The EX-15 form and the 790 012 fee: how to get both right
The two sheets the whole application rests on: the EX-15, with the box behind almost every rejection, and the 790 012 fee, with the stamp without which you will not be seen.
The EX-15 is the NIE application form and the 790 012 fee is the proof you have paid for it; you need both. You download the EX-15 from the Ministry of Inclusion's immigration portal; the fee is generated on the National Police's electronic office and paid at a Spanish bank before your appointment.
A NIE application rests on two documents: an application form, the EX-15, and a proof of payment, the 790 form, code 012. Neither is difficult. Both are filled in wrongly every day, and the consequence is always the same: coming back another day, with another appointment.
The EX-15, box by box
You download the EX-15 from the immigration portal of the Ministry of Inclusion. Two pages, four sections.
1. Applicant's details
Name, surnames, date and place of birth, nationality, parents' names and passport or ID number. The golden rule: copy it from the passport, letter by letter. Do not translate your name, do not add a second surname that is not on the document, and do not drop an accent because the form seems not to accept it. If the name on the EX-15 is not identical to the passport, the file does not match.
2. Address for notifications
It can be in Spain or abroad. If you have appointed a representative, their address goes here. A working email address and phone number save trouble: that is how they reach you if something is missing.
3. Representative's details
Only if someone else will file the application. It requires a power of attorney expressly authorising them, and you must bring it in original and copy.
4. Reasons for the application
This is the box that decides the outcome. You must state the economic, professional or social reason for requesting the NIE and arrive with the document that proves it. A generic reason is not enough:
| If the reason is… | Bring… |
|---|---|
| Taking up employment | Contract, pre-contract or a written job offer |
| Registering as self-employed | Documentation on the activity you are starting |
| Buying a property | Deposit contract, accepted offer or land registry extract |
| Signing a mortgage | Binding offer or written confirmation from the bank |
| Setting up a company | Articles, draft deed or name reservation certificate |
| Inheriting | Death certificate, will or estate documentation |
The 790 form, code 012
The fee is generated on the National Police's electronic office. It is not a PDF you fill in by hand: you complete it on screen and it produces a document with its own barcode. The steps:
- Open the 790 012 form on the National Police site.
- Fill in your details, identical to the EX-15.
- Tick the procedure: for a NIE it is “Asignación de Número de Identidad de Extranjero (NIE) a instancia del interesado”.
- Download the PDF and print it: it produces three copies, for the administration, for the bank and for you.
- Pay it at a Spanish bank, at the counter or through online banking if your bank supports this form.
- Keep the stamped or validated copy. That is the one you hand in.
The mistakes that cost the most
- Ticking the wrong procedure on the fee. Paying the registration-certificate fee instead of the NIE one means paying again.
- Paying without printing. An app payment with no printed, validated receipt is worthless at the counter.
- Filling in the PDF by hand after printing. The barcode must match the data; if it does not, the bank may refuse it.
- Signing the EX-15 with a different signature from the passport. Several offices raise an objection over this.
- Bringing a single copy. The EX-15 needs an original and a copy, and so does everything else.
When your application is sent back
Being sent back is not a refusal. Usually a document is missing or the reason is not evidenced; you fix it and file again. What you do not get back is the appointment, so you start again by getting a new one. The fee you paid remains valid as long as the amount has not changed.
Frequently asked questions
This guide is general information about the procedure, accurate as of the date shown. Fees and the criteria of each immigration office change; for a question about your own case, email us at info@niexpress.es, and if you would rather we handled it, open your application.