Empadronamiento
registering on the padrón municipal
Definition
Empadronamiento is registration on the padrón municipal, your town hall's record of who lives at an address. It is the administrative proof that you live where you say you live.
Why it matters
It is the document a long list of other processes ask for: residency paperwork, a health card, school places, some bank and utility procedures.
It follows the address, not the person. When you move, you register at the new address — and in doing so you are removed from the old one, which is what stops your name staying attached to a flat you no longer occupy.
Landlords sometimes ask tenants not to register. Being on the padrón is a right that follows from actually living there, and it is a normal part of moving in.
Where this comes up
Related terms
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