Last Updated on March 18, 2026 by Bruno Bianchi
Question about the non lucrative Spain visa at London Consulate
London non lucrative Spain visa Application – How do you go about retaining your passport at your appointment? Is this possible at London? And how do you get your visa if you are to retain your passport? Do you have to go back with it? Or do they send this out?
Answers
These are the answers of some Facebook group members:
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Start the Moving to Spain Hub →“You cannot keep your passport. The embassy retains it to insert a paper visa. It is returned to you by a stamped addressed envelope that you provide, as per the website instructions.”
“At Manchester we had the choice to leave it with them or take our passports home and return with them when our visa was granted .we left ours in the consulate with a stamped addressed envelope .They duly sent them back with the visa stamped inside not a piece of paper inserted”
“We kept ours as after we did appointment the wife had to fly back to Spain to rental where we had our dogs. I stayed in UK till I got visa then flew out. She flew in for one night. Went consulate in morning to get visa then flew home that afternoon. We did ours Manchester so was allowed our passports back. We just kept in the 90 days in 180. We rented from Jun last year. So sometimes only one of us Spain at a time. Then both run out of days so got her parents over for 2 months to look after the dogs. Lot hard work last year but so worth it now”
“That was the case when we applied in London.”
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Explore Cities →“I live in Madrid, due to go to New York in December and was denied the ESTA so had to go to the US embassey to get a visa a few months ago, not sure exactly how spain do it with their visas but the US embassay at Emilio Castelar definately kept mines and put a sticker in it, but it only took a few days until I got a text to go back and collect.
Thankfully as im from belfast I have 2 passports so I was able to submit the british one for my visa and keep my irish one, definately feel for people though when having a backup passport is not a option in these situations.”
“Our passports are currently in London while we wait the consulate desicion. We are staying in holiday accommodation and booking week by week until we hear. Not ideal as expensive but needs must.”
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