When buying a car in Spain, you need a number of documents to prove your ID, your residence, and status in Spain. These include:
NON-RESIDENTS
  1. COPY OF PASSPORT
  2. COPY OF N.I.E.
  3. PROOF OF ADDRESS (1 from the list below)
  • Copy Escritura/Property Deeds.
  • Copy Rental Agreement – In Spanish
  • Empadronamiento – Dated within the last 3 months
  • Utility bill dated in last 2 months
RESIDENTS 1. COPY OF TIE CARD CAR DOCUMENTS All Spanish vehicles have two documents.
  1. Permiso de Circulation – This is the Ownership Document. This document confirms the legal ownership and person responsible. A new Permiso is issued with each transfer of OWNERSHIP.
  2. Ficha de Técnica – This records the technical information of the car. ITV inspections are recorded on the reverse. This stays with the car for the duration of its life. The permiso should always be in the previous owner’s name. Therefore, you will never receive this document until a transfer has taken place. If you are given a permiso in another person’s name the legal transfer has not taken place and it is illegal to drive without transferring the vehicle. Once the transfer takes place a legal digital document is issued from DGT to confirm the transfer is in process.
I.T.V. inspection (MOT) The Permiso, Ficha de Técnica and valid Insurance is required to do the ITV. Driving a Spanish Car You cannot drive a Spanish car without the owner’s permission or consent unless you have an official Autorización Provisional de circulación from DGT from a Gestor which proves transfer of ownership is in progress. The Police will impound vehicles that have not been transferred even if they have a valid Insurance. In the event of an accident, the Insurance Company will pay out the legal owner shown on the Permiso registered at DGT. The car must have a valid Insurance and you must hold a valid drivers licence.
Road Tax
This is paid annually and paid by whoever is the registered keeper on 1st January each year. This is generally paid between May and November each year.
BEWARE
When buying private cars you need to confirm there is no outstanding embargoes, road tax or finance outstanding. The vehicle cannot be transferred if there is debt on the car. This is why it is important to receive the official Autorización Provisional de circulación from DGT as this cannot be issued on a vehicle with outstanding debt.