A travel advisory for UK visitors visiting with friends in Spain has been issued. When visiting Spain, those who do not possess an EU passport must now carry identification proving they are staying somewhere, whether it is in a hotel, an Airbnb, or a friend’s home.
If a non-EU citizen wishes to travel to Spain and stay with friends or family, they must get a Carta de Invitación.
This is unrelated to visas and serves as evidence that the guest has a place to stay in the event that tourist lodging has not been secured.
It’s a common misconception that we can create one ourselves using a handwritten record. This isn’t the case though.
The document should be one that is official and given to you by the police. In order to obtain an official document, you have to schedule an appointment and apply at the local National Police Station, per Birmingham Live.
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Bring with you a escritura or rental contract for the property where the guests will be staying, your padrón certificate that is no older than 3 months, your TIE or green EU residency certificate and passport plus copies, as well as copies of the passports of the guests that will travel to Spain to stay at your place.
Make sure you complete the application procedure ahead of time, as it can take up to 20 or even 60 days for the entire process to be completed, including the time it will take to mail the original cartas to the individual visiting Spain.
Notification that your carta(s) are prepared will be sent to you. You now have to pay for each visitor at this stage with the current fee being 6.43 euros per person as of May 2021.
According to official Home Office guidelines, UK visitors to Spain may also need to provide proof of accommodation for their stay, such as a hotel booking confirmation, proof of address if they are visiting their own property (such as a second home), an invitation from their host, or proof of their address if they are staying with friends or family. Please take note of the word “may” used earlier.
The “carta de invitation” is one of the ways, according to the Spanish government, to demonstrate that you have lodging if you are visiting friends or family.