Can i leave for more than 6 moths and keep recidency?

Technically the answer is yes - leaving Spain for six months or more does require you to apply for residency again. If you are in Spain and can prove you are living there permanently when it comes to renewing your residency then you should be OK. So the question is when can are you due to renew your residency card?

Actually I worked out I am eligible for permanent residency which would allow me up to 2 years out without any problem (ironic that I want to apply for more residency status in order to leave for longer!)

I think though that my British husband will have get actual permanent residence as well -

The form says:

5. En funci?n del supuesto concreto, deber? presentar, adem?s: El familiar de un ciudadano comunitario con derecho a la residencia permanente: certificado de registro como residente permanente del ciudadano comunitario (o documento en el que el ciudadano comunitario consienta a la comprobaci?n de dicha informaci?n por la Administraci?n General del Estado).

So we're going to find out if it means technically he just has to have the right to permanent residency or if he actually needs the piece of paper.

Has anyone been down this road?

Cheers,

Molly

Molly - thanks for the update. I didn't know about the 2 year rule with permanent residency. My answer related to the temporary renewable up-to-5 year residency. I'm sure your husband will need to actually produce the green residency certificate which is very easily obtained. I have two very boring videos on Youtube about making Spanish residency applications for EU citizens - if you search for Spanish residency on YT you should see them.
Good luck with your maternity support trip - sounds like fun!

Oh thanks for that - was it the Advoco video?

So, my husband is already a resident with a tarjeta de residencia - do you think he still needs to fill this out again - last time it took them 8 months to get his card to him!

If the card is in date then that should be fine. They last 5 years and once expired need to be changed for the green A4 residency certificate which you should get on the day. Yes there are two Advoco videos which are designed to ensure anybody can do a residency application without speaking any Spanish (part 2 goes through the application form line by line).

yes, he was lucky and seems to get his card just as they changed the rules, so, he's good.

thanks for your help!

By the way, if anyone is interested - if you are in my situation, i.e, non eu person married to eu person living in spain... it seems that after 5 years of consecutively living in spain you can apply for permanent residency, like i am going to do now - but if i had taken that trip and stayed out for more than 6 months that would have jeopardised the whole thing, i would still be able to reapply for residency on the same grounds as usual, but i would effectively be starting my timeline from scratch.

Also, by the way, the form for residency applications is called EX16 - this pdf also has all the lists of paperwork you need, (obviously all in spanish though)

download it here:

http://www.mir.es/SGACAVT/modelos/extranjeria/modelos_extranje/ex_16.pdf


Cheers,

Molly