British nationals living in Spain are reminded by the UK Embassy in Madrid that their “Green Certificates” from the National Police office or Extranjería office are still valid. Under Spain’s implementation of the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement, holders of A4 green certificates, or credit-card-sized paper holders, are still allowed to live and work in Spain.

Although these certificates exclude British citizens from the new travel restrictions that the EU is planning to implement in 2024 and 2025, the Embassy advises, in accordance with Spanish authorities, exchanging them for a Spanish Foreign Identity Card (TIE). It’s crucial to remember that this kind of interaction is not mandated by law.

With the exception of 2013, when there were 316,362, the number of British nationals in Spain reached a peak of 313,975 in 2022, according to the German data collection website Statista. The number has been gradually rising since 2019 despite a persistent decrease from 2013 to 2018.

With 92,180 inhabitants, Andalusia is the most popular area in Spain for British nationals living abroad. Valencia comes in second with 87,700, the Canary Islands with 29,631, Catalonia with 24,689, and the Balearic Islands with 19,569.
15.1 million British tourists visited Spain in 2022 alone, making it a popular travel destination for the nation.