This is a necessary procedure that has to be done in Trafico when your vehicle is not on the road for a long period of time for some reason. For example, when you export it, or when you do not drive it due to technical problems. It is in the best interest of the owner to give “baja” to the vehicle, as the Road Tax will not be issued. If later you want to drive the vehicle, you have to make a reverse procedure of “alta” and declare the vehicle on the road again. Please note it is illegal to drive the vehicle in the state of “baja”. Payment of the outstanding road taxes By law, when you drive a Spanish car, you need to have with you the confirmation of the payment of your local Road Tax. It is issued by the Town Hall listed on your registration document (Permisso de Circulacion). Usually the payment request is sent to the address on the document, but in many situations the owners never receive these letters. But it is still a responsibility to have it paid. Please note that past unpaid Road Taxes do not disappear, but become attached to the vehicle, and the interest and fines grow every year. So the earlier you pay the cheaper it will be.

The Spanish National Police informed that the Residencia format has been reduced, replacing the current A4 document for a standard laminate card, being the same document but with a tenfold reduction in size, much more handy now.

However, this new NIE number does not include a photo of the resident, so it must always be shown together with the passport or driving license with photo.

Spanish driving license is the only official Spanish document that a foreigner from the European Union will be allowed to have and that will be valid for identification purposes as it includes the NIE or Residencia number.