If you are planning to travel to Spain and you are going to stay with a friend or relative while in the country, keep on reading. Because you will have to request an invitation letter, and in this article you are about to learn everything you need to know about this important document. We will analyze what this “carta de invitación” is exactly, where and how to apply for it, requirements, and most importantly: how much it actually costs.
Key takeaways
- What it is: an official police document, not a handwritten note, proving you have confirmed accommodation with a friend or relative; it covers specific dates, with a maximum stay of 90 days in each 180.
- Who can apply: only your host can request it, not you: Spanish nationals, EU citizens living in Spain and non-EU citizens with residency, as the property owner or holder of the rental contract.
- How to apply: your host books an appointment at the police station closest to their home and brings proof of ownership or tenancy, empadronamiento, their DNI or TIE, a copy of your passport, the form and the fee.
- Cost: the fee is €75.05 plus €6.54 for issuing the letter, so €81.59 for one guest; the issuing fee is charged per guest, so two guests cost €88.13.
- Timing: processing usually takes up to 20 days, plus the wait for an appointment and posting the original, as a copy is not valid; request it about 2 months before your flight.
- What it doesn't allow: it does not let you enter Spain by itself: you still need to meet the other entry requirements, such as financial means, medical insurance and round-trip plane tickets.
Before diving into what is the cost of processing a letter of invitation and its process, let’s first fully define what is the main purpose of this document and when will you use it.
As we have already seen in one of our articles about the requirements for entry into Spain for tourism purposes (i.e. for less than 3 months), whether we have to apply for a visa or not, there is an accommodation requirement.
That is, you must demonstrate that you have a place to sleep for each and every one of the nights you intend to stay in the country.
This can be demonstrated through a hotel, hostel, Airbnb or apartment booking confirmation.
But in certain cases, the foreigner stays at a relative’s or friend’s house. How do you prove it then?
That’s when the invitation letter will be required.
This letter is the document that must be used to prove that you have confirmed accommodation at the home of this relative or acquaintance, as he will be the one who will request it and notify the authorities that he is inviting us to stay for certain days/weeks at his house.
The letter is issued for specific dates, with a maximum stay of 90 days within each 180 days.
Many people think that it is a handwritten document that we can create ourselves, and that is a wrong idea. As we will see in the following sections, the document is official and must be granted by the police.
Is an invitation letter mandatory to enter Spain?
Unless you have confirmed accommodation in a hotel, hostel or apartment (and you can prove it), the invitation letter will be mandatory to enter Spanish territory as a tourist.
Obviously, we are talking about a mandatory document for non-EU citizens, as EU citizens do not need it.
In that sense, the border authorities are very strict with this requirement, so if you do not have accommodation confirmed through this document, you won’t be able to enter the Spanish territory and you will have to return to your country of origin.
Where will this document be requested?
If you come from a country that requires a visa to enter Spain, you must present this letter of invitation at the Spanish consulate in your country of origin when applying for a tourist visa (therefore, your host must send it to you before that).
On the other hand, if you do not need a visa to cross the Spanish border for tourism purposes, the police may ask you for this “carta de invitación” when you arrive in Spain by plane (just when crossing the Spanish borders).
It is absolutely essential to have this letter if you plan to visit the country and do not have a hotel or similar accommodation, otherwise you could be imposed a significant monetary penalty.
Do you have questions about this document? Then ask our immigration lawyers:
Who can apply for it?
This question is key in the process; as a foreigner planning to visit Spain cannot apply for the invitation letter directly.
It will be her relative or friend with whom she will be staying in Spain during her stay who must apply for the letter of invitation.
That is to say, the owner of the property or holder of the rental contract.
This is so because it is she who is really inviting us to her home, and this letter functions as a “declaration” to prove that we will indeed be welcomed during our stay.
In this sense, there are 3 different groups of individuals that can legally request it:
- Spanish nationals
- EU citizens who live in Spain on a regular basis.
- Non-EU citizens with residency in the country.
Once this letter has been requested, it should be sent to the country of the person planning to visit Spain so that it can be used in the visa application or at the border entry.
It is very important that the original document is sent, as a copy would not be valid.
Can I enter Spain directly with this document?
Many foreigners think that since they have an invitation letter, they can enter Spain directly, without having to apply for any extra document.
And here it is important to clarify since the reality is not like that.
The letter of invitation is not a document that allows you to travel to Spain directly, since it is simply the proof that verifies one of the requirements to enter Spanish territory as a tourist.
Thus, even if you have your letter of invitation, you still have to meet the other requirements for entry into Spain, such as having financial means (100€ per day), medical insurance, and round-trip plane tickets.
Where can I get an invitation letter, and what are the requirements?
The invitation letter is requested at the police station closest to the inviting party’s residence.
The first thing to do is to make an appointment to go to the police station.
You can do it through this link .
You must select your region, and then choose “POLICIA – CARTA DE INVITACIÓN”:
To request an appointment, follow these steps:
- Access the National Police appointment system and select your province.
- Look in the list of procedures for the option “Police — Invitation Letter”.
- Fill in your information as an applicant and confirm the day, time and police station.
