Child support and residence renewal in Spain

I have been out of Spain for almost ten years. I lived there as a legal resident of the EU for approximately seven years. I had a DNI. I have two children (ages: 12 and 16) for whom I am paying child support. It is current (actually ahead of due payments-I usually send six months at a time so kids get more money with lower single fee). I am considering returning and am over 65 years old. Can I re-instate my Spanish Residence (I worked and paid taxes every year I was in Spain - 7) and move back to live near my kids? If I can't, when does my obligation end as far as child support is concerned? When the kids reach 18 is that it? Or does it continue even though I will no longer be working and will be living on meager Social Security money from the USA - either in New York or Els Girones. Puc parlar el catala Y Puedo hablar Castellano tambien y otros idiomas. Vull marchar d'Estats Units. Posible? si o no? No vull ser il-legal. No quiero estar sin papeles. Gracies o Gracias. Thanks.

American Father.

Hello American father

You can recover a Long Stay/permanent residence card if that is the type of residence card you had at the time. Temporary residence cards can´t be recovered if out of Spain for more than a year. You can read about the requirements and procedure to recover it here: Hoja Informativa Nº 50.
You mention you had a DNI, but I trust you meant a NIE, as DNI are only granted to Spanish Nationals.

Regarding your question about child support: It is usually mandatory to pay it until the children are 18 years old. However, if the children are still dependent on their parents ( illness, for instance ) or are still studying ( e.g. Higher Education at college/University ) and unable to cover their living expenses for themselves, they could approach the courts themselves and claim an extension of the child support obligation, and the judge can determine that you still have to pay child support until they end their Education Programmes.

Regards,