Free language help from charities and town halls

Key rules

• Coverage varies: Services and languages differ by city and by office, so check with your local office before you travel.
• Who gets priority: Cruz Roja, CEAR and Accem focus on asylum seekers, refugees and vulnerable migrants.
• Town hall help: Social services or the immigrant office often offer mediation and sometimes interpreting, usually by appointment.
• Low literacy: Adult education centres and charities offer free literacy classes and help with forms.

Services, eligibility and languages change by city and programme, so confirm current details with the local office or town hall before relying on them.

Where to start

Start with the local office of Cruz Roja, CEAR or Accem, and with your town hall's social services or immigrant office. All of them give free help. What they offer, and in which languages, depends on your city. The directory below lists where to look.

What Cruz Roja, CEAR and Accem offer

These three run programmes for migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. They include:

• reception and social guidance;
• legal guidance;
• help with paperwork.

Many offices work with interpreters, cultural mediators or staff who speak several languages.

Their help is aimed mainly at asylum seekers, refugees, people with international protection and vulnerable migrants. Some programmes need a referral from social services. If you do not fit those groups, still ask: the FAQ below covers this. Each office decides based on its own funded programmes, so call or visit the one nearest you.

What town halls offer

Many town halls run free information and reception services for immigrants. These often include intercultural mediation and sometimes interpreting. Some cities also run free Spanish classes.

Madrid has municipal reception centres for immigrants. Barcelona has SAIER, a service for immigrants and refugees. Smaller towns usually work through general social services.

Ask at your town hall's social services or immigrant office. You often need an appointment, so book ahead.

If you read and write little

You have several free options:

• Public adult education centres (CEPA) run adult literacy and Spanish classes. This includes help for people who use a non-Latin script.
• Municipal programmes and charities such as Cruz Roja, Accem, CEAR and Cáritas also teach Spanish and basic literacy.
• Social services and migrant-support charities often help you fill in forms. Some will go with you to appointments.

Access is usually free, but you register at the local centre or office. Some places only accept people registered as living in the town (empadronado). Ask about this when you first call.

How to ask

Say which language you speak and that you need an interpreter or help with forms. Ask if they can go with you to the appointment. Bring any letters or forms you have received.

Where to find free language help by language group

Where to find free language help

• Cruz Roja local office: Ask about help with paperwork, often with interpreters or cultural mediators.

• CEAR local office: Ask about legal and social guidance and help with administrative tasks, with staff who speak several languages. Mainly for asylum seekers and refugees.

• Accem local office: Ask about reception and guidance for migrants and refugees, including help with forms. Languages depend on the local team.

• Cáritas, Fundación Cepaim and Red Acoge member groups: Ask whether they offer free form-filling help or accompaniment to appointments in your language. Arabic, French, English, Russian, Ukrainian and Chinese are offered in some places.

• Your town hall's immigrant office or social services: Ask for help filling in forms and for referral to a local NGO. You may need to be registered in the municipality (empadronado).

• Public adult education centre (CEPA): Register for free adult literacy and Spanish classes if you read little or only non-Latin scripts.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get free help from Cruz Roja, CEAR or Accem if I am not an asylum seeker?

Yes, but mainly if you are a refugee, a beneficiary of international protection or a vulnerable migrant. Access usually goes through the local office, and for some programmes through a referral from social services. Eligibility and languages depend on your city, so ask the local office first.

Do I need to be registered in my town to use municipal language help?

Usually yes, you need to be registered or living in the municipality, and some services ask for the padrón (the town hall residents' register). Many services work by appointment through the town hall's social services or immigration office.

Where can I get help with Spanish forms if I can barely read or write?

Social services offices and migrant-support charities often help you fill in forms, and some go with you to appointments. Free adult literacy and Spanish classes run in public adult education centres and through charities. You usually sign up at the local centre or office, and it is free.