Applying to the UGE online: residence applications via sede electrónica

Filing with the UGE online: which portal for which application

Online filing for immigration procedures is split between two portals. The Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos (UGE) handles permits under Ley 14/2013: international teleworking (DNV), entrepreneurs, highly qualified professionals, intra-company transfers and their family members [1][3]. All other extranjería applications are handled by the Delegaciones and Subdelegaciones del Gobierno, and online they go to a different portal.

The list of procedures in Mercurio comes from the authority’s page; its technical section describes Internet Explorer and Java, so the list may lag behind the 2024 Reglamento, and you need to check that your procedure is on it [4]. What the sede is and how it works is covered in the article on the sede electrónica.

How to file a UGE application online: steps

The steps for an application under Ley 14/2013 are compiled from the procedure page in the sede, the UGE page and the authority’s instructions [1][2][6]. The filing interface is the same for all UGE permits, so we use the instructions for entrepreneurs as a description of the screens, and check the DNV requirements against the UGE document list.

1. Work out who files. For teleworking and entrepreneur permits, the applicant is the foreign national. For highly qualified professionals, researchers and ICT transfers, the Spanish company files the application. Family members can file themselves, through the main applicant or through the company [1].
2. Get access. You need an electronic certificate or DNIe; a foreign national without a Spanish DNI almost always needs an NIE first. We explained how to get one in the article on the NIE in Barcelona, and access with a certificate and Cl@ve in a separate article [2].
3. Fill in the form. For the main applicant this is MI-T, for family members MI-F. An individual can sign the form electronically, and the UGE instructions for entrepreneurs also allow a handwritten signature and a scan [1][6].
4. Pay the fee. Modelo 790 code 038, item 7 “Solicitud de autorizaciones de movilidad internacional (Ley 14/2013)”. Amounts as of 01.10.2026: €73.26 for an initial permit; for a renewal, the amount is shown in the tasa table for code 038 on the authority’s page, so check it before paying; for family members the page names the same item 7 [1]. After payment you receive a 22-character NRC (número de referencia completo): it goes into the application as proof of payment [6]. You can pay by Bizum, by card or by direct debit if the payer holds the certificate you logged in with; there is also a form for paying at a bank [1]. More: how to pay modelo 790.
5. Gather the documents. The DNV list is in the UGE document: passport, fee, contract and proof of a working relationship of at least three months, income, criminal record certificate and declaration, health insurance or other proof, company letter, degree or experience [5]. Foreign public documents need an apostille or legalisation, and the rest a sworn translation [5]. How to sort all this by permit type is covered in the document checklist. The UGE advises attaching an explanatory note, especially if a document does not match the list exactly [5].
6. Upload the application to the sede. The path in the instructions: “Alta solicitud”, identification, application type (initial, renewal), details of the applicant and the person filing, file upload. The limit given in the instructions for entrepreneurs is 24 MB; we have not confirmed whether it applies to the DNV [6].
7. Click “Guardar y firmar” and save the resguardo. The system issues a confirmation of filing [6]. The deadline runs from the date and time on it: under Article 76 of Ley 14/2013, the decision is due within twenty days of electronic filing [3]. How this deadline is counted and what suspends it is described in the article on UGE deadlines.

If you entered on a teletrabajo visa and want to stay, the UGE document sets the filing window: within the sixty calendar days before the visa expires [5]. If time is short, start with access and the fee: a certificate and an NIE take longer to obtain than filling in the form.

Filing via Mercurio: what you need and what you get

Mercurio is for procedures handled by the oficinas de extranjería. According to the procedure page, the steps are: open Mercurio, choose “new application” or “renewal”, fill in the form and attach the documents, sign the form and attachments with a certificate (you install Autofirma for this) and register the application; after registration you can download a PDF resguardo as proof of filing [4].

The page advises attaching the fee payment receipt straight away: without it, the case may be delayed [4]. You pay through the Ministry of Finance gateway or at a bank with a printed form [4]. Mercurio can also be used to add documents to a case that is already in progress: this is how you reply to a requerimiento [4][9].

Which applications must be filed electronically: what is confirmed and what is not

For the UGE it is confirmed: Article 76.1 of Ley 14/2013 says applications are processed by telematic means, and the UGE page states that applications and all their documentation (corrections, additions, recursos, communications) are filed electronically through the ministry’s sede [2][3].

