Final piece in the jigsaw!

On May 9th 2016 I finally received my Spanish Residencia; the first piece in a jigsaw; a precursor to Darrell also becoming a Spanish resident. The process for Darrell is a little different to the one I followed; he wanted to complete the formalities last year, but like the story of our life together, nothing turned out the way it was supposed to. Darrell's Mother was diagnosed with cancer and he returned home to Australia to help care for her as she underwent treatment  for seven months. During this time, all our plans together were put on hold as we adapted to our new situation. Our new life was indeed cemented in Spain, but we were unable to move forwards until Darrell returned from Australia.

His return from Australia was just a first step in repairing the damage and getting back lost time. A further break was demanded, when Darrell had to return to the UK, to complete the paperwork needed to finalise legalities, allowing him to stay here with me in Spain. As a non EU citizen married to an EU national, Darrell has always had to suffer the indignity of proving who he is and the genuineness of our relationship. Spain was just doing what Britain did in the late 1990's, when Darrell applied to remain with me in the UK.

Yesterday after nearly nineteen months of living away from the UK, both Darrell and I finally placed that last piece in the jigsaw of life, allowing us both to remain together in Spain. With the help of the 'Foreigners Advisory Bureau,' who have been fantastic at coordinating timings and producing the necessary documentation, including translation services and most importantly filling in the application forms for 'Residencia,' Darrell was finally grated residencia!

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In the end, the application process, which cost us 260€, mainly for consultation fees, was straight forward. there were a number of stages we had to go through in order to obtain his right to remain in Spain; these included showing I had a job and enough income to support myself and my husband, that we were both registered on the 'Padron' or electoral roll in Spain and Darrell wasn't going to be a drain on the state. As I am making contributions into the Spanish Social Security System and have a health care card, I had met the required criteria to cover Darrell, allowing him to stay with me as my partner.
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This is a copy of the card Darrell will receive. It is totally different to that received by an EU national. Darrell's card will include a photograph and copy of his finger prints and he will have to wait a further two months before he obtains it, as well as having a further two appointments with officials, on top of the one we had yesterday at the Foreign Office in Alicante.

My 'Residencia' or 'Green Card.' doesn't have a photograph or finger prints on it and is a basic piece of paper. The gives me the same rights as a Spanish citizen, more or less and will do the same for Darrell when he receives his. As a permanent resident, life will of course be much easier; from buying a property, to the payment of taxes and use of municipal services; most of all Darrell can remain living in Spain, without having to leave every three months, as the visa on his passport states.

​Obtaining legal status in Spain has been a much easier process than I thought. Darrell has be afforded the same rights as me in a relatively short space of time. unlike when we began our relationship in 1995. We have been treated fairly and with respect. Our relationship status today, is very much improved from the dark days of the mid 1990s, where the UK didn't even recognise we existed, as a couple in law. Spain has accorded us equal rights extremely quickly and has been more than generous in accepting our marriage, in total contrast to the UK.

With Brexit looming ever closer, we have both done as much as we can now, to protect us and our home, should the worst happen; highly unlikely, but something we felt necessary, just in case. The agreement that exits between EU countries needs to be upheld when the UK withdraws. There are a lot of us living and working in Europe; lets hope we remain protected after 2019 and life carries on in much the same way as it does today!

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