Hello... I an appointment with the Spanish consulate in London to apply for Resident Visa in Spain (as I am American living in England). My wife if British so I qualify as a dependent of a Europan Union National. But on the application form it asks for the following: "Marriage Cerificate, in cases where documents are not from the EU the Apostille will be required together with a translation of the documents" I was married in the Bahamas so this applies to me. But what is "the Apostille"... is it just a stamp on the marriage certificate? And when they say a translation of the document, do they want it in Spanish, or is English ok too? It just seems strange because my application is in English, so I assume documents in English would be ok. Does anyone have any ideas?

 

thank you for the above answer.. very helpful.

I have submitted my Visa application to the Spanish Consulate in the UK to obtain a residents Visa. Does anyone know how longs this should take? I do not want to call up and bother the Consulate, but it's been about 4 weeks so far. Is this normal to take this long?

 

Hello "composerK".... I have a UK resident permit, which I applied for before moving to the UK. That was turned around very quickly by the British Consulate in NYC (took about 1-2 weeks).

For Spain I am using a Schengan visa as you mentioned. I'm not sure if things are just faster in LA, but the Spanish Consulate in England has not provided a 20 day turnaround. I read in a book the other day that it would take 6-8 weeks to process as everything is sent to Madrid for approval....

 

Thanks, and thank you for the response... any advice for an American moving to Barcelona? Do you enjoy it?

 

I'm living in the UK at the moment and plan on moving by mid-December I hope. I am trying to find the best place to live in Barcelona at the moment. All the areas seem so nice... any recommendations?

 

I'm looking to spend around £1,000 per month.... I need to set up a home office for myself and wife in one room, so somthing like a 2 bedroom or a loft like apartment would work. Do you think this is acheivable in my price range?

Thanks!

 

Yes, but not the smoothest of transactions. Once I applied, I waited about 6 weeks before calling the consulate to find out where it stands. I sent emails, faxes, and tried on the phone. Emails were not answered, faxes ignored, and it took me about a week to actually get through to someone on the phone. When I spoke to them they informed me I was appoved a week after I applied.... I'm not sure how they expected me to know this, as they never called me or gave me a written application acceptance. If you have applied, make sure you follow up constantly with phone calls, as you may have been approved already....

 

My wife actually hasn't even moved there yet or applied for for residency! She is British and I just said she intends on moving there, but will not until I receive my resident Visa. We are both still in England. Believe it or not the Spanish Consulate approved my application anyway. They told me that officially they do not have to approve my application if they go by the rules, but they understand the situation that she does not want to go there until I can. Along with my application, I enlosed a letter from her stating her intention on moving to Spain, and what she plans on doing there for work when she arrives. I was told by the Consulate that the more details you give with the application (in a letter), the more of a chance Madrid will approve your application. Worked pretty well!

 

Trina... do you recommend any one lawyer or gestor in Barcelona for obtaining Residency Permits, etc.?

Thanks,

Dale