Passport, photos and ID copies for your application

Key rules

• Passport validity: Your passport must be valid and undamaged when you file, and the visa cannot run longer than the passport.
• Expiring passport: Renew your passport before filing if it has less than 6 months of validity left.
• No passport: Use a stateless person's travel document, a refugee travel document or an identity or travel document issued by your home authorities; if you have none, the consulate or the Oficina de Extranjería decides what other proof is enough.
• Photo: Bring a recent colour photo on a plain light background.

Start with your passport's expiry date

Your passport must have at least 6 months of validity left when you file. A short passport means a short visa.

Look at the data page too. Damage, peeling or a worn photo can be enough for a refusal.

EU citizens do not need a visa and follow their own registration rules. If you are a UK citizen with Withdrawal Agreement rights, you follow the Withdrawal Agreement rules, and other UK citizens apply as non-EU citizens with the passport rules on this page.

If your passport expires soon

Your visa or card is tied to the passport, and the consulate may refuse it or shorten it.

If you cannot renew in time, some consulates accept a filing with short validity. They then ask for the renewed passport before they issue the visa.

If you have no valid passport

You may be able to use another document that Spanish law accepts:

• a stateless person's travel document
• a refugee travel document
• a national identity or other travel document issued by your home authorities

If you have none of these, the Oficina de Extranjería (the immigration office) or the consulate decides what other proof is enough. They assess each case on its own facts.

Passport copies

Bring the original passport to the appointment as well. Each consulate sets its own list of pages to copy.

Each family member has their own passport and files their own visa application; the visa fee is on Government fees for a Spanish residence procedure.

Your photo

Most offices want 32 x 26 mm, and some accept 35 x 45 mm. Take the photo in the last few months.

For online filing you also need a digital file in JPEG format. Sizes and formats differ between consulates and offices.

Documents you need

• A full copy of your passport: all pages with data, visas and stamps. Some consulates accept only the data page plus pages with stamps or visas.
• A recent colour passport-style photo. Use a plain light or white background, a front-facing uncovered face and a neutral expression, with no glare on glasses.
• A copy of your local residence permit or national ID, if you live in the consulate's district and it asks for one.