Giving your adviser access while keeping control of your filings

Terms used

• Cl@ve — Cl@ve is the government's personal login system for dealing online with the tax agency and other public bodies.
• Apoderamiento — An apoderamiento is a registered power that lets someone else act for you before the tax agency.
• AEAT — The AEAT is Spain's tax agency.
• Seguridad Social — The Seguridad Social is Spain's social security system, where autónomos register and pay contributions.
• Autónomos — Autónomos are self-employed people registered with the Seguridad Social.
• DEHú — DEHú is the single state electronic mailbox where official notices are delivered.

Key rules

• Your login: Keep your digital certificate and Cl@ve to yourself and give your adviser formal representation instead, so they act with their own access.
• Notices: An official electronic notice counts as rejected if you do not open it within 10 calendar days of being made available, and deadlines then run anyway.
• Your own view: Filings your adviser makes appear in your own tax agency account with a receipt, so you can check them yourself.
• Switching: You can change adviser at any time, limited only by the notice period and fees in your contract.

Give access through representation, not your login

Never hand your digital certificate or Cl@ve to your adviser. Both are personal and cannot be passed on, and you are responsible for anything done with them. Give your adviser formal representation instead, so they act with their own access. The documents list below shows what you need.

Set up the tax agency side

At the tax agency (AEAT) you have these routes:

• Online: sign in with your certificate or Cl@ve and register a power of representation (apoderamiento). It can be general or limited to certain procedures.
• In person: go to a tax agency office with your ID and your adviser's details.
• Social collaboration: if your adviser has an agreement with the agency to file for clients, you still need to give them your representation.

The power lasts until it expires or you revoke it. You can cover all procedures or only some.

Set up the Seguridad Social side

Request the authorisation online yourself, using your certificate or Cl@ve, in the Sede Electrónica or Import@ss under "Autorizaciones". It authorises your adviser as a RED user, the system advisers use for registrations and contributions. The type of authorisation sets its scope. You can withdraw it in the same system or at a Seguridad Social office.

Decide who receives your official notices

As an autónomo you must receive official notices electronically. They arrive in the tax agency's mailbox, in the single state mailbox (DEHú) and in your Seguridad Social area. Your adviser can receive them too if you authorise it, but you can also keep them for yourself. Confirm whichever setup you choose in writing.

Even if your adviser receives them, keep checking your own mailboxes. An official electronic notice counts as rejected if you do not open it within 10 calendar days of being made available, and deadlines then run anyway. Alert emails or texts help, but they are a courtesy and not binding.

Monitor what is filed

Sign in to your own accounts regularly:

• Tax agency: look under "Mis expedientes", "Consulta de declaraciones presentadas" and "Mis notificaciones". Filings your adviser makes appear here, each with a secure verification code (CSV) and a receipt.
• Seguridad Social: the "Mi Seguridad Social" area shows registrations, contribution bases, payments and communications.

If a filing is missing, ask your adviser for the receipt straight away. Menu names change from time to time.

Check or remove access

In the tax agency's "Apoderamientos" or "Representantes" services you can list every representation on file and revoke any of them. The social collaboration register works the same way. In the Seguridad Social "Autorizaciones" option you see the authorised parties and can withdraw them. A revocation takes effect once it is registered.

Changing adviser

You can change adviser at any time. The limits come from your service contract: its notice period, any minimum term and fees due until the end date. The timeline below gives the order. In short, give written notice, ask for your records, revoke the old access, grant the new one and agree the handover date so no quarterly filing falls between the two. Your records belong to you.

Choosing between options

Who should receive your official notices?

• Only you: You want to see every notice yourself and are happy to check your mailboxes with a certificate or Cl@ve.

• You and your adviser: You want your adviser to act quickly on notices, and you have authorised them as representative, social collaborator or RED user.

Whoever receives them, deadlines run once a notice is made available, so keep checking your own mailbox and your filings.

