Getting a NUSS

Key facts

When you need it — and who can ask for it

Spanish law puts the deadline before day one: affiliation requests must be made "con carácter previo al inicio de la actividad" — prior to the start of the activity. In practice that means the NUSS is required before any contract: an employer cannot register you with Social Security without it, and an autónomo cannot file the alta in RETA.

Two people can make the request:

• You, at a TGSS office or online through Import@ss; or
• Your employer, who can request the number on your behalf as part of hiring — if you are joining a Spanish company, ask HR before queueing anywhere.

The easiest route: Import@ss — even without Cl@ve

Import@ss (portal.seg-social.gob.es) is the TGSS portal for individuals, and the NUSS request lives under "Solicitar el número de la Seguridad Social". You can identify yourself three ways:

• Cl@ve, digital certificate or DNIe — the standard logins; if you have set up the digital certificate and Cl@ve, this is a five-minute form; or
• No Cl@ve at all — Import@ss accepts a documentary identity check instead: you upload a photo of your DNI or NIE document from both sides plus a selfie holding the document, and the request proceeds without any prior electronic identity.

That second route is the detail almost every guide misses: a newly arrived foreigner with no Spanish logins of any kind can still get a NUSS from a phone. The resolution arrives as a downloadable document with your number.

If you prefer the counter, the same TA.1 request is filed at a TGSS administration office (cita previa recommended). And if you want the paperwork prepared and tracked for you — for example, alongside a NIE obtained by power of attorney — the social security number registration service run by the team behind this site covers it.

NUSS is not the healthcare card

The single most common confusion: the NUSS does not entitle the holder to walk into a clinic. The healthcare card is separate. The sequence is:

1. NUSS — from the TGSS, as described above. This registers you with the social security system.
2. Tarjeta sanitaria — from the health service of your autonomous community, applied for at the centro de salud that covers your registered address (they will ask for your padrón certificate). The TGSS does not issue it.

Same logic, different bodies: the TGSS handles contributions; your region’s health service handles care. Plan them as two separate errands, in that order.

Where the NUSS fits in your first weeks

In the paperwork sequence after you arrive, the NUSS follows the NIE (Import@ss identifies you by your NIE) and typically the padrón. Once it is issued, your contract can be registered, and your contribution history starts accumulating from the first alta. If you plan to drive, note that exchanging your driving licence runs on its own six-month clock — do not let the NUSS errand crowd it out.

⚠ Scams to avoid

• ✗ Paid "NUSS issuance" websites. The TA.1 procedure is free at the TGSS and free on Import@ss. Sites charging a "government fee" for the number itself are charging for something that has no fee.
• ✗ Fake Import@ss look-alikes. The document-photo-plus-selfie route is legitimate — but only on portal.seg-social.gob.es. A cloned portal collecting ID photos and selfies is an identity-theft kit; check the domain before uploading anything.
• ✗ "Job offers" that ask for money to arrange your social security number. A real employer requests the NUSS for you as part of hiring and never charges for it; an "employer" demanding a registration fee up front is not an employer.