For any of you who are considering doing the Auxiliares program, or moving abroad to Spain, here’s some hopefully helpful info/advice. It may come as a shock to some, but Spain is not all that reliable on providing helpful and vital information for anyone moving abroad. So without further ado, I’ve listed below the vital things I’ve learnt through experience…

NIE/TIE

My understanding is that the NIE is essentially like your id number. This technically doesn’t expire, however your visa does have an expiry date on it. Most of us only had a 90 day visa (despite our program being 7 months – Spanish bureaucracy, am I right?!). The TIE is like your alien card, or ID card, that has your photo and NIE on it. Basically, once your visa expires, you use the TIE for any official purposes (such as leaving and returning to Spain) as it has your actual departure date on it, therefore being valid for the remainder of your time in Spain.

Getting this seemed to be more painful in theory than in practice. Mostly because the Spanish bureaucrats had no idea what was going on, or on the process themselves, and finding clear and helpful information seemed to be near impossible.

DISCLAIMER: It seems to be that every province or autonomous community had a slightly different process, so this information is based purely on my experience with the Córdoba province. Check with someone in your region or take your chances and walk into the local police station and test your Spanish to find out.

If you are lucky enough to have your NIE printed on your visa in your passport (which seemed to be the case for most Australians and Americans), you only need to get it stamped upon entering Spain and organise your appointment online (https://sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es/icpplus/citar) Be aware, that I made my appointment while transiting in Seoul airport on my trip over (24^th September), and the earliest date I could get was the 9^th December. So, my advice is, as soon as you have your passport with the visa and NIE number, book your appointment, as you may risk not getting your TIE prior to your visa expiring. There should be a list on the website about what you need to bring to your appointment, however I only was asked for a copy of my acceptance letter into the program, a copy of my passport and visa with stamped entry date and a passport sized photo. At the appointment, you will be asked to fill out an EX-17 form (that you can download and fill out prior, or just do it there). Some people were also asked to have a copy of their medical insurance letter/card that we were provided by the program, however I wasn’t (I think it just depends who you are served by. Honestly, the inconsistencies in Spain are something you need to be prepared for and get used to!). Once done, you will be given an invoice to take to the nearest bank and pay the fee of €15.30. You pay the fee and return with the receipt. Then you’ll be given a piece of paper with confirmation of your TIE being processed, and what date you need to return. In my case, I had to return 43 days after the appointment. Be aware, that if you plan to travel out of Spain between your visa expiring in your passport and receiving your TIE, you need to also apply for an Autorización de Regresso. This is essentially a piece of paper that you will show at the airport to prove you have authorisation to re-enter the country after your visa expiration. I, thankfully, didn’t have plans to travel outside of Spain in that 3 week window, but if you do, best apply for it while you are at your TIE appointment and pay the €10-€15 to have it.

Internet

Once on the ground, second to finding and getting your piso, this should be the next thing you do if keeping in contact with family and friends back home is important. Be aware, that depending on where you are, some companies can take anywhere from 4 days to 1 month to set up your internet after your initial enquiry (I heard someone had to wait for 6 weeks in Córdoba). I was fortunate to be able to use the local provider Wop (which is based only in the Los Pedroches area) and managed to have it set up within 10 days (as they normally do a call out 4 days after booking in, and in my case found that they had to drill a hole to run the cable, which then took an additional week to get approval from the landlord and book a new appointment). I pay €20 per month and have a speed of 2mb/s (which is something I originally didn’t really understand, as back in Australia, we pay based on our usage; in Spain, you pay for speed = the more you pay, the faster your internet, and there’s no limit to downloads).

Sim card

First of all, make sure the phone you bring over is UNLOCKED. I didn’t have this problem, but many did and after buying the sim card, realised they couldn’t use it until someone could cancel the contract back home (and pay the associated fees).

I went with Orange’s “Ballena” pre-paid sim, as it seemed to be the best deal at the time. Do your research, but for comparative purposes, this deal is €8.95 per month, which gives you 1GB of data. You have to initially pay €10, but you get the €1.05 as credit towards calls and sms. Phone calls are only 18c for flagfall (and what I understand unlimited minutes) and 12c for sms. You can top up your credit online too, and if you do top up your credit via their website, they normally give you bonuses and promo codes where you can win all kinds of items (I’ve received 50% extra credit everytime I top up and also free minutes to other Orange customers).

Bank

I wish I could help you decide which bank to go with, but being in a small village, our choices were slightly more limited than those in the larger cities. I ended up going with La Caixa for convenience, however BBVA and Evo are also popular choices amongst auxiliares. When you go to the bank, take your acceptance letter, that states how much you receive and what you are doing, etc. I believe at Orientation, they provided a letter that you can take to the bank, but I jumped the gun and got it sorted out prior to Orientation. What I was asked for when opening my account was: my address, my NIE, my phone number and the letter, stating my ‘allowance’. If you have all of that, you should technically be able to open your account hassle free!

Now on top of all the running around and information overload you are dealing with, remember that Spain still follow siestas (or at least in some cities or towns, such as Pozoblanco). Most places will close up anywhere between 1:30 – 2:00 and not reopen until 5:00 – 6:00. Keep that in mind when planning your “To Do” lists and hopefully you won’t find yourself helplessly glancing into a closed store, realising you can’t get it all done in one day. Also remember that their dinners are super late, with many kitchens not opening until 9:00pm, so don’t forget to incorporate eating times in your daily plan, otherwise you may find yourself Hangry (trust me; I should know!).

Lastly, remember you are in Spain! How exciting! Sometimes, during the first weeks of running around and setting up a new life and dealing with crazy Spanish bureaucracy and odd opening times, it’s easy to forget how great an opportunity this is. But when you get a chance, take 15 minutes to sit back, relax, enjoy your surroundings and plan your upcoming adventures… Buena suerte!