Withdrawal Agreement Residence Card in Spain: A Guide for Britons

The Withdrawal Agreement residence card is the document that proves a Briton’s right to live in Spain if they settled before the end of 2020. In Spain it is the TIE (tarjeta de identidad de extranjero, the foreigner identity card) issued under Article 18.4 of the Agreement. The rules differ sharply from those for people arriving now, and the old green certificate sits in an awkward middle ground. The Spanish ministry pages returned a 403 error, so this guide leans on GOV.UK, the 2020 joint instruction, the BOE and a Commission note. This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice; verify current requirements with the relevant Spanish authority or a licensed professional.

Does the Withdrawal Agreement cover you?

Only if you lived in Spain under EU law before the transition period ended and you still live there. The Agreement’s text, as published in Spanish by the BOE, covers UK nationals who exercised their right of residence in a Member State under EU law before the end of the transition period and keep residing there afterward. GOV.UK puts it simply: if you moved before January 1, 2021 and have lived there legally since, you and your family members have rights under the Agreement.

Three situations fall outside it.

• You arrived later. Spain’s 2020 joint instruction says people arriving after the transition period, who are not included, are third-country nationals under the general foreigners regime. The GOV.UK registration page says most Britons who move now register as residents and get an ordinary TIE, and that the visa sets the deadline to apply. Start with the guide to visa options for Britons and the visa application guide.
• You cannot prove when you started. The Agreement protects people who were resident before the cutoff, so evidence of that date matters. The section on proof below covers what the official pages accept.
• Your residence was not under EU law. The Agreement text refers to residence “con arreglo al Derecho de la Unión”, meaning under EU law. The pages read do not explain how Spain assesses borderline cases, so a doubtful case is one to put to the foreigners’ office.

If you are covered, you do not need a work permit or visa to live and work in Spain, according to GOV.UK. That page also says to carry your passport and residence document when you enter, leave or travel within the Schengen area.

Who holds which card

The table below sets out the documents the official pages describe. Dates and rules come from the page linked in each row.

The Spanish consulate in Edinburgh published a list of five documents in 2021 that prove residence before December 31, 2020. It includes both the TIE and the green certificate, and the family member card.

Green certificate or TIE: where the pages disagree

The pages do not give one answer, so here are both with their dates.

• GOV.UK, published December 22, 2025: the green certificate is still a valid residence document proving your rights in Spain, but under the EES it will not be accepted at Schengen borders and does not exempt you from registering. Without a TIE, it warns, you may be wrongly identified as overstaying and denied entry.
• GOV.UK Living in Spain, updated July 3, 2026: the TIE is the only valid residency document listed in the Withdrawal Agreement, so a green certificate cannot be used as proof that you do not need to register with the EES. British residents holding a TIE do not need to register. See the guide to the 90 of 180 rule, EES and ETIAS for border registration.
• Edinburgh consulate, 2021: the list above still counts the green certificate as proof.

No Spanish page read states the legal validity of the green certificate today, and the pages read do not give a Spanish deadline for exchanging it. For travel, the practical reading is that the TIE is the card to hold, and GOV.UK recommends the exchange.

How to get the card and what proves your residence

The procedure comes from the 2020 joint instruction of the Dirección General de Migraciones and the Dirección General de la Policía. It dates from June 2020, so forms, appointment channels and fees may have changed since. GOV.UK says to make an appointment at your local foreigners’ office (Oficina de Extranjería) or schedule one at your local police station.

If you hold a registration certificate

You apply in one step, in person, at the police. The instruction lists the EX 23 application form, a valid passport (or a copy of it and of the renewal request if it has expired), the fee form (modelo 790, code 012) and one photograph. The police fee table lists the card for British citizens and family members under the Withdrawal Agreement at 12.00 euros; the page carries no date. The instruction presumes your legal residence began on the date of a temporary registration certificate, if you have one.

If you hold no document

You apply in two steps. First you file with the immigration office, proving that you fall within the Agreement, in particular when your residence in Spain began. The instruction says any means of proof admitted in law must be accepted. GOV.UK mentions proof that since before January 1, 2021 you have been registered on the padrón (the municipal register) and covered by full health insurance. Read the guide to empadronamiento for the padrón mechanics.

The decision is due within 3 months. After that, the instruction gives you 1 month from notification to ask for the card in person at the police. While the card is pending, the filing receipt is enough to prove lawful stay.

Validity, renewal and permanent residence

Under Article 15 of the Agreement, five years of continuous legal residence give a right of permanent residence, and periods before and after the end of the transition count. Article 16 lets people with less than five years at the cutoff acquire it once they complete the period. Spain’s instruction lets you request the 10-year Permanente card once you reach five years, even if the temporary card has not expired.

Renewal works as follows, according to the instruction:

1. A temporary card is replaced by a 10-year card marked Permanente, renewable automatically every 10 years.
2. A Permanente card is renewed for another 10 years.
3. File in the month before expiry. You may also file in the 3 months after, without prejudice to any administrative penalty that applies.
4. If you hold a Permanente card, not filing within these windows never costs you your right of permanent residence.

GOV.UK adds that you must renew when the card expires or your personal details, such as your address, change. If you must leave Spain while a renewal is pending, you must apply for an Autorización de Regreso (a return authorization).

Family members, absences and what changes at the border

Family members

Article 10 of the Agreement covers family members who lived in Spain under EU law before the end of the transition period and still do, those with a direct link to a covered person who lived outside Spain, and children born or adopted after it. The conditions of Directive 2004/38 apply when they apply. A stable partner who arrives later is not an entitlement: Spain must only facilitate entry and residence under national law, if the relationship was stable before the cutoff and still is. For people whose right begins after the transition period, the instruction gives 3 months from arrival or birth to apply. GOV.UK points to the Spanish government’s Brexit FAQ for detail, and the pages read here do not repeat it.

Absences

Count the five years from the Agreement, not two years from Spanish regulation. Royal Decree 240/2007, the general EU regime, says in article 10.7 that permanent residence is lost after more than two consecutive years away. The Agreement’s Article 15(3) says more than five consecutive years, and the 2020 instruction says the Agreement governs these beneficiaries. Plan on five.

The Commission’s guidance note adds that before five years of residence you may be away up to six months a year in total, longer for military service, or once for up to 12 consecutive months for a serious reason such as pregnancy, serious illness, study or a posting abroad. The instruction says temporary absences are to be accepted when issuing and renewing the card.

At the border

GOV.UK says to show your residence document along with your passport if you are asked at border control. Citizenship is a separate question: see the guide to Spanish citizenship for Britons on whether Withdrawal Agreement years count, which the pages read do not state.

Booking the exchange or the first application

If you hold a TIE marked artículo 50 TUE and it is current, your next move is to diarize its expiry date and file in the month before. If you still hold only a green certificate, you can book the appointment yourself, with the passport, EX 23, fee form and photo ready. If you have no document, or your proof of when you arrived is thin, or you are not sure the Agreement covers a family member, a lawyer or gestor (an administrative agent) can save a refused file.

Gather your padrón history and health insurance proof first, because they decide the start date. The Spain Navigator puts every step of your move to Spain in order, from the visa to settling in.