Documents for a Spanish residence permit: checklist by route and timing

Document checklist for a Spanish residence permit: there is no universal list

The Ministry of Inclusion publishes an information sheet (hoja informativa) for each type of permit, and the UGE has its own list for permits under Ley 14/2013. The pages carry a disclaimer: the content is for guidance only, and the rules in force on the application date apply [2]. The UGE also states that it may request any documents needed to verify the requirements at any time [1]. That is why the checklist below is built on three layers: route, document type and deadline. It is a guide for your preparation, not a substitute for the sheet for your procedure.

If you have not chosen a ground yet, start with the article residence permit in Spain: where to start. If you have received a request for additional documents, see the article requerimiento: how to respond. If your application has been refused, read the article on the first steps after a refusal.

What each residence ground requires: summary table

Each fee has its own modelo 790 code. The DNV is paid under code 038 (€73.26 for the initial permit as of 01.10.2026; for the renewal amount, see the tasa table on the authority’s page and check it before paying), the other permits under code 052, and for a work permit of six months or more the employer also pays under code 062 [1][2][4]. More: tasas 790 and paying modelo 790 online.

By residence ground: what the application pack includes

Digital nomad visa (residence)

The UGE list for an applicant under Ley 14/2013 [1]:

• the MI-T form signed by you, a full copy of your passport and the receipt for payment of 790-038;
• a contract proving a relationship with a foreign company of at least three months on the application date, and a registry extract showing the company’s actual activity for at least one year;
• income of €2,849 gross per month (€34,188 per year): payslips or invoices for the three months before applying and a bank certificate in your name; any shortfall up to the threshold is covered with savings for the full term of the permit;
• a company letter: position, duties, remote work, payment in euros; a CV;
• a degree or at least three years of experience in the profession; for a regulated profession, homologación or a notarised declaration that you will not practise it here;
• social security: proof of the foreign company’s registration and an undertaking to register with Seguridad Social, or a certificate of applicable legislation;
• a criminal record certificate and declaration (see the table below); insurance if you will not register with Seguridad Social after the permit is granted.

More: income for the UGE, employer’s letter, do you need a degree, social security without an A1, the visa in Moscow. For family members under Ley 14/2013 the indicative list is: the form, passport, means, insurance (if they will not be beneficiaries of Seguridad Social) and a document proving the family relationship, with an apostille and translation. Adult children and parents must prove dependency. The document is old and was issued under the ministry’s former name, so check it against the current version [7].

No lucrativa

The initial application is filed at the consulate [2]. What hoja 6 requires: form EX-01; a full copy of a passport valid for at least one year; a criminal record certificate from the country of origin and the countries of residence for the last five years; documents proving means for the period requested; proof of insurance; a medical certificate. Means: 400% of IPREM a month for the applicant and 100% for each family member. They can be proved by any evidence, including title documents, certified cheques or cards with a bank certificate of the credit limit. If the means come from shares in Spanish companies, you need a certificate from the company stating that you do not work there and your own declaration [2]. See No lucrativa in Spain and financial means for the no lucrativa.

Study

What hoja 1 requires: a passport valid for at least one year; proof that you have been admitted to the educational institution and that enrolment is paid; means of 100% of IPREM a month for the student, 75% for the first family member and 50% for each additional one, if accommodation has not been paid in advance (money for tuition fees does not count towards them); insurance with an insurer authorised in Spain, with cover close to the SNS basic catalogue; a criminal record certificate if the stay is longer than six months and the applicant is an adult; a medical certificate, subject to the caveat in the hoja; the fee receipt. You must apply no later than two months before your studies start [3]. See study estancia in Spain.

Employment

Most of the file is gathered by the employer: form EX-03, company identification, the signatory’s authority, proof of solvency for three years, a job description, an employment contract on the official form and a document on the labour market situation. The worker provides a passport and proof of qualifications if the profession requires them [4]. At the visa stage, a passport valid for at least one year, a criminal record certificate covering five years and a medical certificate are added [4].

