Why the order matters
Most problems when moving here do not come from any single step being hard. They come from doing it too early or too late. Without a NIE number you get neither a bank account nor a rental contract. Without a rental contract there is no empadronamiento. Without the empadronamiento and proof of health cover, the EU registration certificate is refused. Get the order wrong and you pay for it in waiting time: a new appointment at the Policía Nacional in Palma is rarely available the same week.
What the navigator does
It sorts the steps that actually apply to your situation and hides the rest. A pensioner needs no social security number; someone who only wants a NIE for a property purchase needs neither empadronamiento nor a residence certificate. The figures for documents, duration and cost come from our guides on the individual steps, and every card links to the matching guide.
What it does not do
It does not book appointments. You have to get the cita previa yourself on the official site, which we link per step. It also stores nothing: the ticks last until you close the tab, there is no account and no data reaches us.
And it deliberately covers EU citizens only, meaning nationals of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland. For everyone else the whole route depends on the visa, and a wrong path would be worse than none.
How current are the figures?
They reflect August 2026. Fees such as the tasa 790 for the NIE rarely change, waiting times change constantly, and individual town halls ask for different proof for the empadronamiento. So check the official page and your municipality list of documents before each appointment. The navigator is orientation, not legal advice.