An EU worker’s first month near Guadalajara
Published
A contract in a logistics park, a room to rent, a first payslip. The order of the papers for a European who starts work near Guadalajara.
Picture a worker from Portugal who has just signed a contract with a warehouse in Cabanillas del Campo. The job starts soon. She has a passport, a phone and a bag. What does she need in her first month, and in which order?
At the start, it is all about numbers. The employer asks for a NIE and a Social Security number. As an EU citizen she can work freely, but she cannot be registered without them. The Social Security number comes from the TGSS, the treasury of the Social Security, and she keeps it for life.
Next, a home. A rental contract in Azuqueca de Henares or Guadalajara gives her an address, and the address takes her to the town hall for the padrón. Its certificate will go into almost every folder that follows.
Then the green certificate. Living in Spain for more than three months means registering as a resident, on form EX-18. Her proof is simple: the work contract, or the employer’s paper showing her Social Security registration. She pays the Modelo 790 código 012 in advance, online or at a bank.
The appointment itself is booked on the official cita previa website, for the province of Guadalajara, under the procedure for EU citizens. policia.es lists that procedure, the régimen comunitario, at the Brigada on Avenida del Ejército. Her confirmation names the office and the hour.
Along the way come the ordinary things: a bank account for her salary, a health centre, perhaps a temporary work agency for the next contract. Each one asks for the same NIE, which is why the number comes first.
None of this needs a lawyer. It needs the right order and a complete folder. That is the part we prepare with workers who would rather spend their first month learning the job.