Responding to a Hacienda requirement and meeting the deadline

Key rules

• Deadline: Your deadline starts the day after notification and skips weekends and public holidays.
• Unopened notice: An electronic notice you never open still counts as received after 10 calendar days.
• Extension: Ask for more time before the period ends; the request does not pause the deadline.
• Late reply: Reply even if you are late, as long as Hacienda has not yet issued its decision.

How long you have

In a routine check, a request for information or documents usually gives you 10 working days to reply, counted from the day after notification. Check the period printed on your notice, because it is the one that applies to you.

How the days are counted

• Working days exclude Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.
• Start counting the day after you are notified, not on the day itself.
• If your last day is not a working day, it moves to the next working day.
• Months run from date to date. A period of one month that starts the day after notification ends on the same day number of the final month. If that month has no such day, it ends on the last day of the month.
• August counts as normal working time for tax procedures. Court deadlines follow different rules.

When a notice counts as received

Some people must receive notices electronically: companies, other legal entities, professionals who must belong to a professional body, and anyone Hacienda has placed in its mandatory electronic system. Individuals can opt in. Other individuals normally get paper notices.

If an electronic notice sits unopened for 10 calendar days, it counts as received anyway. Your deadline then runs from the day after those 10 days end. Not opening it does not cancel it, so check your electronic mailbox regularly if you are in the system.

How to reply

Quote the reference on the notice. You can reply:

• online through the Hacienda online office or the general electronic register
• in person at a Hacienda office, with an appointment
• at another public registry
• by certified post, with the date stamped at the post office

Companies, other legal entities, professionals who must belong to a professional body, and their representatives must file electronically. Individuals can pick any channel, and online is fastest. The steps, documents and a template reply are below.

If you need more time

Ask for an extension before the original period ends, and give your reasons. Hacienda can extend by up to half the original period if it decides circumstances justify it and nobody else's rights suffer. It decides at its own discretion, and you cannot appeal a refusal. After the period has ended, an extension cannot be granted.

Your request does not stop the clock. Keep preparing your reply, and send it as soon as you can if the answer is slow.

If you miss the deadline or ignore the notice

You lose the right to that step. Hacienda can then carry on and decide using the data it already has, for example by issuing a provisional assessment or starting a penalty process.

Ignoring a requirement can also bring a fine. A fixed fine of 150 euros can apply, and higher penalties of 300 euros or a percentage can apply if Hacienda treats it as obstruction.

If you are late, reply anyway. Hacienda generally still takes into account a reply filed before it issues its decision.

If the decision has already been issued, you can appeal it within one month. You can file new evidence in the appeal, with limits if you ignored the original requirement. Talk to a tax adviser quickly in that case.

Answering a Hacienda notice step by step

From notice to reply

• Read the notice and note what kind it is, its reference number and the reply period it states: The day you receive it

• Work out your last day: start counting the day after notification, skip Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and count August as normal working time: Straight after reading the notice

• If the last day falls on a non-working day, treat the next working day as the deadline, or better, reply earlier: Before you start preparing the reply

• Gather the documents the notice asks for and, if someone files for you, proof that they represent you: In the first days after notification

• Write the reply with your details, the reference, the facts, your documents and a clear request: Before the last day

• Keep the filing receipt: Right after filing

• If you missed the deadline, file your reply anyway, because late allegations are usually still considered if filed before the decision is issued: As soon as you notice, before the decision arrives

• If the decision has already been issued, appeal it and attach your new evidence: Within one month from the day after notification

Documents you need

• The reference printed on the notice, which you need to reply to it online.

• An electronic certificate, Cl@ve or a similar electronic ID, needed to reply through the Hacienda online office. Companies and other obliged persons must file this way.

• The post office receipt with the dated stamp, if you reply by certified post. It proves the day you sent your reply.

Checklist

• Check whether your period is in days or in months, because months run from date to date.

• End a month-based period on the same day number of the final month, or on the last day of that month if it has no such day.

• Move your last day to the next working day if it falls on a weekend or public holiday.

• Count August as normal working time when you work out your deadline.

• Pick your channel: the online office, the general electronic register, an office visit with an appointment, or certified post.

