Wrong data on your residence card (TIE) and how to correct it

Terms used

• TIE — The TIE is the residence card issued to non-EU foreigners.
• Padrón — The padrón is the register of residents kept by your town hall, proving where you live.
• NIE — The NIE is the foreigner identification number used for tax, work and official paperwork in Spain.
• Modelo 790 code 012 — Modelo 790 code 012 is the fee form paid for a residence card duplicate or modification.
• Cita previa — A cita previa is an appointment you must book in advance to be served at a public office.

Key rules

• Office error: A correction of the office's own error is free.
• Your own data: A change to your own data, or an error already in your application, is a modification and usually carries a fee.
• Speed: Report a mistake at collection or within a few days, with your passport and resolution.
• After the fix: Show the corrected card to your town hall, bank, tax agency and Social Security.

Practice varies by office and the fee can change, so confirm the route, the deadline and the fee with the Policía Nacional or the Oficina de Extranjería.

Check the card as soon as you get it

Compare the card line by line with your passport and your resolution (the official approval of your permit). Look at:

• your name, name order, accents and surnames
• your date of birth, nationality and sex
• the issue and validity dates

Report any mistake straight away, ideally at collection or within a few days. Take your passport and resolution as proof.

Is it the office's error or a change to your data?

If the office copied correct data wrongly, it is the administration's error. The office fixes it by reissuing the card, normally free of charge.

If your data has changed, it is not an office error. A new passport, a name change, a change of civil status or a new address is a modification. It needs a procedure and may cost a fee.

The same applies if the wrong data was already in your original application. That needs a modification request, usually with modelo 790 code 012.

How to get it corrected

1. Book a cita previa on the Ministry's online portal. Choose the Oficina de Extranjería or the Policía Nacional foreigners' unit that issued your card.
2. Go with your passport, your resolution and the card with the error.
3. Ask for a rectification of the card.

There is no widely published deadline for reporting an office error. Acting fast helps, because a quick report is usually treated as the office's mistake. After a long wait, the fix may be handled as a modification or a duplicate, with a fee. If that happens, ask for a rectification or a duplicate at the police station that issued the card. The fee for a duplicate is set out in the fee rule shown with the documents below. Offices differ in how they accept these requests, so confirm locally.

Update your other records

Once you have the corrected card, show it, or a certificate, at each of these:

• your town hall, for the padrón
• your bank
• the tax agency, which holds your NIE and address
• Social Security

Then tell your employer, your health centre, the driving licence office, and your utilities and insurers. Many offices accept the update online with a digital certificate. Others need a cita previa in person.

The timeline, documents and checklist below walk you through each step.

Timeline and deadlines

• Compare the card with your passport and resolution: when you collect the card

• Report the error and ask for a correction: as soon as possible, ideally at collection or within a few days

• Ask for a rectification or duplicate at the police station that issued the card: if you waited a long time, through a cita previa

• Update your other records with the new card: after you receive the corrected card

Documents you need

• Your passport, to prove the correct spelling of your name, surnames, dates, nationality and sex.

• Your resolution (the official approval of your permit), to prove the correct dates and details.

• Your TIE with the error, issued by the Policía Nacional, to show what needs correcting.

• Proof of payment of modelo 790 code 012, only if the wrong data came from your original application and you need a modification.

Checklist

• Compare your name, name order, accents, surnames, dates of birth, nationality, sex, and issue and validity dates on the card with your passport and resolution.

• Decide whether the mistake is the office's copying error or a change to your own data, such as a new passport, name or civil status.

• Report the error as soon as possible, ideally at collection or within a few days, with your passport and resolution.

• Ask for the card to be reissued free of charge if the error was the administration's.

• File a modification request if the wrong data was in your original application.

• Show the new card at the town hall, your bank, the tax agency and Social Security to update your records.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a deadline to report a mistake on a new TIE?

No firm deadline is published for reporting a mistake on a new TIE, but you should report it as soon as possible. Ideally do it at collection or within a few days, with your passport and resolution. After a long wait, the office may treat the fix as a data change or a duplicate, which can carry a fee.

Is a name change on my card fixed for free like a typing mistake?

No, a name change is a modification of your data, not a correction of an office mistake, so it needs its own procedure and may carry a fee. Only mistakes the office made when copying your correct data are normally fixed for free.

What if the wrong data was already in my original application?

If the wrong data came from your original application, you need to file a modification request, usually paid with modelo 790 code 012. The free reissue only applies when the administration made the error.

Do I need a new card to update my address after a correction?

No, a corrected card does not change how you register your address, because the card does not print it. Your address stays registered at the town hall.