What a NIE costs and how long it takes in 2026
The procedure looks short and ends up eating weeks. Where the time and the money actually go when you apply for a NIE yourself, part by part.
The official NIE fee is €9.84 (item 5.12 of Order PJC/617/2025, published in the BOE on 16 June 2025). The appointment itself takes fifteen minutes. What actually costs you is getting to it: a few days in quiet provinces, several weeks in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante or Málaga.
There are two answers to “what does a NIE cost”. There is the fee, generated on the National Police site and paid at a bank. And there is the one you meet in practice: a figure that depends on how many free days you have, how far the immigration office is, and how many times you have to go back. This guide breaks down the second, because that is the one that decides.
What you pay, and to whom
- The 790 012 fee. Generated on the National Police's electronic office and paid at a Spanish bank before the appointment. A NIE assignment is €9.84; the same form covers other procedures at other amounts, and the administration revises them every year.
- Your time and your travel. Nobody invoices these, but you pay them, and they are the big line item.
- The fee of whoever does it for you, if you decide not to walk the procedure yourself.
How the fee is generated and paid, step by step, is covered in The EX-15 form and the 790 012 fee.
The cost that appears on no fee schedule
- The hours spent hunting an appointment. The biggest line item and the one nobody counts: days of checking the site at different hours.
- Travel. If the only free slot is in another province, your NIE costs the price of a trip.
- The working day lost. Offices open during working hours, and you do not choose the slot: you take the one there is.
- The second round. One missing document turns one procedure into two, and the second appointment rejoins the queue from scratch.
That is why an agency market exists at all. Rates vary widely: some charge only to fill in the forms, others carry the whole file. We work at a fixed €150 covering the appointment hunt, the EX-15, the fee paid and the exact document list, and we do not charge until the appointment is confirmed.
What a NIE costs, depending on how you get it
| Route | Approximate cost (2026) | What it includes | You attend |
|---|---|---|---|
| On your own | €9.84 fee | Nothing else: you handle the form, the fee and the appointment | Yes |
| Appointment alert or bot | €5-50 plus the fee | It only alerts you or books the slot | Yes |
| Agency with appointment and form | €129-195, depending on the agency | The appointment, the EX-15 and the fee; sometimes someone goes with you | Yes |
| Representative with power of attorney | €199-311 plus the notary | Someone else files it in Spain | No |
| NIExpress | A fixed €150, fee and VAT included | The appointment, the EX-15, the fee paid and the document list; you pay once the appointment is booked | Yes |
These are the ranges published by NIE agencies and services in September 2026. Comparing on price alone is misleading: check whether the fee is included and whether you pay before or after you have an appointment.
How long it really takes
The procedure is not slow: the appointment is. Once you are at the desk, filing takes a few minutes, and depending on the office you get the certificate at the appointment or within a few days. The whole wait is decided before that:
| Stage | Typical duration |
|---|---|
| Preparing the EX-15 and paying the fee | One afternoon |
| Getting an appointment | A few days to several weeks |
| Waiting for the appointment date | Whatever the slot you took gives you |
| The appointment and issue | 15 to 20 minutes; the certificate at the appointment or within days |
Anyone promising you an exact date is promising something they do not control. What can be controlled is being ready when a batch opens, and not losing the appointment over one sheet of paper. The release patterns are in NIE appointment: how to get one.
The registration certificate: another procedure, and sometimes the only one
If you are from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland and staying longer than three months, you have to register with the Central Register of Foreign Nationals: another form (EX-18), another fee on the same 790 012 model, of €12, and another appointment, booked in the province where you live. That certificate already carries your NIE: if you are moving here and do not need the number earlier to sign a contract or buy a property, you can go straight to the EX-18 and skip the EX-15, with its appointment and its fee. The difference between the documents is in NIE, TIE and registration certificate.
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.