Author Irina Firsova Immigration lawyer in Spain, member of the Barcelona Bar Association no. 46.385 17 September 2026 11 min read Message the author

Sede electrónica in Spain: government accounts, logins and appointments

A sede electrónica is the official website of one particular authority, which is legally responsible for what is on it (article 38 of Law 40/2015). Spain has no single government portal: the immigration service has its own sede, the tax agency has another, social security a third, and each has its own way of logging in. For anyone who has moved with a family and capital this is more than an inconvenience: these are the channels through which requests for extra documents on a residence application and tax demands arrive, and an electronic notification you do not open is deemed served after ten calendar days.

Below: which offices exist and what each is for, how a foreign national logs in, how to book an appointment at the immigration office, how electronic notifications and their deadlines work, what you can do at the tax agency and social security, and how to give your gestor a power of attorney without handing over your passwords.

Six offices cover almost everything a new resident needs. In red: what you log in with — a certificate is required wherever applications are filed and documents signed.

Which offices exist and what each is for

Office	What you do there	How you log in
sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es — provincial immigration files	Appointments, filing and renewals through Mercurio, “Mis expedientes” and “Mis notificaciones”, checking case status	Certificate or DNIe; appointments without either
sede.inclusion.gob.es — UGE, files under Law 14/2013	Digital nomad, entrepreneur, highly qualified professional, intra-company transfer: filing, uploading documents, status, notifications, fee refunds	Certificate or DNIe
sede.agenciatributaria.gob.es — tax agency	Income and wealth tax returns, forms, tax certificates, change of tax address, debts and instalments, notifications	Cl@ve Móvil, certificate, or a reference number for the Renta
portal.seg-social.gob.es (Import@ss) and sede.seg-social.gob.es	Work history, social security number, registering as self-employed, certificates of no debt, social security notifications	Cl@ve, certificate, SMS code
dehu.redsara.es (DEHú) and carpetaciudadana.gob.es	A single inbox for notifications from state authorities and a personal dashboard: files, appointments, documents	Cl@ve Móvil, Cl@ve Permanente, certificate, eIDAS
reg.redsara.es (general registry) and Apodera	Submit any letter or document where a procedure has no form of its own; register a power of attorney	Certificate or DNIe
sede.dgt.gob.es — traffic authority	Exchanging a licence, a duplicate when your NIE becomes a DNI, registering a car, fines and points	Certificate or DNIe

Files under Law 14/2013 — the digital nomad visa, startups, highly qualified professionals — do not go through the provincial immigration office but through a separate ministry sede: filing is electronic only and the decision deadline is 20 days (article 76 of Law 14/2013). Nomads and entrepreneurs apply themselves; for specialists and intra-company transfers the company applies. The filing process is covered in detail in Mercurio and the digital nomad visa.

How a foreign national logs in: certificate or Cl@ve

Two systems cover everything. A digital certificate (or DNIe) proves your identity and signs documents — without it you cannot file an immigration application or sign a file in Autofirma. Cl@ve is a single login tied to your DNI or NIE: the Cl@ve Móvil app, a Cl@ve Permanente password, or a one-off Cl@ve PIN. How to get both is covered in the guide to digital certificates in Spain.

Registering for Cl@ve with a NIE. Video identification is currently available only to Spanish citizens with a valid DNI (clave.gob.es). That leaves three routes for foreign nationals: an invitation letter with a 16-character code sent to the address the tax agency holds as your tax domicile, a visit to a registration office (tax agency, social security, employment service, government delegations), or registering with a certificate you already have.
Levels. The letter gives basic registration, a visit or a certificate gives advanced. Basic is not enough for some services or for Cl@ve Firma.
A foreign phone number works, but one number can only be linked to one DNI or NIE. You cannot register on someone else’s behalf, even with a power of attorney.
Never hand over your codes. The tax agency explicitly prohibits third parties from obtaining or using your Cl@ve credentials and logging in on your behalf, even with your consent (AEAT). The lawful route for a gestor is a registered power of attorney, below.

