Posted: Fri Jul 3, 2020 7:00pm
I doubt they even mention residency at the town hall, unless it's their genuine reason for wanting to register.
The usual reason for applying is because a bar room lawyer has told them that they should, or that they can't buy a car without one, or any other urban myth they're told.
Rojales town hall is notorious for encouraging non-residents to register; Torrevieja used to be, but clamped down a year ago, as did Denia in the north. It was a shock when they did and started the rush for illegals to get their residency, not least for some because you need to be on the Padron for your children to attend school here. Before the beginning of the new school year, parents went along to get up to date Padron certificates and suddenly started to be rejected, which put their children's education at risk.
The key point though is that existing rights for UK citizens under EU law will only be protected for those who are living in Spain LEGALLY before 31 December 2020. So whilst someone who's lived here multiple years may be able to use a Padron registration as proof they've been living here, I haven't seen anything that says their rights are protected by having a Padron certificate, without being legally resident.
Kind regards,
Kim