Social security in all countries needs advanced identification systems so that citizens can adequately receive services. In the case of Spain, the NUSS and the NAF are two identification numbers that appear on the health card.
The acronym NUSS stands for Social Security User Number and the acronym NAF stands for Social Security Affiliation Number.
Differences between the NUSS and the NAF
The NUSS number is only available to people residing in Spain and it appears on the citizens' health card. On the other hand, the NAF can only be obtained by those who are registered in the Social Security registry because they are citizens who contribute.
Consequently, both numbers coincide in the case that a citizen contributes to social security. On the other hand, if someone is registered in the system but does not contribute (for example, due to their orphan status or because they have a non-contributory pension) the NUSS and NAF numbers will not coincide.
It should be noted that the NAF number may change, since a person may be the owner of a service or the beneficiary of it depending on their employment situation.
In short, the NUSS number becomes the NAF number when the citizen registers in the social security system to start a work activity.
Considerations of interest
Regarding the NAF application, there are two possibilities: that it is the citizen who requests it or that it is the company that hires it. On the other hand, said processing may be carried out in person or through the internet.
In the case of NUSS, schoolchildren have access to it, since all Spanish students have school insurance that covers them in cases of accident or illness. This benefit authorizes them to receive medical and pharmaceutical care.
The difference between one number and the other is of great importance, otherwise it can generate confusion.
The public body that deals with everything related to these procedures is the General Treasury of Social Security
From the point of view of administrative management, some of the functions of the General Social Security Treasury are the following: provide information to workers and companies about their situation in the social security system, provide the allocation of the Social security number or inform on the contribution base of the workers.
Photos: Fotolia - Denisillin - Bualong
