The DEHú (Dirección Electrónica Habilitada única) is the Spanish state's single electronic letter box. The tax office, Social Security, the DGT, ministries and many other public bodies leave official letters there instead of posting them. You usually learn about one from an e-mail or SMS notice — "you have a new notification" — which does not say what it is about. It is the electronic twin of the post office's aviso de llegada.
Who gets letters there
- Companies and other legal entities, and members of some professions, must receive notifications electronically.
- Individuals who chose it — for example when filing something online — and those the tax office has placed on electronic notification. An individual who chose it can change the choice.
- The DGT also has its own electronic address for traffic fines (DEV), voluntary for individuals.
The 10 days
A notification counts as delivered the moment you open it. If you do not open it within 10 calendar days of it being made available, it counts as rejected: the authority treats it as delivered, and the deadline in the letter starts anyway. The e-mail or SMS is only a courtesy — if it never arrived, the notification is still valid. People living abroad who do not check the box are often surprised by an enforcement order or a seizure that followed letters they never opened.
How to open it
Go to the DEHú website (dehu.redsara.es) or the Mi Carpeta Ciudadana app and sign in with a digital certificate, Cl@ve or an electronic DNI; the tax office's notifications can also be read on its own website. Never open a "notification" through a link in a message you did not expect — fake ones are a common scam. Once opened, the real letter is a PDF: upload it in the chat and it is explained, with its own deadline.
Going away?
The tax office lets you choose up to 30 calendar days a year when no new notifications are made available to you in the DEHú, asked for at least 7 days ahead. A fiscal representative or a tax adviser can also receive and watch the notifications for you.
Prepared by Legal Help Tool. Last updated . General information, not legal advice.
