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Air Freight
- Transit time
- 5–7 days
- Door-to-door
- 10–14 days
- Best for
- Essential items needed immediately upon arrival
Air freight to Madrid, Barcelona, or Malaga airports. Includes Aduanas customs clearance and delivery to your Spanish address.
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Moving to Spain from the USA
Ship your belongings to Spain with full Aduanas customs clearance — mainland Spain, Balearic Islands, and Canary Islands.
Door-to-Door
25+ Years on This Route
Flat-Rate Pricing
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10,000+ Shipments Delivered
Tens of thousands of successful international moves from the US to destinations worldwide — including Ireland, the UK, and Europe.
In Business Since 2004
20+ years moving households and freight from the US to destinations across Europe and beyond.
Door-to-Door Service
We collect from your US home and deliver to your new front door. You handle nothing in between.
Flat-Rate Packages
One price covers everything — pickup, ocean transit, customs clearance, and final delivery.
Mainland, Balearics, Canaries — one shipment
Moving to Spain from the USA is a growing route for us, driven by Non-Lucrative and Digital Nomad visas, returning Spaniards, and Americans retiring to the Costa del Sol, Valencia, or the islands. City Post Express handles it door-to-door with Aduanas clearance and Transfer of Residence relief included. What they have in common is a realisation, usually two weeks in, that doing it themselves is not the plan it looked like on paper. That's where our crew picks up the job.
Mainland Spain is served primarily through Valencia, Barcelona, and Algeciras, with Algeciras being the workhorse for southern and Andalusian consignees. Clearance is handled through the Aduanas using the traslado de residencia procedure — duty and VAT relief on household goods for non-EU residents establishing Spanish residency, subject to the usual ownership and use tests. The islands add a wrinkle: the Canaries sit outside the EU customs union and the Balearics require a short inter-island leg. Both are routine for us, but both need planning rather than improvisation.
Door-to-door means delivery to a piso in Madrid, a townhouse in Sitges, a finca in Mallorca, or a villa up in the Alpujarras. Our Spanish partners handle narrow old-town access, island ferries, and the local permits that some municipalities demand for removal vehicles. Where a property isn't ready, temporary storage at the destination is arranged in advance rather than as a scramble.
Our route
How We Ship to Spain
Our Spain service provides full door-to-door shipping from the US to any Spanish address. Whether you are moving to a city apartment in Madrid, a villa on the Costa del Sol, or a townhouse in Andalucía, we handle every aspect of the process — packing, export documentation, shipping, customs clearance, and delivery.
Spain’s Aduanas (customs authority) requires specific documentation for the cambio de residencia (change of residence) relief. You will also need a NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjero) for the customs process — this is your foreigner identification number required for virtually all official transactions in Spain. We recommend applying for your NIE as early as possible.
We deliver to mainland Spain, the Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Ibiza, Menorca), and the Canary Islands (Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote). Note that the Canary Islands have a different tax regime (IGIC instead of IVA).
Weekly shipments
to Spain since 2004
Your options
Air Freight vs Ocean Freight to Spain
Many clients use both — air for essentials they need on arrival, ocean for the bulk of their belongings.
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Ocean Freight
- Transit time
- 14–18 days port-to-port
- Door-to-door
- 5–8 weeks
- Best for
- Furniture, household goods, larger shipments
Ports: Barcelona, Valencia, Algeciras — routed based on your destination
Ocean freight to Barcelona, Valencia, or Algeciras. Includes customs clearance with cambio de residencia relief and inland delivery. LCL and FCL options. Balearic and Canary Island delivery available.
What You Can Ship to Spain
We handle the customs documentation. Here is a quick guide to what travels well on this route — and what doesn't.
Commonly shipped
- Household furniture and furnishings
- Personal clothing and shoes
- Books, photos, and documents
- Electronics (Spain uses 230V Type C/F)
- Kitchen items and cookware
- Bedding and linens
- Children's belongings
- Sporting equipment — golf clubs, surfboards, bicycles
- Art and collectibles
Restricted or prohibited
- Alcohol and tobacco
- Firearms
- Perishable food
- Hazardous materials
- Plants and soil
- New, unused items
- Commercial goods
- Vehicles (separate import process)
Customs & duty
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Customs Clearance for Spain
Spain follows EU customs regulations under the cambio de residencia (change of residence) relief — the Spanish implementation of EU Regulation 1186/2009.
Cambio de Residencia Relief
This exempts your personal effects and household goods from customs duties and VAT when transferring your permanent residence to Spain from outside the EU.
Requirements
- You must have lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months
- Items must have been owned and used for at least 6 months
- You must be relocating your normal residence to Spain
- Goods must be for personal use only
Let us handle the customs
Customs paperwork for Spain is included in every package — ToR relief, declarations, all of it.
From the team
Shipping tips for Spain
01
Get your NIE early
The NIE (foreigner identification number) is needed for customs clearance and virtually everything else in Spain. Apply at the Spanish consulate before you move, or arrange it immediately upon arrival.
02
Register on the Padrón Municipal
This population register at your local town hall is important for residency proof and other administrative processes. Do it within days of arrival.
03
Canary Islands have different rules
The Canary Islands use IGIC tax instead of mainland Spain's IVA. This affects duty calculations. We handle the specifics for island deliveries.
04
Spanish cities have narrow old-town streets
If you are moving to the historic centre of any Spanish city, check access for delivery trucks. Narrow streets and limited parking are common in older neighbourhoods.
Spain — Frequently Asked Questions
Explore more
Other Routes We Cover
Australia
The long haul done right. Ocean and air freight from the US to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and every postcode in between — biosecurity and customs handled.
Explore AustraliaCanada
From the Midwest to Montreal, Texas to Toronto — we've been shipping personal belongings from the US to Canada for 20+ years. Cross-border trucking,, and air — one flat rate, no border headaches.
Explore CanadaEurope
From Berlin to Barcelona, Paris to Rome — we ship your belongings to destinations across the European Union.
Explore Europe Resources
All guides
Further reading: shipping to Spain
Guide ·12 min read
Moving to Spain from the US — Complete Shipping Guide
Everything you need to know about moving to Spain from the US — shipping options, costs, customs regulations, visa requirements, and a step-by-step timeline. From City Post Express, your FMC-licensed international shipping partner.
Guide ·15 min read
Customs Clearance for International Shipping: Complete Guide
Complete guide to customs clearance for international shipping from the US to Europe. Covers the customs clearance process step by step, Transfer of Residence duty-free rules, country-by-country requirements for Ireland, UK, Germany, France, Spain, and Italy, required documents, timelines, duties and taxes, and prohibited items.
Guide ·15 min read
Moving to Ireland from the US — Shipping Guide
Everything you need to know about moving to Ireland from the US — shipping costs, transit times, Transfer of Residence duty relief, customs clearance, and practical tips from a company that has been shipping personal belongings to Ireland for over 25 years.
Blog ·7 min read
Flat-Rate International Shipping: How It Works and Why It Matters
Flat-rate international shipping means one transparent price that covers pickup, ocean freight, customs clearance, and delivery to your door. Learn how it works, why traditional movers charge hidden fees, and how City Post Express pioneered fixed-price shipping for personal belongings from the US to Ireland, the UK, and Europe.
Ready to Move to Spain?
Mainland Spain, Balearics, or Canaries — we cover every corner with Aduanas customs handled. Tell us your destination for a flat-rate quote.
No obligation. No hidden fees. Just honest, flat-rate shipping.