Fines & Administrative Penalties in Spain

Got a letter about it? Find it here — what it means and how long you have to answer.

• Correos 'Aviso de Llegada' in English: A Letter Is Waiting for You

  Aviso de llegada (Correos)

  A slip from Correos, the Spanish post office: a registered letter could not be delivered and is waiting at the post office. If it is an official notification, collect it — leaving it there does not stop the deadline.

• DEHú Notification in English: Spain's Electronic Letter Box

  Notificación electrónica — DEHú (Dirección Electrónica Habilitada única)

  An e-mail or SMS saying a Spanish authority has left a notification for you in the DEHú, the state's electronic letter box. Open it within 10 calendar days — after that it counts as delivered and its deadline runs anyway.

• Diligencia de Embargo in English: Your Spanish Bank Account Is Seized

  Diligencia de embargo (de cuentas, de sueldo, de devoluciones)

  A seizure order: a public body is taking money from your Spanish bank account, a tax refund or your wages to pay a debt that went to enforcement. Find out which debt it is — and act within a month if the debt or its notices were wrong.

• Fine for a Rental Car in Spain: The Hire Company's Fee and the Fine

  Identificación del conductor — multa a un vehículo de alquiler

  The hire company says a fine came for the car you rented in Spain and charges your card a fee — the fine itself comes later, from the traffic authority. You then have 20 calendar days to pay it with 50% off or to object.

• Parking Fine in Spain: How to Read the Ticket and Pay It

  Denuncia por estacionamiento — multa de la ORA / zona azul

  A parking ticket on the windscreen or a parking fine sent by a Spanish town hall. You have 20 calendar days to pay it with 50% off or to object — and in some towns a blue-zone ticket can be cancelled at the meter.

• Providencia de Apremio in English: An Unpaid Tax or Fine With a Surcharge

  Providencia de apremio

  An enforcement order: a tax or a fine was not paid in time and is now being collected by force, with a surcharge. Pay it by the date the rule gives — the 20th of the month or the 5th of the next — to avoid a 20% surcharge and a seizure.

• Sanción from Hacienda in English: A Spanish Tax Penalty

  Acuerdo de imposición de sanción (or propuesta de sanción)

  A penalty from the Spanish tax office for a return filed late, not filed at all, or with tax left unpaid. Paying it in time without appealing takes 40% off — or you have one month to appeal.

• Spanish Speeding Fine Sent Abroad: Is It Real and Must You Pay?

  Notificación de denuncia — multa de radar enviada al extranjero

  A Spanish speeding or traffic fine that reaches you at home in another country, sometimes months after the trip. Check that it is real — then you have 20 calendar days to pay it with 50% off or to object.

• Spanish Traffic Fine (DGT): How to Read It and What to Do

  Notificación de denuncia — multa de tráfico

  A notice of a traffic offence in Spain — speeding, a red light, a mobile phone — sent by the DGT or a town hall. You have 20 calendar days to pay it with 50% off, to object, or to say who was driving.

• SUMA Gestión Tributaria (Alicante): Your Letter in English

  Carta / notificación de SUMA Gestión Tributaria

  SUMA is the agency that collects the local taxes and fines of most towns in the province of Alicante — Torrevieja, Orihuela Costa, Benidorm, Jávea and many more. A letter from SUMA is about IBI, rubbish tax, plusvalía, vehicle tax or a fine.

• Arrest Warrant Check
• Birth, Marriage & Death Certificate Applications
• Cancel Criminal Record
• Divorce Certificate or Decree Copy
• Close a Bank Account
• Enforcement of Foreign Judgments
• Criminal Record Certificate (Police Clearance Certificate)
• Power of Attorney
• Document Witnessing & Identity Verification
• Relocation & Settling-In Support
• Building Permits & Planning Permission
• Verify Identity