NIE Number
The NIE (Número de Identificación de Extranjero) is your tax identification number. You need it for almost everything: opening a bank account, signing a lease, buying a car, getting a SIM card.
Book your NIE appointment at sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es. In Valencia, appointments go fast — check early morning for cancellations.
Bring: passport + photocopy, completed EX-15 form, proof of reason for needing NIE (lease, employment contract, etc.), and the Tasa 790 fee receipt (paid at any bank).
Empadronamiento
Registering on the padrón municipal (local register) is one of the first things you should do after finding housing. Go to your local Ayuntamiento with your passport and lease agreement.
The empadronamiento certificate unlocks: public school enrollment, healthcare registration, certain visa renewals, and local resident discounts.
Bank Account
You'll need your NIE to open a standard resident bank account. Sabadell, CaixaBank and BBVA are the most common in Valencia. Most have English-speaking staff in city-centre branches.
As a stop-gap before you have your NIE: Wise and Revolut work in Spain without a NIE and give you a Spanish IBAN for receiving transfers.