Moving to Cartagena: the steps, from official sources
The steps newcomers take in Cartagena, Región de Murcia, grouped by topic, each with the official page that confirms it. Your own order depends on your passport and visa: build your plan in the guide to get it.
Figures: INE: Official padrón population figures by municipality (table 29005) · INE: Annual population census: population by nationality (table 66323) · Tax Agency: Housing declared in income tax 2024: rent and yield for municipalities over 20,000 people (new contracts) · Ministry of Health: Catálogo Nacional de Hospitales 2025
Your plan for Cartagena, in your order. Documents, offices, hours and fees for each step, for your passport and visa.
Build my plan for CartagenaSteps in Cartagena
ID & numbers
Obtain a NIE (foreigner identification number)
The NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjero) is the personal, unique number that identifies a foreigner in all Spanish administrative, tax, work and social dealings; if you do not already have one, you request it from…
Residency
Obtain the TIE residence card
The TIE (Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero) is the plastic card that proves a non-EU foreigner’s legal residence in Spain; you must apply for it in person at the police documentation unit within one month of arriving…
Register as an EU citizen resident in Spain
EU/EEA/Swiss citizens who stay in Spain more than three months apply in person at the foreigners' office or police station for the 'certificado de registro de ciudadano de la Unión', a paper certificate that shows their…
Book a cita previa for extranjería / police appointments
Immigration and foreigner-ID procedures handled by the National Police or the foreigners' office (NIE, TIE fingerprints, EU registration and others) require an advance appointment booked through the state’s online 'Cita…
City hall
Register at your town hall (padrón)
The padrón is your town council’s register of the people who live in the municipality.
Register on the Cartagena padrón
Register your address on Cartagena’s Padrón Municipal de Habitantes using the municipal registration sheet (hoja padronal) and proof of identity and address.
Get a padrón certificate or volante in Cartagena
Request a certificado or volante de empadronamiento using the city’s municipal forms, online (with or without a digital certificate) or in person with an appointment.
Set up Cartagena’s official apps
Cartagena Viva is the city council’s app for residents and visitors, presented in October 2025.
Health
Book a GP appointment (cita previa)
Book GP (and nurse) visits through the Cita Previa SMS app, web, Portal del Paciente, phone line or the health-center desk.
Find or change your health center and GP
Your public GP is tied to the health center for your home address; you register at its administrative desk.
Get your vaccines in Spain
Spain’s public health system offers a national vaccination calendar for every age, plus a yearly flu and COVID-19 campaign each autumn.
Get vaccinated in Región de Murcia (seasonal campaign and appointments)
How the Servicio Murciano de Salud takes appointments for seasonal flu and COVID-19 vaccination and where the regional calendar is.
Digital ID
Get a Spanish mobile number (prepaid SIM or contract)
You can get a Spanish mobile number with a prepaid SIM or a monthly contract; by law operators must record the buyer’s identity from a DNI, passport or residence card, so a foreign passport is a valid document for…
Get home internet (fiber contract, permanence and your rights)
Home internet in Spain is normally a fiber (or cable) contract with a telecom operator, often bundled with mobile lines, which may include a minimum-commitment (permanencia) clause; users have defined rights on…
Obtain an FNMT digital certificate
The FNMT 'certificado de ciudadano' is a free electronic certificate that lets you sign and log in to Spanish public services; you request it online, prove your identity in person at an accreditation office (or by paid…
Register for Cl@ve (electronic ID for government services)
Cl@ve is the Spanish state’s shared login system for online government services (Agencia Tributaria, Social Security, DGT, many others); foreigners with a NIE can register online with an invitation letter or electronic…
Utilities
Pay your household bills in Cartagena
In Cartagena, water is supplied by Hidrogea, which has an online form for changing the account holder.
Pay your household bills in Spain
Most household bills in Spain are paid by direct debit from a Spanish bank account.
Emergencies
Report a crime (denuncia)
You report a crime (make a denuncia) at a Policía Nacional station or a Guardia Civil post, or start some reports online and then sign them at the station.
Education
Enroll a child in school
Admissions to publicly funded schools in Región de Murcia run on two tracks: an ordinary-phase window each stage sets by its own annual BORM resolution (roughly Feb-Jun), and a year-round permanent phase (fase…
Money
Open a Spanish bank account
A Spanish (euro, IBAN) bank account is what you need for rent, direct-debited utilities, salary, Bizum and everyday card payments; any legal resident of the EU also has a legal right to a low-fee 'cuenta de pago básica'…
Keep up US obligations while living abroad (taxes, FBAR, voting, benefits)
US citizens must generally keep filing US tax returns and report foreign accounts from abroad, can vote absentee through FVAP, and can usually keep receiving US Social Security payments overseas.
Pay government immigration fees (Modelo 790 tasas)
State immigration fees are paid with the self-assessment form Modelo 790: código 012 for police documents such as the NIE, TIE and EU certificate, and código 052 for residence-authorization procedures; you generate the…
Set up Bizum for instant mobile payments
Bizum is Spain’s bank-run mobile payment system that links your phone number to your Spanish bank account so you can send, request and receive money in seconds, pay in some shops and online, and donate, all through your…
Legal
Get a criminal record certificate from every country you lived in
Adults applying for a long-stay visa usually need a criminal record certificate from each country they lived in during the last five years, with a Hague Apostille and a sworn Spanish translation.
Pets
Dog microchip and regional animal registry
Microchipping and vaccination of dogs, cats and ferrets are mandatory in Murcia under Ley 6/2017, and owners must register their animals.
Register your dog and follow local pet rules
Dogs must be microchipped and entered in the regional animal register and municipal census; leads must be 1.5-2 m; max five dogs or cats per household.
Good to know in Cartagena
- Consumer office (OMIC)
- Grocery shopping in Cartagena
- Immigration information and support unit (Unidad de Inmigración)
- Municipal libraries
- Municipal nurseries (escuelas infantiles 0-3)
- Regulated parking (ORA) and resident card
- Ride Cartagena’s city buses (ALSA urban service)
- Rubbish, recycling and bulky items in Cartagena
- Social services entry point (PASS)
- Use citizen-service offices, the city phone line and cita previa
- Use municipal sports facilities and pools
Also: Región de Murcia · All of Spain
Topics: ID & numbers · Residency · City hall · Health · Work · Digital ID · Getting around · Housing · Utilities · Education · Family · Money · Legal · Taxes