The embassy states:
The registration certificate, often known as the “green certificate”, (either the A4 green certificate or the credit-card sized piece of paper issued by the Extranjería office or the National Police office) remains a valid proof of Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary status, and therefore proves the right to reside and work in Spain under Spain’s implementation of the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.
As a result, this document exempts UK nationals from the upcoming Entry Exit System (EES) and European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) and from any visa requirements and from the 90/180 day Schengen Area rule.
While both the UK and Spanish government do recommend UK nationals exchange their green certificate or card for the TIE, there is no legal obligation to do so in Spain. UK nationals with the green certificate or green card should not be treated differently, as their Withdrawal Agreement rights are unaffected by the type of documentation they hold.
The following links to the Spanish government websites provide confirmation of the validity of the green documents as valid proof of Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary status.
1. The relevant national legislation in Spain that states that UK Nationals who are Withdrawal Agreement beneficiaries are not obliged to apply for further documentation to prove their Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary status and residency rights:
Disposición 7276 del BOE núm. 184 de 2020
2. Note published by the Spanish Ministry for Inclusion, Social Security and Migrations which clarifies the documents that a Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary may hold: 837f05d3-ab64-8251-578f-38cc0daa67b0 (seg-social.es)
3. Further details on the Ministry for Inclusion, Social Security and Migrations website: Residents and workers in Spain – Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones (inclusion.gob.es) which states that the new residence document is not compulsory for those who already have registration certificates or family member cards of EU citizens, as these documents serve to prove legal residence in Spain once the transitional period ends, and to benefit from the provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement.
4 comments
To be able to write a comment, you have to be registered and logged in
LorriAnd how many years have you had to do this? Since July 2020 and now you complain there are no appointments!
Peter PerfectI changed to the TIE as soon as it was possible. At some point, they will probably revoke the green paper and there are so many tales of it not being accepted. Much easier to get the TIE card.
Hmmmm until you are made redundant and thrown out of the servef (social security) office with your residencia and told it is a non existent document. Needless to say there were no appointments available for 3 months to apply for a TIE and I was unable to claim the paro money I was entitled to! My son was also denied to sit his driving test, on the grounds the Residencia was no longer a legal document!!
Seriously, there are still people with the green certificate after all this time, talk about lazy, how many years has it been now?!