Family, reunification

Hoja 8 splits the file into documents from the sponsor and from the family member. From the sponsor: passport, proof of funds (contract and payslips for six months, the latest tax return, proof of activity for the self-employed), proof of suitable housing, a statement that no other spouse lives with them, and insurance. From the family member: passport and proof of kinship or cohabitation; for children and parents, documents on custody, dependency or maintenance [5]. At the visa stage, adults need a criminal record certificate covering five years, and the passport must be valid for at least four months [5].

By document type: what to check in each pack

The main trap in this table is the different criminal record window. For the DNV, it covers the countries where you lived in the last two years, plus a separate declaration covering five years [1]; for no lucrativa, employment and family reunification, five years [2][4][5]. The consulate in Moscow repeats the 2 years plus declaration formula for the DNV and requires an apostille on certificates from Russia, Belarus, Armenia and Uzbekistan [8]. The official lists we have read do not say how recent the certificate itself must be; check with the consulate or office. More on Russia: criminal record certificate and apostille.

More on insurance: insurance for the DNV.

Registration at your address. The UGE, no lucrativa, study and employment lists we have read do not name the volante de empadronamiento as a separate item. For family reunification, a housing report takes its place [1][2][3][4][5]. The certificate is needed for other procedures; how to get it in Barcelona is explained in the article volante de empadronamiento.

Apostille and translation: order and timing

One rule applies to every route. Public documents from foreign authorities are submitted with an apostille if the country is party to the 1961 Hague Convention, or with consular legalisation if it is not; the document is translated into Spanish, and when the procedure is handled by an authority in an autonomous community, the co-official language is also allowed [6]. Accepted translators: a sworn translator (traductor-intérprete jurado) appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or diplomatic missions; a translation by the consulate of the country of origin in Spain requires an apostille or legalisation [6]. The UGE adds that a sworn translation is enough for the remaining documents, and the CV can have a plain translation [1]. The practical order we suggest agreeing with your translator:

1. Get recent originals: certificates, civil status records, extracts.
2. Have the apostille placed in the issuing country: Russian documents, degrees and certificates, whether you need one at all.
3. Order a sworn translation of the document together with the apostille: what the price is made up of.
4. Check names, dates and transliteration across all documents against the passport and against each other before uploading.

Deadlines: what expires and when

Under hoja 12, for employment the TIE is requested within one month of registering with Seguridad Social, not of entry [4]. If the response deadline is running and you do not have the document, go straight to a lawyer or gestor: a requerimiento deadline can be extended only in cases of particular difficulty.

Common mistakes when putting the pack together

• Using the checklist for a different route. The criminal record window, the amounts of funds and the insurance requirements differ between the DNV, no lucrativa and study [1][2][3].
• Submitting a passport with a short validity: for a visa you need one year, and for family reunification four months [2][4][5].
• Having a document translated by a translator not appointed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or before the apostille, and then having to bring a new translation [6].
• Paying the fee under the wrong code: 038 for the UGE, 052 for the others, 062 for the employer; 012 for the TIE and NIE is not one of them [1][2][4].
• Bringing a bank certificate in someone else’s name or without the payments itemised: the UGE asks for them to be shown separately and to match the payslips [1].
• For the DNV, choosing insurance with copago, carencia or reimbursement only: the UGE does not accept such policies [1].
• Missing a requerimiento because a notification went unread: see DNV requerimiento and access to notifications.

How we can help

An individual review is needed if you are combining routes, changed your country of residence in the last two or five years, have documents from several countries, non-standard funds (a business, property, company shares), a family with children over 18 or parents, or a tight deadline: whether the documents are sufficient is for the authority to decide. The ReloVictory team in Barcelona draws up a checklist for your route, checks the criminal record windows and amounts, verifies the “original, apostille, translation” chain and the fee codes, prepares the file for submission and handles correspondence on any requerimiento.

Corrections and resubmission are included in the case management fee, which is quoted individually. The first 15 minutes of consultation are free, and a full 45-minute consultation costs €121; official fees and translations are paid separately, and we are not responsible for how long the authorities take to respond. Book: consultation. Services: documents and appointments with authorities. Step-by-step process for digital nomads: DNV route card.

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ReloVictory · Sources reviewed 02.10.2026 · Not a substitute for individual legal advice.