The practical rule: if you file residence applications yourself, sign documents or run a company, you need a certificate. If you use the tax agency and social security as a private individual, Cl@ve is usually enough.

Cita previa: booking an appointment at immigration and the police

The current booking portal is icp.administracionelectronica.gob.es; the old address on the administracionespublicas domain no longer works. The order is: province, then office or “any office”, then the procedure, then a requirements page, then logging in with or without Cl@ve, then the applicant’s details and the date.

Appointments are free and personal: one booking covers one person, so a single booking is not enough for a family. A foreigner’s card is only issued in your province of residence.
Your details must match those on record: NIE number, name, surname and nationality. If they differ you will not be seen. NIE appointments are booked with a passport, fingerprint appointments with a NIE; this is explained in the NIE guide and the TIE guide.
With a certificate you usually do not need an appointment: the portal itself advises certificate holders to file initial applications and renewals through Mercurio. Without a certificate, anyone who has one — a person or a company — can book on your behalf.
In Madrid appointments at the Oficina de Extranjería itself are not booked on the portal: the request with the form and documents goes to an official email address, and the portal is left for those without a certificate. Professional representatives are required to deal with the administration electronically (article 14.2 of Law 39/2015). Other provinces have their own rules.
Avoid appointment resellers. In 2024 the National Police arrested 21 people: the group blocked the portal with bots and sold appointments for €15–30 (Interior Ministry). Being asked to pay for an appointment is a sign of a reseller, not a service.

You can check the status of an immigration file without logging in at all — with your NIE and file number on the infoext page, or by calling 060.

Electronic notifications and deadlines: where files are lost

This is the key section for anyone with a company, self-employed status or a pending immigration file. The rules come from Law 39/2015:

A private individual chooses paper or electronic and may change their mind at any time (article 14.1). The choice takes effect from the fifth working day after you tell the authority (Royal Decree 203/2021).
Electronic is mandatory for: legal entities, entities without legal personality, professions with compulsory membership of a professional body, and their representatives (article 14.2). The self-employed are not covered by that article, but social security imposes it separately: the RED system and electronic notifications (Order ESS/214/2018).
Ten calendar days. If electronic notifications are mandatory for you or you chose them, an unopened notification is deemed rejected after ten calendar days and the procedure continues without you (article 43.2). This is how people miss a request for extra documents and end up with a refusal, or even a cancellation.
Opened means served. Even without an obligation: if you log in and open a notification, it is served from that moment.
An email is only a reminder. Its absence does not invalidate the notification (Royal Decree 203/2021, article 43.1). Set the reminders up anyway: DEHú takes an email address and its app sends push alerts.
Thirty courtesy days. At the tax agency you can mark up to 30 calendar days a year when no notifications will be made available to you (AEAT). It is the way to take a holiday without risking a deadline.

Social security notifications appear in its own sede, Carpeta Ciudadana and DEHú; from 1 September 2026 decisions on temporary and permanent incapacity are also sent electronically. Notifications containing special category data, such as health data, open only with a certificate or Cl@ve Permanente.

The tax agency account

There are three ways into the tax account: Cl@ve Móvil, a certificate or DNIe, and for the Renta campaign a six-character reference number. The reference is issued online against your NIE and the support number of your document if you can quote the figure in box 505 of last year’s return; if you did not file, or the box shows 0.00, the last five digits of the IBAN of an account you held last year are used instead (AEAT guidance). Box 505 is the general taxable base, not the bottom line of the return, and a reference works for one campaign only.

In the account you file returns and forms, obtain residence and no-debt certificates, change your tax address, arrange instalments, and check “Mis expedientes” and your notifications. What has to be filed is covered in form 100, form 036, forms 720 and 721 and taxes and contributions for the self-employed.

Social security: work history and your number

Import@ss is the treasury’s account: it is where you get a social security number, register as self-employed, check payments and debts and update your details. The most common request is the informe de vida laboral, a statement of every period of employment in the Spanish system with the number of days accrued. Periods abroad are not included. You can log in with Cl@ve Permanente, Cl@ve Móvil, DNIe, a certificate or an SMS code, and without electronic identification through a form with a selfie and a photo of your ID, or by asking for the report to be posted to the address the treasury holds (Import@ss).

