A passport is an indispensable document for foreigners, and that is a fact that anyone understands. But what happens in those cases where either you have not yet been granted your passport, or it has expired, and you can’t renew it? How can you formalize any procedure or travel?
The solution is simple: the registration card called “cédula de inscripción” in Spanish, the document that undocumented immigrants must obtain.
And in this article you will find everything you need to know about it. We will analyze the 2 main requirements that must be met for a successful application, as well as the documents that you should include in your application. Including extra really useful tips!
The “cédula de inscripción” is a registration card or printed document issued by the Spanish authorities to a foreigner who is undocumented in Spain when his or her country of origin cannot or does not want to document it.
It is regulated in Article 210 of Royal Decree 1155/2024, of November 19, which approves the Regulation of Organic Law 4/2000. It is not a residence permit, but it allows you to apply for it.
It is a printed identification card issued by the Spanish authorities when the foreigner needs to be identified in the country after their attempts to be documented by their country of origin have failed.
In other words, when the foreigner needs to have a passport but no country will document her, a cédula de inscripción will be issued to fulfill this identification function.
Thus, it is not a residence permit, since it does not grant the possibility of residing and working in Spain, it simply identifies the immigrant legally speaking. However, it does not invalidate the capacity to apply for residence, as we will now see.
One of the most typical and usual cases in which this registration card is requested is for exceptional reasons of a humanitarian or political nature: the foreign country does not renew your expired passport or does not directly issue identity documents.
If her country of origin does not have a consular office in the Spanish territory, then this foreigner would be undocumented since she would not be able to renew the passport, so the only solution then is to request the cédula de inscripción.
Is the registration card the same as a residence permit?
No, the cédula de inscripción is not a residence permit: it is an identification document; It does not in itself grant the right to reside or work in Spain, although it allows you to request residence authorization due to exceptional circumstances.
Registration card vs. NIE, TIE and registration of EU citizens
It is advisable not to confuse the registration card with other common immigration documents:
- The NIE (foreigner identification number) is a number that is assigned to any foreigner to be able to carry out procedures in Spain, regardless of their situation.
- The TIE (foreigner identity card) is the physical document that accredits those who already have a residence authorization.
- The Union citizen registration certificate is the procedure that corresponds to community citizens, and has nothing to do with the registration card.
The registration card, on the other hand, is designed exclusively for non-EU foreigners who cannot obtain a passport from their country of origin, and does not in itself grant the right of residence.
However, the process is not that simple. Even if this situation occurs, the foreigner must meet a series of requirements in order to successfully apply for it.
Which ones?
Requirements to get your registration card as an undocumented immigrant
There are three fundamental requirements to obtain this registration card as a foreigner, in addition to other more generic (but no less important) requirements.
Let’s analyze them.
Justify your need for identification
The first requirement that the foreigner must meet in order to request this identification document is to demonstrate that she really needs it.
Thus, she must prove that for reasons of public interest, fulfillment of certain commitments in Spain (for example, to renew the passport), or for humanitarian reasons, she needs to identify or document herself in the country.
Prove the failed attempt to get your passport
And here comes perhaps the most important requirement, as it is the one that in many cases defines whether you can actually apply for the cédula or not.
It will be essential that the foreigner has asked the authorities of his country to identify him, and those authorities have not complied with the request.
In other words, the foreigner must demonstrate that she has contacted the consulate or diplomatic mission of the country of origin to apply for the passport, but the consulate has refused.
And this last sentence contains the key to the procedure.
For if the consulate simply delays in issuing the passport it would not be sufficient.
This is what happens in many cases with Venezuelan minors, a process that can take up to 1 year to document a child born in Spain of Venezuelan parents.
Therefore, it is necessary for the consulate to refuse to document in order to get this registration card successfully.
Not be subject to an entry ban or have an expulsion order
The provisional identification document and, by extension, the registration card, are not granted if the foreign person is subject to any of the cases of prohibition of entry to Spain provided for in Organic Law 4/2000, or if there is an expulsion order from Spanish territory.
Extra requirements
Finally, the following requirements must also be met:
- Not having criminal record (something you will demonstrate through a background check)
- Not being from the European Union, since this procedure is only reserved for non-EU citizens
How to obtain your registration card (cédula de inscripción)
Now that we fully understand which are the specific requirements, let’s see how to obtain this document step by step, a process that the immigrant initiates personally, and will do so as soon as possible after becoming undocumented.
The first step is to contact the consulate of the country of origin or the diplomatic mission in order to request the documentation. The most common is to send a letter by post mail requesting the passport along with the reason why the foreigner needs to be documented.
It won’t be until you get a negative response (the authorities refuse to document you) that you will be able to continue forward.
Once you receive this rejection from the consulate, you will have to visit the notary. There you will request a notarial act in which the request to the authorities is recorded, demonstrating the lack of response or rejection when it comes to the documentation request.
Then, you will go to the nearest police office according to where you currently are, submitting this notarial act in addition to the other documents that we will see in the following section.
The maximum period to resolve the request is three months from its entry into the registry. If there is no notification after this period, the request is deemed rejected due to negative administrative silence.
During the processing, if the foreigner wishes to remain in Spain, he or she may be granted a provisional identification document valid for three months, while background checks are completed. This provisional document is not equivalent to the final resolution of the application.
On the other hand, if you receive a notification with a favorable resolution, you could then apply for your residence authorization for exceptional circumstances (although you could have started this process even at the same time you applied for the cédula).
What happens if the application for the cédula de inscripción card gets denied?
If the application gets denied, the regulations provide for the person to be returned to their country of origin or expelled from Spanish territory, unless there is some cause that prevents it.
That is why it is important to prepare the application well, especially the notarial act and the documentation that proves the humanitarian reasons, public interest, or compliance with Spain’s commitments.
Required documents
At the time of submitting the application at the corresponding immigration office, the following documents must be included:
- First, the receipt verifying that you have paid the corresponding fee (Form 790/012 “cédula de inscripción”), due at the time of admission for processing.
- Application form EX-16, which must be downloaded and duly completed. You can download it here.
- Notarial record of the request you have made (which has not been attended by the consulate)
- Copy of your application for the residence authorization due to exceptional circumstances (just in case of not presenting the notarial act)
- 3 passport photographs (with white background)
Can I travel outside of Spain with my registration cédula de inscripción?
As a general rule, no, you cannot travel with your cédula de inscripción. The registration card does not replace the passport or a travel ticket: it only serves to identify you within Spain.
If you need to leave the country and you do not have a passport or a residence permit that allows you to move around the Schengen area, your specific case must be assessed to know if it is possible to apply for a travel ticket.
Do you have to renew this document?
Finally, we must take into account how the renewal process works.
Generally speaking, the cédula de inscripción is a document that is renewed once a year.
However, if at any time the foreigner has been documented by any country or has acquired Spanish nationality, in those cases the cédula would lose validity and would no longer need to be renewed.
Furthermore, in these cases the foreign person is obliged to report the loss of validity of the ID at the Police Station of the province where they reside, within a period of one month from when this circumstance occurs.
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