For procedures under the Reglamento, the picture has changed. Article 14.3 of Ley 39/2015 allows a regulation to require electronic communication for certain procedures and groups of individuals who are shown to have access to and the ability to use electronic means [7]. On this basis, Article 197.2 of RD 1155/2024 required some applications to be filed electronically, but the Tribunal Supremo, in judgments of 8 and 29 July 2026, annulled it and left open the possibility of reintroducing the obligation with justification and proportionality [8][11]. Sources disagree on what applies after the court ruling:

We have not confirmed from official sources how the Oficina de Extranjería in Barcelona applies this today, and we will not claim that any particular procedure must be electronic. In practice: according to the Madrid guide, a certificate holder can file any procedure electronically [9]. If you have no certificate and the procedure is not a UGE one, ask the Oficina de Extranjería or a lawyer which channels it accepts.

Certificate, Cl@ve or DNIe: what different sources say

There is no single rule; each source names something different:

Every source in the table names the certificate; only some name Cl@ve. So it makes sense to get a certificate and add Cl@ve on top: that covers both filing and reading notifications. The Barcelona office names two certificate issuers: idCAT and FNMT [10]. On the certificate and on access for a representative: certificado digital and representatives.

Filing through a representative: gestor, lawyer, power of attorney

The UGE page allows the applicant to appoint a representative through an electronic proxy (apoderamiento electrónico). For Ministry of Inclusion permits, this is an entry in the Registro Electrónico de Apoderamientos under code 201361 (“Extranjería. Autorizaciones de residencia” of this ministry) [1]. In Mercurio, lawyers, gestores administrativos and graduados sociales work through their professional access after registering with the relevant Consejo General [4].

On Barcelona specifically: in 2025 the office said that cita previa appointments are given to the applicants themselves, while third-party representatives, who are required to deal with the office electronically, are not given appointments [10]. Who to choose as your representative is covered in the article on gestors and lawyers.

What happens after filing

Confirmation. Keep the resguardo with the date and time: it proves that the application has been filed and is in progress. According to the Madrid guide, an application filed through Mercurio or the registro does not reach the office’s system immediately, and for a while a status search may find nothing [9]. For the UGE, you check the case status in the same sede where you filed [1]; the steps are covered in the article how to check the status of a UGE application.

Notifications. An electronic notification is treated as received when you or your representative open it. If the electronic channel is mandatory or you chose it yourself, after ten calendar days without being opened it is treated as rejected (Article 43 of Ley 39/2015) [7]. The Madrid guide adds: the document is placed in DEHú or Carpeta Ciudadana, not sent by post, and it can be opened with a certificate linked to the DNI or NIE of the person in the “domicilio a efecto de notificaciones” field; if that person has no certificate, do not tick “consiento”, and letters will come by post [9].

Requerimiento. If something is missing from the application, the authority gives you ten days to fix it; if you do not respond, you may be treated as having withdrawn the application (article 68.1 Ley 39/2015), and the UGE page says the same [1][7]. The deadline can be extended by up to five days only in cases of particular difficulty; it is not extended automatically [7]. See requerimiento for the DNV and desistimiento and caducidad.

Silence. If the Ley 14/2013 time limit has passed with no decision, the UGE page suggests asking through the sede for confirmation of the decision by silence: “Registro de solicitudes”, identification, then the “Subsanación” section [1]. How silence in the applicant’s favour works: silencio positivo.

Common mistakes in electronic filing

• Filing a DNV through Mercurio or on paper. Applications under Ley 14/2013 are handled by the UGE through the sede of the Ministry of Inclusion [2][3].
• Paying the fee under the wrong item of modelo 790. For the UGE it is code 038, item 7; each procedure has its own code, and another procedure’s form will not do [1].
• Not opening the notifications inbox. After ten calendar days an electronic notification is treated as rejected, and the time to reply keeps running [7].
• Agreeing to electronic notifications when the person in the notification address field has no certificate. Letters will go to DEHú or Carpeta Ciudadana, which that person cannot access [9].
• Uploading documents without an explanatory note when they do not match the list exactly. The UGE explicitly recommends a note [5].

When you need an individual review

You need a review if your procedure is not a UGE one and you are not sure which channel it accepts: after the Tribunal Supremo rulings, sources disagree, and the answer depends on the office and the filing date. You also need one when the deadline is tied to the expiry of your visa or status, when another person is in the notification field, when your documents do not match the UGE list, or when you are filing for your family and want to work out who will be the main applicant. These are questions for a lawyer or a gestor, based on your documents.

How we can help

The ReloVictory team in Barcelona checks which portal and channel suit your application, prepares the MI-T or MI-F forms and the document pack, and checks the fee code and amount. Book: consultation; service: documents and appointments with the authorities.

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