People who come to our law firm for advice often tell us that they are overwhelmed by the bureaucratic hurdles they encounter when they arrive here with the intention of setting up a business or buying a property. Some even admit that they have been on the verge of giving up their project. That is why we focus on providing all the legal expertise to facilitate this process.
Whether EU or non-EU citizens, the first step is to obtain a tax identification number for foreigners, NIE, which can be obtained by making an appointment with the administration directly here, but can also be processed via consular channels.
Foreign legal entities acting in Spain must also have a NIE, which makes the procedure more complicated, as the natural person representing them must be duly empowered to do so. And the powers of attorney must be in the local language and be apostilled.
While the NIE is being obtained, we explain to the clients all the steps that will follow. All the fields in which we will have to intervene to start an activity or acquire a property: with the tax authorities, with the labour authority if they want to set up a company, with the certifying bodies in the case of economic activity, with the local or regional administration, etc.
We talk about aspects that are generally different or even non-existent in other countries: the criteria of the tax authorities, the requirements for hiring employees, the impact of urban development plans, money laundering requirements, banking practices, the importance of notarial work and public registries, among other issues.
It is our role as legal advisors to resolve formalities and procedures efficiently and in a timely manner. And to do so in such a way that each step is understandable for a client who, although he or she does not speak our language, has a clear vocation to stay here, a project for the future. Our work consists largely in making it possible to become a reality.