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How to Get a Tax Identification Number (TIN), NIE/ NIF in Spain

How to start a business in Spain?

Any foreign person or company who wants to settle down or do some kind of business in Spain must request the TIN. It is mandatory to have this number for any tax transaction.

NIF for foreigners When you need it?

  • If we are a person, not a company or any other type of entity, we have to ask for the Tax Identification Number in Spain( called the NIE or Número de Identificación de Extranjero) to the Police Office.
  • We should get this number because of the starting of a business or acquiring an asset, for example buying a property in Spain.
  • When a foreigner wants to settle down somewhere in Spain he has to ask for another kind of identification number, the ID foreigner card (called Tarjeta de Identificación de Extranjero or TIE) that is related to his residence status. Depending on his nationality and personal situation the requirements for getting this TIE are different and they are related to immigration policy and rules.

Where to apply for NIF?

– The NIE or Foreigner Identification Number for individuals can be requested at the police.
– It is also possible to apply for the NIE at the Spanish Embassy or Consulate in a foreign country.

Get the NIF as Company or Society

When the business is performed by a company, the way to proceed in order to obtain the Tax Identification Number (NIF or Número de Identificación Fiscal) is different from the previous case. The NIF has to be requested directly from the Spanish Tax Office (Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria, AEAT). But, in order to get it, it is necessary to make some formalities and hand in specific documents. Here we explain the steps you should follow.

What are the necessary documents to get the Company NIF?

  1. You need to hand in a document that certifies that the company exists and that the person who is signing the specific power to get the TIN / NIF (see the following point) has enough power to do it. We usually use a Certificate of Good Standing of the Company which also specifies who is the Director of the company issued by the Companies Register of each country.

2. You also need a specific power of attorney done before a Notary empowering a Spanish person to ask for the TIN / NIF on the foreign company’s behalf.

  • You can empower someone who is not Spanish but in this case, it is also necessary that this person has previously had his own NIE in Spain (and this is annoying to manage sometimes). It means this person needs to do the procedure at the Police or at the Embassy or Consulate previously explained to obtain his own NIE.

If you wish, we can help you with the content of the power and in the process of getting it accordingly to the Spanish Tax Rules.

  • The only exception for not needing the Notary power is that the Director of the Company with the Spanish NIE asks for the Company’s TIN /NIF at the Spanish Tax Office. So, the director even needs to get the Spanish TIN /NIF.
  • So, we consider that the easiest way to do it is empowering a Spanish person who already has his own NIF. In this way, we could help you with all this procedure.

3. It is also mandatory that both documents (the Register Certificate and the Power of Attorney) are Apostilled by The Hague Convention or legalized by The Foreign Affairs Minister and after this, both documents have to be sworn and translated into Spanish.

  1. Then the Company Representative can sign the form asking for the TIN (NIE) and give a Spanish Address as a contact and the Foreign Company Address.

In this post, we have told you the main steps to follow to begin to perform some business in Spain with a foreigner.

If you have any doubts or questions or you need some help with Spanish tax consultancy please do not hesitate to contact our tax advisors in Barcelona for an entrepreneurs and startups consultancy.

 

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