S1 Form for EU Pensioners in Spain: From INSS to SIP

If one EU country pays your pension, that country is responsible for your health care, so ask its health insurer for an S1. Once you have a Spanish address, register the S1 with the INSS. If approved, you receive a certificate with your Social Security number to take to your health centre.

By Settle Valencia editorial team

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Moving to Valencia on an EU pension? Your health care follows who pays that pension. Ask that country for an S1, register it with the INSS, then collect your SIP at the health centre.

Which country covers your health care?

If one EU country pays your pension, that country is responsible for your health care. A pensioner resident in another EU country has full access to medical care there, on the same conditions as its citizens.

Expect Spanish-system care, not a copy of your home system: treatment follows the same conditions as for Spanish citizens, which does not guarantee the same services as at home.

With a right to health care under EU social security rules, you have access to it while you reside in Spain. The form and conditions are those the EU rules set.

What do you do before you move?

The S1 comes first; everything else waits for it. Request it from the health insurer in the country that pays your pension.

• It must be completed and issued in your country of origin.
• Request the European Health Insurance Card in your country of origin too.
• Until your S1 is registered, take that card to the nearest health centre as a visiting EU citizen.

An S1 cannot be registered for travel to Spain only for public health care. No home yet? The INSS procedure needs a Spanish address, so wait until you have one; a valid European Health Insurance Card covers care meanwhile.

In what order do you do things after you arrive?

Each step below unlocks the next.

1. Register on the padrón. Everyone who lives in Spain must. In València it is free. See the padrón guide.
2. Get the EU registration certificate. It proves your registration in the Central Register of Foreigners if you will live in Spain for more than three months.
3. Register the S1 online with the INSS.
4. Take the INSS certificate to your health centre for SIP.

Where do you get the EU registration certificate?

Apply in person at the foreigners office of your province or, failing that, the police station. In València, the EU certificate is handled at the Comisaría de Bailén, C/ Bailen, 9. The form is EX18.

Apply within three months of entering Spain. Bring proof of payment of the Modelo 790 código 012 fee. The fee is €12.00. The certificate is issued immediately.

Without a job in Spain, one route to stay more than three months is sufficient resources plus health insurance covering all risks in Spain.

How do you register the S1 with the INSS?

Online, with the Social Security procedure for S1 forms issued by an EU or EEA country, Switzerland or the United Kingdom. It secures access for you and your beneficiary relatives. You can apply at any time if you meet the requirements.

You need to:

• live in Spain or plan to move your habitual residence here, with a Spanish home address;
• hold a right to health care in one of those countries and the completed S1.

Documents: your ID (DNI, NIE, passport or TIE) and the S1, plus the EU registration certificate if you are a national of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland. A Spanish phone number and an email address speed things up, so have both ready.

After you file, you can obtain a receipt, and the resolution arrives at your Spanish address. If it is favourable, you receive a certificate with your Spanish Social Security number.

How long does it last, and what if it is refused?

Care under the S1 is available for an initial period of up to 2 years. It can be renewed if your situation does not change and you still meet the requirements.

No reply by the deadline for a decision means a refusal. If you disagree with a resolution, lodge a prior claim within 30 working days of receiving the notification.

How do you get your SIP card?

Take the INSS certificate to the health centre for your address. The health centre registers you in SIP and issues the card.

SIP registration needs a habitual residence in a Valencian municipality, which requires being on its padrón. Bring your ID, a padrón certificate valid for six months and the INSS document proving your right to health care. The procedure carries no fee.

Show the card whenever you go to public care centres and pharmacies. Book appointments on the number printed on the card or on 96 183 90 00. The SIP guide and the GP guide cover the rest.

What if you do not have an S1?

The convenio especial is the first alternative. It needs effective residence in Spain, or in another EU or EEA country, Switzerland or the UK, for a continuous minimum of one year right before you apply. It also needs no access to public health protection under national rules or EU social security rules. If your pension country can issue you an S1, that counts as access, so this route is closed.

The fee is EUR 60 a month under 65, or EUR 157 at 65 or over; the convenio especial guide has the detail.

With private insurance, go to the nearest health centre with your identity documents for a SIP number. The padrón certificate is not mandatory in that case. You get an inclusion document, not a card. The public vs private guide compares the options.

German pension? The tax side is in the German pension tax guide.

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Not confirmed: Processing time: none is stated; silence after the deadline means refusal. Pensions from several countries, including Spain: ask the INSS which one covers you. Whether the S1 counts as the health insurance the EU certificate asks of some residents: ask the police office.

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General information checked against the sources listed above, not legal advice for your situation. Rules and office practice change; confirm with the immigration office or a licensed adviser before you act. See how guides are checked.

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