A tile job in Castellón on an EU passport
A contract with a tile maker near Castelló, a room in Vila-real, the first wage slip: how a European worker’s papers fall into place, week by week.
Tile makers around Vila-real, Onda and l’Alcora take on workers with many different passports. This post follows an imaginary one, Elena from Bulgaria, through her first four weeks. Her papers are simpler than she fears, as long as she takes them in order.
Week one is about numbers. Before Elena’s first shift, the company has to register her with the Seguridad Social, Spain’s social security system. Human resources asks for her NIE and her Social Security number. Her EU passport means she needs no work permit, but it does not replace either number.
Each number has its own desk. The Social Security number is issued by the TGSS, the Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social; she can request it online or at an office, or the company can request it for her. The NIE comes from the police: either alone, on form EX-15, or printed on the green certificate. Which one to book first depends on her dates, and that is the kind of question we sort out before anyone books.
Week two is about an address. Elena rents a room in Vila-real, close to the plant. With the rental contract she signs up on the padrón, the list of residents kept by the Ajuntament (town hall) of Vila-real. Once she is registered, she asks for a padrón certificate: the next desk may want to see it.
Week three is the green certificate. Elena will live in Spain for longer than three months, so she must register as a resident. She fills in form EX-18, pays the Modelo 790 código 012 a few days before, and books the procedure for EU citizens under the province of Castellón. Her work contract is her evidence. The confirmation names one of the two police addresses in the city; policia.es lists EU certificates at both, so she goes to the one printed and nowhere else.
Week four is everything else. A Spanish bank account for her wages. A health centre near her room. And a note to herself: if she changes employer, or moves from Vila-real to Castelló, the NIE and the Social Security number stay the same. Only the padrón, and the address the police hold, need updating.
In one line: numbers for the payroll, an address for the padrón, then the green certificate. Set in that order, each piece rests on the one before, like tiles on a level bed. If a step is unclear, ask us in writing before the appointment rather than after it.