do individuals need a separate NIF? No, individuals do not need to obtain a separate NIF. Even though it is required for both companies and individuals for tax purposes, for foreign individuals, their NIE functions as their NIF for all fiscal and administrative matters.
Incorporating the Spanish subsidiary of an English company: When incorporating a Spanish subsidiary, any individual director or shareholder will need a NIE, and any corporate director or shareholder will need a NIF.
Notarial powers of attorney:
Applying for an NIE or NIF must be done in person in Spain or by attending the nearest Spanish consulate or embassy in your country of residence. This can be time consuming, especially if you are based in the UK. A practical solution is to appoint a Spanish lawyer or legal representative to apply on your behalf. To do this, you will need a power of attorney (poder notarial) that has been notarised and legalised by apostille in accordance with Spanish law.
At Saville Notaries, we can:
- Review your bilingual (Spanish-English) notarial power of attorney.
- Witness your signature and notarise the document in accordance with English legal formalities.
- Arrange for the apostille of the power of attorney (legalisation under the Hague Convention), required for the document to be accepted in Spain.
- Provide notarised copies of all pages of your passport, which is usually a requirement to obtain a NIE if you are not an EU national.
We work closely with clients across the UK and liaise with Spanish lawyers where needed to ensure the documentation is correct and acceptable for their purposes.
If you need assistance with notarising and legalising a power of attorney appointing your legal representative in order to obtain a Spanish NIE or NIF, please contact spanish@savillenotaries.com . Our experienced notaries will make the process as efficient as possible.