Timeline and deadlines

• Read the notice clause in your service contract and give written notice, by burofax or a traceable email: before you want the change to take effect

• Ask the old adviser for filed forms, receipts, invoice books and accounting records: before you revoke their access

• Revoke the old adviser's access at the tax agency and the Seguridad Social: once the handover is agreed

• Give the new adviser representation and agree the date they take over: right after revoking, so no quarterly filing falls between the two

• Check your filings and notification mailbox, then settle any final fees: after the handover

Documents you need

• Your own digital certificate or Cl@ve, which you need to grant or revoke access online. It is personal, so you keep it and never hand it to your adviser.

• Your ID, if you grant the power in person at a tax agency office instead of online.

• The representation or collaboration form from the tax agency, which proves the power you give your adviser when you do not register it online.

• The Seguridad Social authorisation for your adviser's RED access, requested online by you with your certificate or Cl@ve.

• The service contract with your current adviser, to check the notice period and minimum term before you change adviser.

Checklist

• Give your adviser a registered power of representation at the tax agency, online or in person, instead of your certificate.

• Ask the Seguridad Social to authorise your adviser through the RED system, using your certificate or Cl@ve.

• Choose whether your adviser also receives your official notices, and confirm the setup in writing.

• Check your own tax agency account for the filings your adviser made, including the receipt and secure verification code.

• Open your notification mailboxes regularly, so no notice passes the 10 calendar days after it is made available.

• Revoke the old adviser's access and grant the new adviser representation when you change adviser.

Warning signs when handing your filings to an adviser

• Adviser uses your certificate or Cl@ve: If your adviser holds your personal digital certificate or Cl@ve password and files as you, you lose control and cannot prove who filed. You are responsible for any use made of them. Keep your credentials to yourself. Give a formal power of representation (apoderamiento) or register the adviser as a social collaborator, so they use their own access.

• Notices go only to the adviser: If official notifications are redirected to the adviser's email or phone with no copy to you, or the adviser's contact details replace yours in tax or Seguridad Social records, you can miss notices with deadlines. Keep your own contact details on record and your own access to your notifications. Ask for a copy of every notice.

• Informal or hidden access: Be wary if the adviser refuses formal authorisation, controls your bank access, or you cannot see your own filings. Insist on an authorisation that is limited in scope and that you can revoke, and check you can see your own filings.

• Opaque terms and no proof of filing: Unclear fees, no written contract, no filing receipt (justificante) after submissions, or fees far below market with hidden extras are signs of poor service. Get fees and tasks in writing and ask for a receipt for every filing.

• Poor communication and missed deadlines: Slow or no replies, missed deadlines or surcharges, no explanation of your tax choices, or frequent staff changes suggest an unreliable adviser. Ask how deadlines are tracked and who your contact is. Change adviser if problems repeat.

• Pressure and refusal to share records: Pressure to sign blank documents, refusal to give copies of your records, reluctance to give you direct access, or no professional insurance are serious warning signs. Never sign blank documents. Ask for copies of your records and for proof of insurance before you continue.

Frequently asked questions

Can an adviser receive my official notices instead of me?

Yes, an adviser can receive your official notices if you have authorised them. The tax agency lets you choose a representative or social collaborator as recipient, and the Seguridad Social allows this through the RED system. Confirm the setup in writing.

Do I still need to check my notices if my adviser receives them?

Yes, you should still check your notification mailboxes yourself, because deadlines run even if nobody reads a notice. You can sign in with a certificate or Cl@ve, and you can also subscribe to alert emails or SMS, which are only a courtesy.

Will filings my adviser makes show up in my own account?

Yes, filings made by your adviser appear in your own tax agency account, each with a secure verification code (CSV) and a receipt.

Can I change adviser in the middle of the year?

Yes, you can change adviser at any time, but your service contract may set a notice period, a minimum term and fees due up to the end date.

How do I see who currently has access to my accounts?

You can see everyone with access by signing in with a certificate or Cl@ve. At the tax agency, use the 'Apoderamientos' or 'Representantes' services. At the Seguridad Social, use 'Autorizaciones' in the online office or Import@ss, where you can also withdraw anyone you no longer want.