Can I delay my entry into Spain after NLV approval?

I was approved (yay!) for my NLV, 10 days after my appointment (Los Angeles consulate). While I am happy that I was approved, it was not the timeline I was shooting for. I hired a law firm/ lawyer to help facilitate the process and made it clear that I didn't want to move until September (for several reasons regarding construction, property rental, and family commitments). She emphasized a 2-3 month approval turnaround (which is how I backed into making an appointment for April). I figured if I was approved in May/June, I could get to Spain by September 1, no problem.

Now I'm not sure what to do! From my understanding, I have 30 days to pick up my visa and then another 90 days (I think or maybe it's 90 days from the approval date, which was April 12) to get into Spain.

My questions are:

  • Is there any way to extend my visa date of entry?
  • Will I be turned away if I go to Spain in September (i.e. will my visa have expired by that time?)
  • Worst case scenario: can I let this visa expire and reapply?


Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

@lmurphy213

Also, I saw this on the LA/ Spain Consulate website (on a disclaimer pop up):

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

The deadline for submitting a visa application is extended to 6 months instead of 3 months. In case of Seafarers they may be presented with a maximum advance of 9 months.


Wondering if this means I have 6 months to enter the country?

@lmurphy213


Congratulations!


It's not often we can say the bureaucrats are working too fast. :-)


There is a pretty strict clock running now, sorry. You are correct on the days (30 to collect visa, then 90 to enter Spain, then another 30 to get your TIE).


I don't think you can extend, and I don't think you can ignore the deadlines.


The whole application process is rather time-consuming and expensive, so, personally, I'd be pretty unhappy to let it lapse and re-apply. But if you have the cash/time, that's definitely an option. (And if you've been approved once, you should be able to update your application and get a 2nd approval.)


Despite the inconvenience, I'd rather get a flight to Spain ASAP and sort out my TIE. Then I'd come back to the US and deal with whatever is needed there. The TIE is done locally, after booking a Cita Previa online. You'll need your padron certificate for this, and for the town hall to register you, they expect to see a long-term rental contract (a year, I think, but perhaps they'll accept 6 months).


https://www.inclusion.gob.es/en/web/mig … -tie-hi92-

Thanks for your response - just seeing it now as I didn't receive a notification. I think that I MAY have gotten the visa for September. I posted my question in a Facebook Spain NLV forum and a few members responded that the 90 days is tied to the date that I gave for my "move date". To make a long story short, during the appointment the consulate representative asked when I was planning on moving to Spain and I told her September. Naively, I thought she was asking this in "conversation", but in hindsight, I believe she was putting that on my application (I do not recall there being a "requested date of entry" on the application as my lawyer filled it out for me). So, fingers crossed, the visa is for September. Another member said that there was some way I could track it as I can't get to the consulate until later next week, and my lawyer is on vacation until next week. So, it's just a "wait and see" at this point.

I appreciate your response!

Hi @lmurphy,


I recently submitted my visa documents to the L.A. consulate.

As you know, on the visa application, there is a required space

for your anticipated date of entry into Spain—mine is also the

beginning of Sept.

I had expressed some concern that if the visa is approved sooner

rather than later, that I would have to enter Spain in July or worse, August,

and the representative I dealt with at the front desk (glass enclosure) assured

me that when my visa is approved, it would be the date I entered as the deadline

for arriving in Spain. In fact, she entered my desired date of arrival into the

computer. She said I could always go early as a tourist if I wanted, but it would

be my anticiapted date of arrival as the deadline.

Does your visa indicate the deadline by which you need to arrive?

Hi @rdruby699 - Thanks so much for your response! I had the exact same concerns! I have construction going on at my condo complex that has an ever-shifting finish date, so I've been somewhat anxious about get a visa "too soon". I am going to pick up my visa this Friday (can't get there sooner), so I will know for sure then. But, I'm pretty sure that they most likely issued it for September (fingers crossed). I'll be in Barcelona, where are you thinking of moving (if you don't mind my asking)?

How were you folks able to secure an appointment date with the Los Angeles office? Even checking four times a day shows no appointments available.  I am hearing more and more from people complaining about the unavailability of appointments, and about the appointment website possibly being broken.