Filling in Spanish immigration forms without common mistakes

Key rules

• Names: Write your name exactly as in your passport and keep the same spelling on every document.
• Foreign documents: Documents in another language need a sworn translation into Spanish, and a document from outside the EU also needs an apostille or legalisation.
• Signature: Sign the form yourself, or attach a power of representation if someone signs for you.

Most problems come from small mistakes: a name spelled differently, a missing signature, an old version of the form. Any of these can trigger a requerimiento. Check each field against your passport before you submit.

Language

The forms are in Spanish. Fill them in Spanish.

A missing translation or apostille is one of the most common reasons for a request to correct the file. A public document issued in an EU state needs no apostille in Spain, and a multilingual standard form replaces the translation for the document types that have one. A document from a non-EU country that is a Hague member needs an apostille and a sworn translation into Spanish. A document from a non-EU country that is not a Hague member needs full legalisation through its foreign ministry and the Spanish consulate, plus a sworn translation into Spanish.

Names and passport details

Copy everything from your passport.

• Write your name in capital letters, with surnames and given names in the correct boxes.
• Enter your parents' names in full.
• Copy your nationality, passport number and expiry date exactly as shown.
• Do not abbreviate, translate or reorder names.
• Use the same spelling on every document in the file.

Your passport must be valid and have all its pages, because a passport that is not valid or has missing pages gets the file sent back: check the expiry date and copy every page. Fill in every family and address box, and add the required translations and apostilles; incomplete data leads to a correction request.

Address and notifications

If you have a padrón certificate, the address must match it.

Add a mobile phone number and an email address, because notifications go there. Electronic notification is mandatory for companies and often for lawyers.

Signatures

Sign the form by hand. If you file online, sign electronically with a digital certificate.

Someone else can sign for you only with a power of representation document, and you attach it to the file. For work-related routes, the employer signs their part. For a minor, the legal representatives sign.

An unsigned form is a defect, so check this last.

Right form, right fee

Use the form that matches your route and filing channel, in its current version.

Pay the fee on modelo 790 under the code for your procedure and attach the receipt: how to pay; the amounts are on the fees page.

EU citizens, UK citizens with Withdrawal Agreement rights and family members of an EU citizen use other forms: the forms page has them.

The office sends you a request to correct the defect or add the missing documents (a requerimiento). You have 10 working days from the day after notification to reply, and Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays do not count. An extension of up to 5 working days can be granted on request. If you miss the deadline, the application is treated as withdrawn and archived, and you file a new one if your right to apply has not lapsed.

If you are still abroad or just arriving

You have no Spanish address or padrón certificate yet, so the padrón match does not apply to you.

• Enter your address in your country of residence, or the planned address in Spain if the form requires it.
• Use the padrón only once you are resident in Spain.

What if you used the wrong form or paid the wrong fee?

A wrong form, an outdated form or the wrong fee code is fixable. The office asks you to correct it.

What happens if you used the wrong form

An application on the wrong form counts as defective. The office sends you a request to correct it (a "requerimiento de subsanación").

Do this:

1. File the correct form, with the original documents attached, before the deadline.
2. Check the deadline written in the notification itself, as it is the one that counts.

If the wrong procedure cannot be processed at all, you file again on the correct form.

What happens if the form is out of date

An older version of the form is rejected or returned with a request for the current version. Download the current form from the official immigration portal before you file.

What happens if you paid the wrong fee code

A wrong code on the fee payment (form 790) counts as a payment defect. The office sends the same request to correct it.

1. Pay the correct fee.
2. Send the new receipt through the same channel, quoting your file number.
3. Ask for a refund of the wrong payment. This is called an "ingreso indebido", and it takes time.

What happens if the fee is missing

The application counts as incomplete. You get the same request. Pay form 790 with the correct code, then send the receipt quoting your file number.

Can you reuse a fee you already paid?

Yes, in two cases. If you correct the same application while it is being processed, the original payment stands and you pay nothing more. If your first application was rejected at filing and never started, the fee is accepted for a new application of the same type for the same person. A fee paid for a different procedure or code cannot be moved, and a fee for a refused or closed application cannot be reused.