Your residence was refused or has expired and you must leave

Terms used

• Recurso de reposición — The recurso de reposición is an optional appeal sent to the same office that refused you, filed within one month.
• Medidas cautelares — Medidas cautelares are temporary court measures, such as pausing a decision while your case is heard.
• Subdelegación del Gobierno — The Subdelegación del Gobierno is the state office in each province that applies fines and entry bans for irregular stay.
• Oficina de Extranjería — The Oficina de Extranjería is the immigration office that handles residence permits and renewals.

Key rules

• Leave deadline: Your refusal or order states your exact time to leave, so read it the day you receive it.
• Appeal clocks: You have one month for a reposición appeal or two months to go straight to court.
• Appeals do not pause: Appealing does not stop the refusal unless a court grants a suspension.
• Late renewal: You can still file a renewal up to 90 days after expiry, though a fine is possible.

Start with the deadline in your paperwork

The time to leave is written in your refusal or order. A voluntary departure period is normally between 7 and 30 days from notification. The clock starts the day you are officially notified, not the day you read the letter. Not every refusal sets a fixed period, so read the text closely. If it is unclear, ask the Oficina de Extranjería or a lawyer straight away.

Longer periods can be granted for reasons such as family ties or children in school. You can ask for one.

What happens if you stay

Staying without a permit, or after it expires with no renewal request, is a serious infraction. The usual penalty is a fine of 501 to 10,000 euros. Expulsion can replace the fine, but it normally needs aggravating circumstances beyond the irregular stay alone.

An expulsion carries an entry ban, normally up to 5 years, and up to 10 years for public order threats. The ban is set in the resolution. The Subdelegación del Gobierno decides fines and bans case by case.

If your permit has just expired

Do not assume it is over. A renewal can be filed in the 60 days before expiry and up to 90 days after. Filing late can lead to a fine or warning, but your permit stays valid while the application is processed. After 90 days you normally need a new initial application, though the office can accept a late request if you have a justified reason. Confirm the current details with the Oficina de Extranjería.

Challenging a refusal

You have two routes, and both clocks start at notification:

• Recurso de reposición: an optional appeal to the office that refused you, within one month. If you file it, the court route waits for the answer. Silence for one month counts as a refusal, and you then have six months to go to court.
• Court: a contencioso-administrativo lawsuit directly, within two months. A lawyer and a procurador are normally required. Free legal aid is available if you qualify.

The same deadlines apply to a visa refusal.

An appeal does not automatically stop the refusal. Your leave deadline keeps running unless the court grants medidas cautelares, which you must request. Ask a lawyer about this quickly.

How leaving affects coming back

Leaving within the period avoids expulsion and its ban, and it shows you complied, which helps future applications. An expulsion ban is entered in the Schengen Information System and usually leads to visa refusals in any Schengen country until it ends or is lifted. The ban counts from the day you leave, and in some cases you can ask for it to be lifted.

A fine alone carries no ban, but it is recorded. A consulate may view past irregular stay unfavourably in a new application.

Next steps

Use the decision below to choose between leaving, appealing and going to court. The leave plan below covers landlord, work, bank, tax and health cover.

Choosing between options

Should you challenge the refusal or leave within the time given?

• Leave within the period: You have no strong case or no wish to stay. Leaving on time avoids expulsion and an entry ban and helps any future application.

• File a reposición appeal: You want the same office to look again, within one month of notification.

• Go straight to court: You want a judge to review it, within two months of notification. Ask for suspension if you need to stay meanwhile.

Act within one month of notification if you want the appeal, or two months for court. Meanwhile, the refusal still stands unless a court suspends it, so keep your leave period in mind.

Setting your leave plan after a refusal or expiry

• Set your leave date a few days before the card's expiry date or the deadline in your notification, and keep the proof of notification: Right after you read the notification. If a renewal was filed in time, you stay lawful until the resolution arrives.

