How electronic notifications (DEHú) work and whether you must use them

Terms used

• DEHú — DEHú is the State's single web platform where people and companies receive official electronic notices from public bodies.
• Cl@ve — Cl@ve is the government's login system, using a PIN or permanent password, for dealing with public bodies online.
• FNMT — The FNMT is Spain's national mint, which issues electronic certificates used to identify yourself online.
• DNIe — The DNIe is the Spanish ID card with a chip that lets you log in electronically.
• NIE — The NIE is the foreigner's identification number used in dealings with Spanish authorities.
• TIE — The TIE is the foreigner's identity card issued to residents.
• Gestor — A gestor is a professional who handles paperwork with public bodies on your behalf.
• Agencia Tributaria — The Agencia Tributaria is Spain's tax agency.

Key rules

• Obliged groups: Companies, the self-employed and professionals who must join a professional association cannot ask for paper notices.
• Individuals: If you are a private individual, you choose between electronic and paper, unless a specific regulation says otherwise.
• Ten days: Once you are on electronic notices, a notice you do not open within ten days counts as rejected.
• Alerts: A missing alert email or SMS does not stop a notice from counting.
• Other systems: The Agencia Tributaria and some regions or councils use their own systems, so check the notice to see which one applies.

Do you have to use electronic notices?

It depends on who you are. If you are a company, a self-employed person or a professional who must belong to a professional association, you must receive notices electronically. You cannot ask for paper. The same goes for anyone who represents one of these, such as a lawyer or gestor acting for you, and for public employees dealing with their own administration.

If you are a private individual, including a foreigner, you can choose. You are not obliged unless a specific regulation says so. Being a foreigner changes nothing by itself. It only matters if you act through a company, you are self-employed, or a rule requires it.

The decision below helps you pick your route.

What DEHú is

DEHú is the State's single web platform for official notices. People and companies use it to receive messages from public bodies. It replaced the older DEH and Notific@ services for most purposes.

It carries two kinds of message:

• Notifications start deadlines or require action. Examples are requirements, resolutions, sanctions, and tax or traffic notices.
• Communications are informational only.

In DEHú you see every notice you have received and its status. You can open it or reject it.

Which bodies use DEHú

Not every body uses DEHú. Many ministries, the traffic authority, Seguridad Social, the police and the immigration offices do. So do many regions, city councils and universities that have joined.

Some bodies run their own system. The Agencia Tributaria sends notices through its own online office, although it is also linked to DEHú. Some regions and councils use their own platforms. The notice itself, or the body's online office (sede), tells you which system applies. The DEHú site has a list of the bodies that have joined, and it changes over time.

Immigration notices

Immigration offices and the police (for the TIE) notify electronically if you or your representative filed electronically. Electronic notice is compulsory for companies, for representatives such as lawyers and gestores, and for many applications, including most procedures under the new immigration regulations from 2025.

If you are an individual who filed on paper, notices can still come by post. Many people choose electronic anyway. The channel depends on how you filed and which office handles your case, so check your application.

Choosing electronic notices (if you are not obliged)

• Tick the electronic option in your application, or subscribe your electronic address in DEHú or in the issuing body's online office. For the second route you log in with a certificate or Cl@ve.
• Once you choose electronic, notices go to your electronic address. If you do not open a notice within ten days, it counts as rejected. The procedure then continues as if you had been notified.
• You can change your mind at any time. Send a written communication to the body handling your procedure and ask for paper or another channel. It applies to later notices once the body has processed it. Notices already sent stay valid.

How to log in

Go to the DEHú website, choose your identification method, log in and open your notification list. Opening a notice, or rejecting it, records that you accessed it. You can use any of these:

• an electronic certificate, including one from the FNMT
• the electronic DNI (DNIe)
• Cl@ve (Cl@ve PIN or permanent Cl@ve)

Foreigners can use an FNMT certificate linked to their NIE or TIE. You can also use Cl@ve if you registered, in person at an office or online with a certificate. Companies use a company or representative certificate. The documents list below covers what you need.

Set up alerts

In DEHú, go to the profile or settings section and add your email and mobile number. You then get an email or SMS when a new notice arrives.

Alerts are only a courtesy. If one never arrives, the notice still counts and the ten days still run. Check your notification list regularly rather than waiting for an alert.

The Agencia Tributaria and Seguridad Social have their own alert setup in their online offices. Set those up separately if you deal with them.

Choosing between options

Do you have to receive notices electronically, or can you choose?

• Electronic notices are compulsory: You are a company, a professional who must join a professional association, self-employed, a representative such as a lawyer or gestor, or a public employee. You cannot ask for paper.

• You choose electronic: You are an individual, including a foreigner not acting through a company.

• You choose paper or another channel: You are an individual who did not choose electronic, or who changed your mind. Ask the body handling your procedure in writing. Extranjería (immigration) applicants who filed on paper can be notified by post.

If you are a company, self-employed, a professional or a representative, electronic is compulsory. If you are an individual, the choice is yours unless your procedure or application requires electronic.

Timeline and deadlines

• Choose electronic notification in your application, or subscribe to your electronic address in DEHú: before the procedure starts, or at any time if you are not obliged

• Log in to DEHú and add your email and mobile number for alerts: right after you subscribe

• Open the notice from the notification list in DEHú: within 10 calendar days of it being made available

• Ask the body handling your procedure for paper or another channel, if you are not obliged: at any time; it applies from the next notifications once the body has processed it

Documents you need

• An electronic certificate, such as the one issued by the FNMT (Spain's national mint, which issues certificates). Foreigners can get one linked to their NIE or TIE. It is one of the ways to log in to DEHú.

• The electronic DNI (DNIe), the Spanish ID card with a chip. It lets you log in to DEHú if you already have one.

• A Cl@ve registration (Cl@ve PIN or permanent Cl@ve), the government's login system. You register at an office or online with a certificate. It is an alternative to a certificate.

• Your NIE or TIE number. Foreigners need it to log in with a certificate or Cl@ve.

• A company or representative's certificate. Companies and other legal persons need it to log in to DEHú.

Checklist

• Check whether you are obliged to use electronic notices, as a company, professional, self-employed person or representative

• Check your application to see how you chose to be notified, if you are a foreign applicant

• Read the notice or visit the sede of each issuing body to see whether it uses DEHú or its own system

• Get a way to log in: an electronic certificate, DNIe or Cl@ve

• Log in to DEHú and open your notification list to see your notices and their status

• Set up the separate alerts in the sede of the Agencia Tributaria or Seguridad Social if you deal with them

Frequently asked questions

Do notices still count if I never get an alert email or SMS?

Yes, a notice still counts if you never get an alert email or SMS, because alerts are only a courtesy. Not receiving one does not change the validity of the notice or the period to open it. Log in to DEHú regularly instead of waiting for an alert.

Does the Agencia Tributaria send my notices through DEHú?

Mostly no: the Agencia Tributaria, Spain's tax agency, sends notices through its own online office and notification mailbox, although that office is also linked to DEHú. Check both places if you deal with it. Its own alert setup is separate from DEHú.

Can I still get immigration notices by post if I applied on paper?

Yes, if you are an individual who filed on paper, immigration offices can notify you by post. If you or your representative filed electronically, notices come electronically instead. Many applicants choose electronic anyway.