Immigration paperwork · Living and working in Spain
Before preparing a family reunification application, check who lives in Spain, which residence authorisation they hold and which relative wants to join them. The route for a foreign resident is not automatically the route for a Spanish or EU citizen.
Grupo Avanza Consultores, based in Paterna (Valencia), reviews your family situation, dates and documents. We can start remotely and reply in writing in English. Before accepting the work, we agree its scope, the permitted representation and any steps requiring your presence.
This guide concerns the general immigration regime for relatives of a non-EU foreign resident. Relatives of Spanish nationals have a separate residence authorisation; where EU, EEA or Swiss free movement rules apply, that regime must be examined. Students, international protection and international mobility permits may also have specific rules. The words NIE or TIE alone do not identify your route.
For a relative of a Spanish citizen, first check the specific authorisation; general family reunification and arraigo have their own conditions. See the specific guide for family members of Spanish citizens.
As a general rule, the sponsor must have lived in Spain for at least one year and applied for authorisation for at least another year. The family authorisation can only be granted once the relevant renewal or residence status is obtained.
For parents, the sponsor needs Spanish long-term or long-term EU residence; specific situations require separate checks. Article 68.1.
The relationship, partnership, age, custody and any required dependency must be checked. Each category of relative has its own conditions.
Being part of the same family is not sufficient by itself. Articles 66 and 196.
The application requires sufficient regular resources, adequate housing and sickness insurance, together with the other procedural requirements.
Family composition and the source of funds affect the assessment. Article 67.
Article 66 covers spouses and partners under its legal conditions; the sponsor’s children or their spouse’s or partner’s children under 18 when the residence application is made; and certain adult children on disability or health grounds. For a child of one parent only, parental responsibility, custody and consent or authorisation to move must be examined as applicable. There are also cases involving legal representation.
First-degree parents of the sponsor or their spouse or partner must be dependent, over 65 and have reasons justifying residence in Spain. Humanitarian grounds may exceptionally be considered for younger parents, with the other requirements. Sending money alone is not enough to establish eligibility: dependency and need are assessed individually.
A specific provision also covers one adult child who will care for a sponsor with a legally recognised degree of dependency. This is not a general route for every financially dependent adult child.
The general benchmark is 150% of IPREM for the sponsor and one joining relative, plus 50% for each additional member. This is not one fixed euro amount for every application. Calculation rules and exclusions apply; resources of certain resident family members living in the same household may be considered. A reduction involving minors is possible in the cases and conditions in Article 67.1, rather than automatically for every family.
You do not have to buy a home. You must show that suitable housing is available through the competent housing report. If the report is not issued within the legal period and that failure is evidenced, legally admissible substitute evidence can be examined. The report or substitute evidence must be no more than six months old when applying.
Applicable healthcare cover or sickness insurance must also be checked. A particular private policy cannot be assumed to be compulsory for every family.
The review starts with the sponsor’s residence position and the family relationship relied on. We assess resources, housing and healthcare cover, alongside evidence of relationship, custody or dependency relevant to that category. There is no single document package for every family.
We also check whether foreign documents need translation, legalisation or an apostille, and whether the consular phase requires separate evidence under Article 38. The document scope is settled after the route and family circumstances are assessed.
Residence authorisation, a visa where applicable and the TIE serve different purposes. An approval does not replace the visa or any personal attendance required for the TIE. Our representation is limited to the acts legally permitted and agreed in the engagement.
In the general route, notices and visa collection trigger different periods: two months for the consular application, a maximum of one month from visa collection to enter Spain, and one month after that entry for the TIE. For relatives of long-term EU residents who enter after authorisation is granted, the month for entry runs from notification of that grant; we assess this case separately. We check when each period begins, the decision and the relative’s circumstances when coordinating the engagement.
Notifications and the deadlines for each stage must be checked. Appointments and actual processing times depend on the authorities; we do not promise a grant date. Articles 40, 68, 197 and 209 of the Regulation.
Article 66 allows a registered partner or a duly proven stable unregistered relationship, subject to its conditions. For an unregistered stable partnership it provides for at least twelve continuous months of cohabitation; that prior period is not required where the couple has a child together and the relationship continues. We review the evidence and family circumstances.
Financial dependency alone is not a general qualifying rule for adult children under this route. Article 66 includes certain disability or health cases and a specific adult caregiver child of a sponsor with recognised dependency. If you are Spanish or an EU citizen, a different regime must be checked.
For parents, the sponsor generally needs long-term or long-term EU residence granted in Spain, in addition to relationship, dependency, age and need conditions. The family application may be made when applying for that long-term status, but the family grant depends on obtaining it. Specific situations must be checked.
No. Article 67.2 requires adequate housing to be available and evidenced. The right to occupy it, its occupants and the competent report must be reviewed; ownership is not a universal requirement.
Family reunification authorisation for a spouse, partner or child of working age allows employed or self-employed work without a further administrative procedure under Article 65.2. This rule must not automatically be extended to every relative. The grant and when it takes effect must be checked.
We can review and prepare the application and carry out steps where representation is legally permitted and agreed in the engagement. Powers of attorney and consular rules must be checked. Required personal appearances, including applying for the TIE in person and fingerprinting, require the applicant.
General information based on official sources consulted on 21 October 2026. Immigration Regulation, Royal Decree 1155/2024: Articles 38, 40, 65 to 68, 196, 197 and 209. Applicable law and documents are checked before acting. This guide does not confirm eligibility in an individual case. Linked official sources are in Spanish.
Tell us your nationality, residence authorisation, your relationship to the relative and where they are. We reply in writing in English by WhatsApp or email. The initial review can start remotely; meetings in Paterna (Valencia) are by appointment. Scope and fees are agreed before we accept the work.
