Preventing status problems early

It is for anyone thinking about, planning or carrying out a move to Spain. After reading it, you will know which dates and obligations protect your status, which common beliefs are wrong, and how to act before a problem exists.

Start with "The dates that control your Spanish residence status". It explains how the visa, authorisation, card and passport dates differ, and the other pages build on it.

This topic does not cover booking appointments, filing online, how the residence card (TIE) works, or recovering after a lapse.

Key rules

• Renewal window: You can file a renewal from 60 days before your authorisation expires up to 90 days after it expires, and filing before expiry extends your current authorisation until a decision.
• Counting days: Deadlines in days count working days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, and start the day after notification.
• Card application: You must apply for the TIE card within one month of entering Spain on a long-stay visa.
• Status date: Your residence authorisation expiry date governs your lawful status, not the card or passport date.
• Working days: Day-based deadlines skip Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, so check whether your deadline is in days or months.
• Unopened notices: An electronic notice you do not open within 10 calendar days is treated as rejected, and the process continues.

Preventing status problems early: the whole process, step by step

From arrival to renewal: the sequence

• Check which date controls your status: the authorisation expiry date, not the card or passport date (read: The dates that control your Spanish residence status): before you start, and again whenever you get a new document

• Enter Spain within the validity printed on your long-stay visa (read: Arrival deadlines after a long-stay visa that can trip you up): within the visa's validity period, which commonly allows entry in a window of up to three months

• Apply for the TIE card at the police foreigners' office, after booking a cita previa and paying the fee: within one month of entering Spain on a long-stay visa (latest 30 days after entry date)

• Learn how deadlines are counted: day deadlines use working days and start the day after notification (read: How Spanish immigration deadlines are counted): before any notification arrives; electronic notifications count as rejected after 10 calendar days unread

• Set your own reminder for the renewal window, because the administration does not have to remind you: well before your authorisation expires

• Check how life changes such as job loss, moving or long absences affect your permit (read: Life changes that can threaten your Spanish residence status): as soon as the change happens; temporary permits are at risk after more than 6 months a year outside Spain

• File your renewal and keep the stamped receipt (resguardo); also keep evidence of every attempt to get a cita previa (read: How your local immigration office affects timing): from 60 days before expiry; filing as soon as the window opens is the safest choice

• If you missed expiry, file your renewal anyway: up to 90 days after expiry; a warning or fine may follow (read: What a status failure can cost in fines, fees and lost income)

• If you filed nothing in time, start a new application from scratch or look at arraigo: after the 90 days have passed

• If a decision goes against you, file a recurso de reposición or alzada, or a court appeal: one month for reposición or alzada; two months for the court appeal, which does not run in August

Documents you may need

Identity and residence

• Your TIE card
• Your new passport — The dates that control your Spanish residence status, Life changes that can threaten your Spanish residence status
• Your residence authorisation resolution — The dates that control your Spanish residence status
• Your identity or travel document — The most common mistakes that put Spanish residence at risk
• Proof of registration on the padrón — Life changes that can threaten your Spanish residence status
• Your NIE certificate — Do a foreigner ID number (NIE) and address registration (empadronamiento) prove status?

Income and work

• Proof of your income or means of support — Life changes that can threaten your Spanish residence status

Payments and receipts

• The receipt for your renewal application — The dates that control your Spanish residence status

Other documents

• The document that proves your legal stay in Spain — The most common mistakes that put Spanish residence at risk
• Proof that you actually live in Spain — Life changes that can threaten your Spanish residence status
• Paid fee form — What a status failure can cost in fines, fees and lost income

Each article lists the other documents it asks for, where you need them.

Preventing status problems early: questions that cross several articles

Questions that cross several articles

Which date decides whether my residence is lawful?

Your residence authorisation expiry date decides whether your residence is lawful, not the card or passport date. The visa only allows entry and the TIE card is proof of the authorisation. Read "The dates that control your Spanish residence status", then "How Spanish immigration deadlines are counted" for how to count time from that date.

If my renewal deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, when is the last day?

If the last day of a deadline is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, it moves to the next working day. This applies to deadlines counted in days of working time or in months. Renewal windows of 60 or 90 days are generally treated as calendar days, so check your renewal date early.

Does August count when I am appealing an immigration decision?

August counts for administrative appeals (reposición and alzada), but not for the two-month court appeal, which does not run in August. Filing in August is still possible. Read "How Spanish immigration deadlines are counted" for the counting rules and "What a status failure can cost in fines, fees and lost income" for the cost of missing a deadline.

What happens if I never open an electronic notification?

An electronic notification you never open counts as rejected after 10 calendar days, and the procedure continues without you. Opening it counts as receipt on the day you open it, and your deadline starts the day after. Read "How Spanish immigration deadlines are counted" and "How your local immigration office affects timing".