• If you rent, give your landlord written notice by burofax or another provable means; if you work, give your employer notice and ask for your final pay: At the decision point. After the first six months of a main-home lease, you can leave early with 30 days' written notice. The contract may add one month's rent per remaining year as compensation. For work, follow your contract or collective agreement; the 15 days' notice rule is explained in the job-loss article.

• Hand back the keys and ask for your fianza (deposit) back: On your last day in the home. The landlord has one month after the keys are handed over to return it, and may deduct only unpaid rent or damage beyond normal wear.

• Ask for your finiquito (final settlement) covering days worked, unused holiday and the extra-pay share: At the end of the contract. You do not have to sign it, and you can sign with a note saying you disagree. You have one year to claim unpaid amounts.

• Tell your bank you are leaving, cancel direct debits and cards, and either close the account or keep it funded for final debits: Before you leave. An account left alone keeps charging fees and can end up overdrawn and reported as a debt.

• Update your tax residence with the AEAT (Spain's tax agency) and plan your final tax return: Before or just after you leave. If you spent more than 183 days in Spain this year you are normally taxed as a resident for the whole year and file in April to 30 June of the next year; otherwise Spanish income is declared as a non-resident.

• Return or cancel your health card with your regional health service or the INSS, and arrange new cover: Before you leave. Take private insurance or join the public system of your new country; an EHIC only covers short visits.

• If you miss the deadline or are refused again, go to a lawyer or your regional immigration office straight away and do not simply stay on: If the deadline passes or the refusal is final. Staying on can bring fines and an expulsion order with an entry ban in the Schengen system, while leaving within the period avoids the ban and helps any future application.

• Plan any later return as an ordinary visitor or applicant: After you leave. Your old permit gives no right to enter; visa-exempt nationals can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period, others need a visa, and any entry ban blocks entry. Check the current entry-system and travel-authorisation requirements before you travel.

• Finish closing out with the right office: After you leave. Use your town hall for the padrón (local register), Social Security (Import@ss or a local office), the AEAT website for tax, the DGT for vehicles, SEPE for unemployment benefits, and the Spanish consulate in your new country to register.

What to watch out for

• Missing the time to leave: Your leave period starts from notification, not from when you open the letter. Staying past it exposes you to a sanction procedure. Read the resolution on the day you receive it, find your leave period, and ask for a longer one if you have family ties or children in school.

• Fine or expulsion for irregular stay: Staying without a permit is a serious infraction with a fine of 501 to 10,000 euros. Expulsion can replace the fine and carries an entry ban, normally up to 5 years and up to 10 for public order threats. Leave within the period granted: voluntary departure can avoid the ban altogether.

• Letting the appeal deadlines pass: You have one month to file a recurso de reposición and two months to go to court, both from notification. Filing the appeal does not suspend the refusal. See a lawyer quickly and ask the court for precautionary suspension if you need to stay while it is decided.

• Waiting too long to renew: Renewal is possible only up to 90 days after expiry, and a late filing can bring a fine or warning. After that you normally start a new application. File as early as the 60 days before expiry.

• An expulsion ban follows you across Europe: An expulsion with a ban is entered in the Schengen Information System, and visas in any Schengen country are usually refused until it ends or is lifted. Leave and ask to have the ban lifted where your case allows it.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still renew a permit after it has expired?

Yes, you can file a renewal up to 90 days after expiry, but it can lead to a fine or warning.

How long do I have to challenge a refusal?

You have one month from notification to file an optional appeal (recurso de reposición) with the office that refused you, or two months to go straight to court. The appeal does not stop the refusal, so you can ask the court to suspend it. A lawyer is normally needed in court, and free legal aid is available.

Does an overstay mean I can never come back?

No, a simple overstay with only a fine carries no entry ban, but it is recorded and a consulate may weigh it against a new visa.

How much can I be fined for staying after my permit ends?

The fine for irregular stay runs from 501 to 10,000 euros.