Electronic notifications (DEHú) your company must use, and missed notices

Terms used

• DEHú — DEHú is the single electronic mailbox where Spanish public bodies, including the tax agency, deliver official notices to companies.
• AEAT — The AEAT is Spain's tax agency.
• Apoderamiento — An apoderamiento is a registered power of representation that lets your adviser act or receive notices for you.
• Cl@ve — Cl@ve is Spain's government system for logging in to public online services.

Key rules

• Electronic only: Companies must receive official notices electronically, with no paper option.
• 10 natural days: A notice not opened within 10 natural days is treated as served and your response deadline starts anyway.
• Alerts: Email and SMS alerts are not binding, so a missing alert does not extend your time.
• Adviser: Register your adviser through an apoderamiento so someone else can also see your notices.

Your company must receive official notices electronically

Companies cannot choose paper. Limited companies (sociedades), entities without legal personality and professionals who must belong to a professional body all receive official notices online. Since 2024 most companies are registered automatically in DEHú, the single electronic mailbox that includes tax agency (AEAT) notices and those of other public bodies.

If you are self-employed, you are also obliged to receive tax notices electronically. Check the status of each person involved, including you and any other director.

How to get in

Log in to DEHú with an electronic certificate, Cl@ve or an electronic representative certificate. Your notices appear under Notificaciones or Comunicaciones. Look in both.

An unopened notice still counts

Once a notice is available to you, you have 10 natural days to open it. After that it is treated as served, and the response deadline starts running whether or not you read it. Natural days include weekends and holidays.

The one exception is a real technical or material impossibility of access, for example the system was down. If that happens, tell your adviser straight away and keep proof of the problem.

Set up monitoring now

• Alerts: Sign up for email and SMS alerts for new notices. They are only a courtesy. If an alert never arrives, the 10 days still run.
• Adviser access: Give your adviser access through an apoderamiento, a power of representation registered with the AEAT. Your adviser can also be registered as a receiver or authorised person for notifications. Many advisers use a collaboration agreement with the AEAT to see notices. Exact steps depend on the body that issues the notice, so ask your adviser which route they use.
• Routine: Open DEHú regularly, and never leave a notice sitting for the full 10 days.

The timeline and checklist below walk through the steps in order. If you have already missed a notice or deadline, read the "What if" section below.

Timeline and deadlines

• Set up alerts and adviser access: before any notice arrives

• A notice is made available to your company in DEHú: on the day it is posted

• Open the notice: within 10 natural days of it being made available

• An unopened notice is treated as served and the response deadline starts running: after 10 natural days without opening it

• Tell your adviser if a technical problem stopped you opening the notice: as soon as you find the problem

Checklist

• Check the status of each person involved, because self-employed individuals are also obliged to receive tax notices electronically.

• Give your adviser access through a power of representation (apoderamiento) registered with the AEAT, Spain's tax agency, or an electronic certificate of representation.

• Open the Notificaciones and Comunicaciones sections regularly, and always within 10 natural days of a notice appearing.

• Tell your adviser straight away if a technical problem stops you opening a notice.

What if my company misses a tax deadline or an electronic notice?

Act the same day you find out. A missed deadline costs more every month, and a missed electronic notice starts its own clock without you.

If you missed a notice

An electronic notice that is not opened within 10 natural days counts as delivered. The deadline to respond starts running anyway, even though nobody at the company read it. The only exception is a genuine technical or material impossibility of access.

Do this, in order:

1. Open your electronic notice mailbox (DEHú) now. Use the company's digital certificate and download the notice.
2. Write down two dates. These are the day the notice was made available and the day it counted as delivered.
3. Work out your response deadline. It runs from the end of the 10 natural days. The notice says whether it is counted in working days or months.
4. Respond inside that deadline. Send your arguments or pay, depending on what the notice asks.
5. Call your adviser straight away. Deadlines differ by procedure, so have them confirm the one on your notice.

If the response deadline has also passed

File your response anyway and ask for the case to be considered. You can also challenge the decision, either by asking the same office to review it or by bringing an economic-administrative claim. Either must be filed within one month of the decision. If you could not open the notice because of a technical failure, you may be able to claim the notice is void. Keep screenshots and error messages as proof.

What a late filing or payment costs

You file or pay late on your own, with no request from the tax agency.

• The surcharge is 1% plus 1% for each full month of delay, for up to 12 months.
• After 12 months it is 15%, and late-payment interest starts from the following day.
• No further penalty is added on top.
• If you pay everything within the time given, the surcharge drops by 25%.
• The interest rate is set each year, so check the current rate with the tax agency.

The tax agency has already sent a payment demand.

• The debt moves into the enforcement period, and different surcharges apply.
• The surcharge is 5% if you pay before the enforcement notice is sent.
• It is 10% if you pay within the period that notice gives.
• It is 20% plus interest if you pay after that.
• The usual payment period is until the 20th of the month if the notice arrived in the first half, or the 5th of the next month if it arrived in the second half.
• After that, the agency can seize bank accounts, wages, money owed to you and property. Interest runs from the end of the voluntary payment period.

Pay before the enforcement notice goes out if you can. It is the cheapest point to settle.

Frequently asked questions

Does a missing email or SMS alert stop the 10-day period?

No, a missing email or SMS alert does not stop the 10 natural days from running. The alerts are only a courtesy and are not legally binding. Do not wait for an alert before you check your notices.

Can my adviser open my company's notices for me?

Yes, your adviser can open your company's notices if you give them access first.

Do self-employed people also have to receive notices electronically?

Yes, self-employed individuals are also obliged to receive notices electronically in tax matters. This applies even if they work alone, so check the status of each person tied to your business.