• Ask for an extension before the original period ends, giving your reasons, if you need more time.

• Keep preparing your reply while you wait for the answer to an extension request.

• File your reply anyway if you have already missed the deadline, and do it before Hacienda issues its decision.

What to watch out for

• An unopened electronic notice still counts: If you do not open an electronic notice within 10 natural days, it is treated as rejected but valid, and your deadline starts running anyway. You can miss a deadline without ever having read the notice. Check your electronic mailbox regularly if you are obliged to use it or opted in, and open every notice as soon as it arrives.

• Missing the deadline loses that step: If you miss the deadline, you lose the right to that step and Hacienda can resolve the case using the data it has, including a provisional assessment or a sanction process. Reply as soon as you notice, because allegations filed before the decision is issued are generally still considered.

• Ignoring a requirement can bring a fine: Not answering a requirement can lead to a fixed fine of 150 euros, and obstruction can lead to higher penalties such as 300 euros or 30%. Answer every requirement, even if you can only send part of what is asked, and ask for more time before the period ends.

Template reply to a Hacienda requirement

Copy the message below, fill in the blanks, and attach your documents. Keep it short and stick to the facts. Hacienda wants to see who you are, which notice you are answering, what you say, what proves it, and what you ask for.

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To: Agencia Tributaria (AEAT), the office that sent the notice

Subject: Reply to notice, reference [reference or expediente number]

1. Who I am Name: [full name] NIF: [your NIF] Address for notices: [street, number, town, postcode] Phone and email: [optional, but useful]

2. The notice I am answering Type of notice: [for example, requirement for information, or proposed assessment] Date of the notice: [date] Reference or expediente number: [number]

3. Facts [Say in a few short sentences what happened. For example: "In 2025 I lived in Spain from March. I received my salary in Spain only from that month."]

4. My arguments [Say why you think the notice is wrong or incomplete, or explain what you are sending. For example: "The amount in the notice includes income I earned before I moved. The documents attached show this."]

5. Documents I attach

1. [Document name, for example: employment contract]
2. [Document name, for example: bank statements for March to December]
3. [Document name]

6. What I ask [Say exactly what you want. For example: "I ask you to accept the documents attached and to close this matter without an assessment."]

[Town], [date]

[Signature, or electronic signature]

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If someone files for you: add proof that they can act for you, and write their name and NIF under section 1 as well.

Before you send it

• Use the reference. Write the reference or expediente number from the notice in the subject and in section 2, so the reply reaches the right file.
• List every attachment. The numbered list in section 5 should match the files you attach.
• Choose a channel. Individuals can choose any channel. Filing online through the Agencia Tributaria's electronic office is the fastest: reply to the notice using the reference, with a digital certificate or Cl@ve. You can also use the general electronic register, go in person to a tax office with an appointment (cita previa) or another public registry, or send it by post from a post office as certified mail with a dated stamp.
• Check if you must file online. Companies, other entities, professionals who must belong to a professional body, employees of public administrations, and their representatives must file electronically.
• Keep the receipt. Save the filing receipt (justificante) or the stamped copy. It is your proof that you replied.

Frequently asked questions

Can I ask Hacienda for more time to reply?

Yes, you can ask for an extension of up to half the original period, but only before that period ends and with reasons. Hacienda decides whether to grant it, and you cannot appeal a refusal. Your request does not pause the deadline, so reply as soon as you can if no answer arrives.

Does August count when I calculate my deadline?

Yes, August counts as working time for ordinary tax procedures, unlike in court cases. Do not add a month to your deadline because of the summer. Weekends and public holidays are still skipped.

What happens if I never open an electronic notice?

If you do not open an electronic notice within 10 natural days, it is treated as rejected and still counts as validly notified. Your reply period then starts the day after those 10 days end. Not opening it does not cancel it, and the case carries on without you.

Can I be fined for not answering a Hacienda requirement?

Yes, ignoring a requirement can bring a fixed fine of 150 euros, and obstructing Hacienda's work can bring higher penalties such as 300 euros or 30%. Hacienda may also settle the case using the data it already holds. Challenging that decision is covered in the article on how to appeal a Hacienda decision.