Moving to Spain from the UK: your plan, from three months out to moving day

With MuveOne, you can book your move from the UK to Spain up to 3 months before your collection window, and your customs documents are due 7 days before it; for most people moving to Spain from the UK, what really sets the date is their Spanish residency paperwork, not the van. I'm Noel, and I answer most of the questions we get about moving to Spain. This guide is the plan for the move itself: when to get your quote and book, what customs asks for, what can't travel, and how to list your belongings once. Visas, residency and healthcare are for the Spanish and UK governments to answer, so for those I link you to their own pages, at the end.

Start when you know roughly when you want to go, even if the date is not settled. The plan below counts back from your collection window, the days in which we collect your belongings, and every date in it comes from the same rules our booking system uses, so it is the same plan your booking will follow.

Two things the plan can't show you. The first is your residency paperwork. Spanish customs asks for proof that you have made Spain your home before it clears your belongings under the relief, and getting that proof takes as long as the Spanish authorities take, which can be longer than the time between booking and collection. So start your residency steps before you book, not after; the GOV.UK link for them is in the next section. The second is that a quote holds for a short time, so get the one you book on when you are ready to book, and use an earlier one to plan.

Spain has two customs routes we use: Spanish customs, in Spain, or French customs at Calais. Which one your move takes, and the exact documents, depend on your circumstances, and we confirm them for your case after your quote. What the documents usually look like, for the situations that change them most:

Two things hold whichever route you take. Customs asks for proof that you lived in the UK and proof that you now live in Spain. The Spanish side of that is a residency step only you can take; GOV.UK explains how British citizens register as residents in Spain. And no list, ours or anyone's, is ever final: customs can ask for one more document after the pack is in. If it does, we tell you the same day and work through it with you; our guide to what happens when customs asks for one more document tells that story.

Some things we can't carry on any move, to Spain or anywhere else. The groups are below, and the full list, with the reasons, is on our page of what we can't move.

Two questions come up on almost every move to Spain. Cars, motorbikes, caravans, boats and trailers: we don't carry vehicles of any kind. That is our rule, not Spain's; Spain has its own rules for bringing a vehicle in. Wine, spirits and cigarettes: we don't carry those either, and Spain's relief never covers them anyway.

Customs wants a list of what you are moving, and so do we, to plan the right vehicle. You only need to make it once. Our Inventory Planner lets you build it room by room by picking your things from a list, with no measuring or guessing, checks it with you, and carries it into your booking, so the list you plan with is the list we move.

Spanish customs' own note asks for each item's estimated value and a rough date you bought it. Keep that in mind as you go, while the receipts are still easy to find.

Be fully packed and ready from the first day of your collection window: we choose the day within it and tell you the day and time to expect the van in advance, with the notice your terms set out. Customs is a step in the journey, not a surprise at the border: on the UK to Spain route it is included in your quote and handled by us.

How long the drive takes depends on where in Spain you are going and on whether your load has the vehicle to itself; our guide to how long a removal from the UK to Europe takes has the range for Spain, counted from loading day. If your things could arrive before you do, that guide also covers what to do about it.

One thing from our own moves: if your Spanish address is rural or new, and doesn't come up when you type it, tell us when you book, so the driver can find it.

These are not part of the move, and we don't advise on them, but you will need them. Each link goes to the official page.

• Visas and living in Spain GOV.UK: Living in Spain ↗
• Registering as a resident GOV.UK: Spain, registering as a resident and getting a TIE ↗
• Healthcare GOV.UK: Healthcare for UK nationals living in Spain ↗
• Driving GOV.UK: Living in Spain, the driving section (exchanging a UK licence) ↗
• Pets (we don't carry animals) GOV.UK: Taking your pet dog, cat or ferret abroad ↗
• Money, tax and pensions GOV.UK: Living in Spain, the money section ↗

Before you ask us for a quote, check these.

• Start your residency steps now; they take longer than anything we do.
• Check the four relief conditions above against your own dates.
• Note anything you are taking that we don't carry: vehicles, plants, food, drink, animals.
• Tell us if you are a student, are moving an inheritance or furniture for a second home, or are a Spanish citizen coming home: your documents are different, so ask us.
• Get your quote, and start your inventory with the Inventory Planner link it brings.
• Book when your dates are firm, inside the plan above.