- Download and complete the official “Request to issue an invitation letter” form before attending the appointment.
On the day of the appointment, you will need to submit the main documents to request this letter:
- A document that certifies that you are the owner of the property or the holder of the rental contract.
- Townhall registration document (empadronamiento)
- Copy and original of your DNI, or, in case of being a foreigner resident in the country, of your TIE
- Copy of the passport of the foreign guest (the one who will be staying at your home and travelling to Spain).
- Filling in the application form that you will be given at the police station or that you can download here.
- Payment of the corresponding fee, which as of today is 75,05€
If you are going to accommodate the guest in a home that is not in your name, or in a second residence, it is advisable to also provide the authorization of the owner of the home and a copy of their identity document.
The application form still asks you to indicate your relationship with the invited person (family or friendship), but it is no longer necessary to provide additional documentation to prove it, nor to justify your own financial means as an invitation.
How much does it cost?
The price of an invitation letter to Spain is divided into two:
- As we can see on the electronic headquarters of the National Police, the fee to be paid to request the letter of invitation is currently 75,05€
- Once we are called after a few days later to come back and pick up the official document, you will have to pay the price of issuing the card, which amounts to 6.54€
In total, for a single guest, the cost amounts to 81.59 €. If you are inviting more than one person on the same request, the shipping amount is multiplied for each additional guest.
The current amount is set by Order PJC/617/2025, of June 13 (BOE of June 16, 2025), and can be updated through new ministerial orders. We recommend that you confirm the current figure at the National Police Electronic Headquarters before making the payment.
| Nº de invitados | Tramitación | Expedición | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 75,05 € | 6,54 € | 81,59 € |
| 2 | 75,05 € | 13,08 € | 88,13 € |
| 3 | 75,05 € | 19,62 € | 94,67 € |
Can I enter with an invitation letter and apply for a family member of an EU citizen Card?
Let’s now analyze a very common situation that could generate considerable problems.
First of all, we must announce that it is totally possible to enter Spain through a letter of invitation (the usual case would be that of the couple that invites the non-EU citizen to Spain), and once in the Spanish territory to carry out all the procedures to apply for the family member of an EU citizen visa.
For there is no rule that prevents constituting marriage or to register as a civil partnership while under an irregular situation.
And, if all the requirements of the family visa are fulfilled, the residence would be granted favorably.
Nevertheless, although the procedure is possible, if it is carried out through this entrance with an invitation letter, there could be certain problems for the Spanish or EU citizen who is inviting the foreigner.
By requesting the letter of invitation, the issuer is assuming certain responsibilities: basically, she assures that the foreigner will return to her country of origin once her stay is over.
That is why, if the foreigner overstays and enters an irregular situation, she would be violating her responsibilities, and that could lead to a sanctioning process that, although it does not always happen, could result in fines of between 600 and 2000 euros.
Thus, although it is totally possible to enter with a letter of invitation and successfully obtain the community card, the Spaniard/EU could suffer important fines.
Our recommendation, then, is that the entry is made without an invitation letter: by having confirmed accommodation in a hotel, Airbnb, or similar housing option.
How long does it take to obtain your invitation letter?
The truth is that the Spanish law does not establish a fixed or exact period of time for the processing of the invitation letter, but it establishes that it will be processed in the shortest possible time.
In practice, this means that it will depend to a great extent on the police station where we request the document, taking into account that those located in large cities are usually busier and therefore may be a bit slower in that sense.
However, it usually takes no more than 20 days to be processed.
Keep in mind that to this period you must add the waiting time to make an appointment and the sending of the original document to the guest’s country, so the entire process may take several weeks.
Since the time will vary, our advice is simple: plan ahead and order as soon as possible.
Do not wait until the date of the trip is near, and if possible, request this document 2 months before the foreigner has his flight to Spain.
FAQs about the invitation letter to Spain
How long does the invitation letter last?
The invitation letter is issued for the specific dates indicated in the application, with a maximum stay of 90 days within each 180-day period.
It is important that the dates reflected coincide exactly with those of the guest’s trip, as any discrepancies can cause problems at border control or at the consulate.
What happens if they deny the invitation letter?
If the request is denied, the first thing is to review the reason indicated in the notification: the most common reasons are usually related to the lack of proof of address or discrepancies in the data provided.
Depending on the reason, it is possible to correct the file and resubmit it, or file the corresponding appeal within the deadline.
Why can I be denied a request for an invitation letter?
There are very common reasons for denial, related to common mistakes that you can avoid:
- Incomplete or incorrect documentation (poorly completed form, data that does not match between documents).
- Discrepancies in dates or data between the form, the guest’s passport and the rest of the file.
- Doubts about the real intention of the trip: suspicion that the objective is not a tourist/private visit but rather to remain irregularly.
- Problems with housing: insufficient surface area for the number of people, or discrepancies about who is registered.
- People registered in an irregular situation at the inviter’s home.
What if I don't have anyone to invite me to Spain?
If you do not have a family member or friend who can request the invitation letter, you can prove accommodation by making a hotel, hostel or apartment reservation in your name for all nights of your stay.
For any other questions, remember that our expert immigration lawyers are at your complete disposal:
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