Booking a Cita Previa for Your TIE or Fingerprints in Spain

Covers: all of Spain (national rules). Where a step is run by your region or city council, the guide says so.

This guide is for internationals who have recently moved to Spain and need an appointment for a foreigner identity card, fingerprints, an EU registration certificate or a foreigner identification number. After reading it, you will know which office handles each procedure, how the Government’s online booking system works alongside other channels, and where arrangements differ by province, using Madrid, Valencia and Andalusia as examples.

• Which office handles which procedure
• Booking through the online system
• Attending in person: three examples
• When the online route replaces a visit
• Fees, forms and tracking a file
• FAQ

Which office handles which procedure

Immigration paperwork in Spain is run by the central Government, not by the regions. Each comunidad autónoma (autonomous region) has a Delegación del Gobierno (the central Government’s office in that region). Its pages list an Oficina de Extranjería (immigration office) for each province, together with the police units that deal with identity documents. Each province publishes its own list of which office does what.

The Oficina de Extranjería handles authorisations: residence and work permits, renewals, family reunification and similar files. The police, at a comisaría (police station) or a Brigada de Extranjería y Fronteras (police immigration and borders unit), handle the documents. The Valencia delegation page lists these police procedures as including the certificado de registro de residente comunitario (EU registration certificate), the Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero or TIE (foreigner identity card) and the Número de Identidad de Extranjero or NIE (foreigner identification number).

Fingerprints are part of issuing the TIE. The Almería section of the Andalusia delegation page lists Expedición T.I.E. (toma de huellas), meaning card issue with fingerprinting, as a separate appointment from Recogida T.I.E. (card collection). The same section states that NIE assignment does not authorise residence. It only assigns an identification number to the foreign national.

Booking through the online system

The Government’s booking system is the cita previa (prior appointment) service on the Sede Electrónica de las Administraciones Públicas (the public administrations’ online portal), at sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es/pagina/index/directorio/icpplus. The Seville section states that since 1 January 2021 an appointment through this link has been required to issue and collect cards. The same applies to the EU registration certificate, NIE assignments, NIE certificates, residence certificates, certificados de concordancia (concordance certificates) and autorizaciones de regreso (return authorisations). The Alicante and Altea entries on the Valencia page point to the same system.

The pages do not describe the booking screens, how far ahead slots are released or how many are available. Availability is set office by office, and the pages do not list which details the booking form asks for.

Some provinces offer other channels as well. In Seville, the police give sevilla.citapreviabpef@policia.es for questions about these procedures. A separate section lists sevilla.oue@policia.es and 955 56 95 59 for appointments for the EU registration certificate, TIE issue, long-term residence renewals and return authorisations. Almería takes appointment requests by email at cita.almeria@correo.gob.es for procedures such as initial residence and work authorisations and asylum. TIE fingerprinting, card collection, NIE assignment and the EU certificate are booked through the online portal.

Attending in person: three examples

In the province of Valencia, documents for card issue and the EU certificate must be presented in person by the applicant, at the police station that matches their place of residence. In Valencia city, the Comisaría de Patraix (C/ Dels Gremis, 6) issues cards to non-EU nationals, and the Comisaría de Bailén (C/ Bailén, 9) handles the EU registration certificate. Elsewhere in the province, the stations in Alzira, Gandia, Ontinyent and Sagunto deal with both EU and non-EU applicants.

The Madrid delegation page lists four immigration office sites: Calle Silva, 19; Calle García de Paredes, 65, which handles only general registry and delivery of duplicates; Calle San Nicasio, 31 in Leganés; and Avenida Plaza de Toros, 14 in Carabanchel. The page has separate sections for appointments to submit applications, appointments for in-person information and police procedures. Its information line is 91 272 95 00.

In Seville, the Oficina de Extranjería has not answered in-person information enquiries since 1 January 2021. Information is given by phone on 955 56 94 96 from 9:00 to 14:00, or through an online enquiry form. Almería, by contrast, gives information at the office from 9:00 to 14:00, with a daily limit on the number of people seen.

When the online route replaces a visit

For authorisations, filing online often replaces an appointment. The Seville section says the following can be submitted through MERCURIO (the online filing platform) on the Sede Electrónica: initial applications, renewals and extensions, family reunification, cards for family members of EU citizens, initial study authorisations, and documents for files already open. Using the Sede requires a certificado digital (digital certificate) or a DNI electrónico (electronic ID card).

In Seville, an appointment to hand in an initial application at the office is available only to individuals without a digital certificate. It can be requested by phone on 955 56 94 96 or by email at cita_previa_extranjeria.sevilla@correo.gob.es. Lawyers, graduados sociales (labour relations advisers), gestores administrativos (licensed administrative agents) and companies are obliged to deal with the administration online and cannot use these appointments.

Fees, forms and tracking a file

None of the three pages state fee amounts. They point to where fees are paid instead. Police procedures use the tasa modelo 790 código 012 (police fee form 790, code 012), which can be downloaded from the police fee portal. Seville lists separate online payment pages for residence fees (tasa 052) and work fees (tasa 062). Application forms are on the Ministry’s forms page, and Almería links to hojas informativas (information sheets) for each procedure. The delegation pages do not list the required documents themselves.

Once a file is open, its status can be checked on the file status service. Madrid also lists the numbers 902 022 222 and 060, and an SMS service on 600 124 377. The message is the word NIE, a space and the NIE number, or the word EXPE, a space and the 15-digit file number. Madrid notes that if a recent application returns “information not found” and the details are correct, the application has not yet been recorded in the office’s system. The page also publishes the dates up to which common procedures are being resolved, as at 1 November 2026.

FAQ

Are fingerprints and TIE collection separate appointments?

In Almería, card issue with fingerprinting and card collection are listed as separate procedures, both booked through the online portal. Seville states that an appointment is required both to issue and to collect a card. Other provinces publish their own arrangements.

Does having an NIE mean I can live in Spain?

No. The Almería section of the Andalusia page states that NIE assignment does not authorise residence. It only assigns an identification number to the foreign national. Residence is covered by separate procedures, such as the EU registration certificate or a residence authorisation.

Can I go to any police station for my card?

Not in the province of Valencia. There, documents must be presented in person at the police station for the applicant’s place of residence, and Valencia city has different stations for EU and non-EU applicants. Other provinces set their own arrangements on their delegation pages.

How much do the TIE and EU certificate cost?

The Madrid, Valencia and Andalusia pages do not state amounts. They direct applicants to pay police fees with form 790, code 012, through the police fee portal.

Sources: mptmd.gob.es · mptmd.gob.es · mptmd.gob.es

Last verified: 8 November 2026 against the pages linked above. Rules and fees change; the responsible authority always has the final word.

This is general information, not legal, tax or immigration advice. For your own situation, ask the office that handles your case (the Oficina de Extranjería, your ayuntamiento, the Seguridad Social or the Agencia Tributaria), a lawyer (abogado) or a gestor administrativo.