Kent to Spain
Removals from Kent to Spain
Spain splits neatly into two access problems and almost nothing in between. Either the last road is a casco antiguo street too narrow for the vehicle, or it is a gated urbanización with a barrier, a ramp and a soffit height that stops a lorry at the entrance.
The barrier at the urbanización entrance is not the problem. The height of the beam above it is.
Who moves this way from Kent
- Households leaving Kent for the Costa Blanca, the Costa del Sol or the islands.
- People buying in an inland town where the property is on a street a van barely fits.
- Second-home owners moving contents out in part-loads rather than in one vehicle.
The road out
The shuttle at Folkestone or a Dover sailing, then the long road south. For the islands the vehicle continues to a mainland port for a sailing across, which is planned as part of the run rather than bolted on at the end.
From Calais the A16 and A28 run down the French coast, then the A10 to Bordeaux and the A63 to the border at Irún. Inside Spain the AP-8 and A-1 take you to Madrid and the centre, the AP-7 runs the whole Mediterranean coast from Catalonia to Andalucía, and the A-92 crosses inland to Granada and Seville. Long, well-surfaced and entirely predictable.
Where we deliver
Customs, and who obtains what
Spain grants relief on used household effects on a change of residence, claimed against an inventory and supported by evidence of both the departure and the arrival. The Spanish file is more document-heavy than the French one and the residence side of it takes real time, so it is worth beginning before you have a moving date.
The file, split in two
| Document | Obtained by | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Valued inventory in Spanish | Us | Prepared and translated here, described item by item rather than as carton counts. |
| NIE number | You | The foreigner identification number. Almost everything else depends on it and it is not quick. |
| Padrón or residence evidence | You | Registration on the municipal roll, or the residence document appropriate to your route. |
| Proof of the Spanish address | You | Escritura on a purchase, or the lease on a rental. |
| Proof of leaving the UK | You | Closing council tax, tenancy end or completion statement. |
| Export and import entries | Us | Lodged by us or our agent against the inventory before departure. |
Rows marked You are attached to you as a person and take real time to obtain, so start them before you have a moving date. Rows marked Us are built here from the inventory taken at the survey.
Two last roads, and nothing in between
The old-town case first. A casco antiguo street is frequently two to three metres wide, sometimes stepped, often one-way and occasionally closed to vehicles entirely during the day. A full-size removals vehicle does not enter, and anybody who tells you otherwise has not looked at the street. The plan is a legal standing point at the edge of the old quarter and a shuttle in with something small, which is how local firms do it too.
The urbanización case is the opposite in every way and catches more people out. The road in is wide and new, and then there is a barrier with a concrete beam over it, or a ramp down to a garage with a marked height limit, or both. That number stops a removals lorry at the gate no matter how good the road was, so we ask for it specifically.
Community rules are the other half of that. Many urbanizaciones and Spanish apartment blocks require notice to the administrator before a move, restrict the hours it can happen, and limit which lift may be used. None of that is difficult when it is known and all of it is difficult when it is discovered.
And the heat. A summer move on the coast is planned for the early hours because it is a safety matter for the crew rather than a preference, and it affects when a vehicle can be at the door.
Kent to Spain
Questions on this route
01 Can a lorry reach a house in the old town?
Almost never. We stand legally at the edge of the quarter and shuttle in with a smaller vehicle, planned at the survey rather than discovered on the street.
02 What is the number you need for an urbanización?
The clear height under the entrance beam, and under the garage ramp if the parking is below ground. Either one will stop a removals lorry at the gate.
03 Do we need to tell the community?
Usually yes, in advance, and the rules may limit the hours and the lift. Ask the administrator as soon as you have a date.
04 How long does the NIE take?
Longer than people plan for, and much of the Spanish file depends on it. Start it before you have a moving date rather than after.
05 Can you deliver to the islands?
Yes, with a further sailing from a mainland port, planned as part of the run. Island lanes are narrower than the mainland equivalent, so the access questions get asked twice.
06 Is summer a problem?
It changes the hour rather than the plan. Coastal moves in high summer are worked early, which is a crew safety matter rather than a preference.
Moving from Kent to Spain?
Both addresses, roughly what is going, and anything you know about the approach at the far end — the gateway, the street width, the archway, the gradient. Photographs are better than descriptions.