If you have never been registered in the system there is no statement to obtain; instead there is a separate certificate confirming you have never had a social security number. It is needed, for example, when applying for a non-lucrative permit or alongside the Russian pension fund certificate of departure.

Bringing in a gestor or lawyer without sharing passwords

A representative acts with their own certificate or their own Cl@ve, not with your credentials. Authority is registered in the electronic register of powers of attorney:

Apodera, the state register of powers of attorney. Three types: general for any authority, for a single authority, or for specific procedures. It is granted online with a certificate or in person at a registry office; it lasts up to five years and can be revoked at any time. It only takes effect once the representative has accepted it (the REA-AGE register).
Files under Law 14/2013 use procedure code 201361 in Apodera; that is how a representative is added to a nomad, startup or specialist file (ministry sede).
The tax agency has its own register. Authority to receive electronic notifications is a separate item: without it your representative will not see your notifications, and the power does not take effect until they accept it.
The general registry REG is for procedures with no form of their own: up to five documents, 10 MB each and 15 MB in total. Anything submitted on a non-working day counts as submitted in the first hour of the next working day (registry description). Where a specific form exists, a submission through the general registry may be rejected.

What to set up in your first month in Spain

A certificate. Get one as soon as you have your foreigner’s card or the document assigning your NIE: without it filing, signing and some notifications are out of reach.
Cl@ve. Register in person on your first visit to the tax agency or social security — that gives advanced level and a second way in if your certificate is on a broken computer.
Check your tax address. The Cl@ve invitation letter and paper notifications go to the address the tax agency holds for you. Changing it is a separate step in the account.
Reminders. Add your email and the app in DEHú and Carpeta Ciudadana so you are not counting ten-day deadlines by hand.
Power of attorney. Grant it in Apodera to your gestor or lawyer and check that they have accepted it, with a separate item for tax notifications.
Courtesy days. Mark them at the tax agency before a long trip, and if a file is still open check whether you need an autorización de regreso before leaving.

With a Spanish company, self-employed status and a family holding different permits, there are too many accounts and deadlines to keep in your head. That map — who is responsible for what and which powers of attorney are in place — is worth working through once in a consultation and writing down.

Frequently asked questions

What is a sede electrónica?

The official website of a particular authority, through which you can deal with it: file applications, receive notifications and obtain certificates. The authority itself is responsible for its content (article 38 of Law 40/2015). Spain has no single portal covering all authorities.

How do I book an appointment at the immigration office?

On the portal at icp.administracionelectronica.gob.es: choose the province, the office and the procedure, then log in with or without Cl@ve and enter your details. Appointments are free, one booking covers one person, and a foreigner’s card is only issued in your province of residence.

Can I book without a digital certificate?

Yes, the portal has a “without Cl@ve” option, and someone who does have a certificate can book on your behalf. With a certificate, though, an initial application or renewal is usually easier to file through Mercurio without an appointment at all.

What happens if I do not open an electronic notification?

If electronic notifications are mandatory for you or you chose them, the notification is deemed rejected after ten calendar days and the procedure moves on. That is how requests for extra documents on residence files and tax demands are missed.

How does a foreign national register for Cl@ve?

Video identification is currently limited to Spanish citizens with a DNI. With a NIE the options are an invitation letter to your tax address, a visit to a registration office, or registering with a digital certificate you already hold. A foreign phone number is accepted.

Where do I find my vida laboral?

In the Import@ss account, logging in with Cl@ve, a certificate, DNIe or an SMS code. Only periods within the Spanish social security system appear. If you have never been registered, you take the certificate confirming you have no social security number instead.

How do I check the status of my residence application?

With your NIE and file number on the immigration service’s infoext page, with no login or certificate, or by calling 060. Files under Law 14/2013 are checked in the ministry sede where the application was filed.

Can my gestor log in for me?

Only as a representative, using their own certificate or Cl@ve and with a power of attorney in the electronic register. Sharing your Cl@ve credentials with them is prohibited even with your consent.