In Spain, if something does not come with its proper dose of bureaucracy, it must not be important. From birth to death, we go through a series of administrative procedures that follow us like a shadow. Request the birth certificate, then the large-family certificate—which is no longer used but remains on the requirements list—and do not forget three certified photocopies from a notary whose next appointment is not until next month.
If you are seeking social assistance or a benefit, you had better arm yourself with patience. The Minimum Living Income, for example, presented in 2020 as the great solution to poverty in Spain, has been a clear case of good intentions and appalling execution. According to the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, by December 2022 only 42% of applications submitted had been approved. That leaves more than half of applicant families in bureaucratic limbo, waiting months for an answer that, in many cases, never comes.
You might think new technologies would make this whole process faster and more efficient, but no: in Spain we have a love-hate relationship with digitalization. Yes, we can complete some procedures online, but often you need to download a digital certificate which—surprise—you cannot obtain online without first visiting a government office in person. And when you finally get the blasted certificate, you discover the government website does not work in your browser. So you end up calling a customer service number that leaves you on hold, repeating the same tune you heard when you tried to renew your identity card five years ago.
Oh, and let us not forget the icing on the cake: “advance appointments.” In theory, they are designed to avoid endless queues in offices, but in practice getting an appointment is almost like winning the lottery. Some services, such as Social Security’s public assistance offices, have become so overwhelmed that appointments are available two or three months ahead. If your situation is urgent, you had better have a neighbor who knows someone who can make the system move, because otherwise Spanish bureaucracy will remain slower than a queue in August.