April 28th, 2014
The Padrón is the
register kept by each Town Hall in Spain, of the people who live in the town-
either as property owners or tenants. The closest UK equivalent is the
electoral roll.
It is compulsory for
residents of more than 6 months in an area to ‘empadronarse’- to be registered
on the Padrón (as a separate administrative process from residency applications)
but many fail to do so.
Some of the advantages
of ‘empadronamiento’ (being registered on the Padrón) are:
1. It can provide
taxation advantages (eg. Spanish Succession Tax).
2. It enables children to be enrolled for local education.
3. In the case of limited school places, it is used as one of the criteria for
awarding places (determining catchment area).
4. It is required in order to be registered for local healthcare services.
5. It provides an entitlement to vote in local and European elections.
6. In some areas, it is required to be able to use municipal facilities at
discounted rates.
7. Town Hall funding is affected by the number of people on the Padrón. So,
registering helps boost your local Town Hall’s resources for local services and
facilities.
8. It is necessary in order to purchase and register a car in Spain.
9. It is necessary in order to marry within the local municipality.
10. It is necessary for benefits/ social services access; and to use the local
employment agency (Job Centre equivalent) facilities.
Registration on the
Padrón is a simple exercise- and is either free or just a nominal charge is
made, depending on the area. Specific requirements in terms of documentation
vary from town to town. So, before applying, it’s always best to make a
preliminary visit to the Town Hall, to get a full up to date list of
requirements.
