TIE Card Spain (2026): Fingerprints, Fees and the Appointment Game

The TIE (Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero) is the physical residence card for non-EU foreigners living in Spain. Your visa gets you into the country; the TIE is the card you will actually show at banks, notaries, airports and police checks for the rest of your stay. Getting it involves the two things Spain does best at bureaucracy: a scarce online appointment and a fee form with the wrong amount printed on third-party websites. This guide covers the 2026 process with the Policía Nacional's own fee table.

1. What the TIE is (and is not)

The TIE is the photo ID card that documents your residence authorization (or stay authorization) in Spain: it carries your photo, your NIE number, your permit type and its validity. A few things people confuse:

• The TIE is not the NIE. The NIE is just a number (you can have one on a white A4 certificate without any residence right). The TIE is the card that proves a residence permit. Your NIE number is printed on your TIE. See our NIE guide for the full distinction.
• EU citizens do not get a TIE. They register with the green certificado de registro de ciudadano de la Unión (the little green paper/card). The TIE is for non-EU nationals (and, since Brexit, for UK nationals covered by the Withdrawal Agreement).
• The visa sticker is temporary. A national visa (NLV, DNV, student...) is valid for entry; the TIE is what documents your residence once inside.

2. The 1-month deadline

If you arrived with a national visa, you must apply for the TIE within one month of entering Spain, at the Oficina de Extranjería or the corresponding police station. If your authorization was granted inside Spain (for example, a DNV through the UGE route), the month runs from the grant notification. Miss it and you are not automatically illegal - but you will be undocumented, every trámite gets harder, and you can face a fine. Treat the deadline as real: appointment scarcity is exactly why you should book before you even fly.

3. The fee: modelo 790 código 012

The TIE is paid with the same modelo 790 código 012 form as the NIE, but with a different concept and amount. From the Policía Nacional's current fee table (checked 14 September 2026):

• First TIE (documenting the first grant of temporary residence, stay or cross-border worker authorization): 16,08 EUR.
• TIE for renewal of temporary residence, stay extension or cross-border authorization: 19,30 EUR.
• TIE for long-term residence (larga duración or larga duración-UE): 21,87 EUR.
• TIE for family members of Spanish nationals (temporary residence): 12,00 EUR.

Generate the form online at the Policía's 790-012 page, pay it at any bank (most let you pay without an account at the counter or ATM) and bring the stamped receipt. Do not trust blog amounts: fees move a few cents every year, and an underpaid receipt means a wasted appointment.

4. Booking the cita previa

You need an appointment at the government's cita previa portal: choose your province, then the procedure "Policía - Toma de huellas (expedición de tarjeta) y renovación de tarjeta de larga duración" (wording varies slightly by province). Reality check:

• Slots in big cities (Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Valencia, Alicante) disappear within minutes when released. New slots typically appear early in the morning - try at 8:00 sharp, and again around 9:30 and 14:00.
• Book any date you can get, then keep checking for earlier cancellations.
• One appointment per person: spouses and children each need their own cita (some offices process families together on one slot; do not count on it).
• You can often choose the office - smaller towns within your province usually have more availability than the capital.

5. Documents for the appointment

Per the Policía Nacional's requirement list, plus what offices ask for in practice:

1. Form EX-17 (Solicitud de Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero), completed and signed.
2. Paid fee: modelo 790 código 012 (16,08 EUR first card), stamped receipt.
3. Passport, original and a copy of the bio page (and of the visa page if you entered with one).
4. Visa or resolution letter: the national visa in your passport, or the favorable resolution if your permit was granted inside Spain.
5. Empadronamiento: a recent padrón certificate (certificado de empadronamiento) from your town hall - many offices demand it issued within the last 3 months. See our empadronamiento guide; register at your ayuntamiento as soon as you have an address.
6. One recent color photo, passport size, white background.
7. For minors: birth certificate and the presence of a parent with ID.

6. The appointment itself

It is short and mechanical: they check your file, take your fingerprints electronically, scan your photo (some offices take the photo there, most want you to bring it) and hand you a resguardo - a stamped paper receipt with your file number. That resguardo is your proof of legal residence while the card is produced. Guard it like the card itself.

7. Collecting the card

The physical TIE is ready in roughly 30-45 days. Collection is in person at the same office (or the one they indicate), with your passport and the resguardo; some provinces require a second cita previa for pickup, others run batch lists ("lotes") pinned at the office or published online. The card shows your NIE, permit type and validity dates - check them on the spot, errors are fixable immediately and painful later.

8. Renewals and replacements

• Renewal: after renewing your residence authorization (for example, the NLV's two-year renewals), you apply for the new TIE within one month of the renewal grant - same EX-17, same cita, renewal fee 19,30 EUR.
• Loss, theft or damage: file a police report (denuncia) if stolen, then book the same fingerprint appointment with EX-17 and the 790-012 fee to issue a duplicate.
• Long-term residence: the TIE for larga duración costs 21,87 EUR and renews every five years as a simple card reissue.

9. Mistakes that cost you weeks

• Waiting until you arrive to book the cita. In big cities the one-month deadline and real availability do not match - book as soon as you know your travel date.
• Wrong fee concept or amount. The 790-012 covers many procedures; tick the TIE concept matching your case and pay the exact current amount.
• No padrón certificate. The number one reason people get turned away at the desk.
• Wrong photo. Old photos, dark backgrounds, or cropped printouts get rejected.
• Assuming one cita covers the family. It usually does not.
• Losing the resguardo. It is your only proof of residence until collection day.

10. Step-by-step plan

1. Book the cita previa ("Toma de huellas") for right after your arrival - ideally before you fly.
2. Register at the padrón (ayuntamiento) the moment you have an address.
3. Fill EX-17 and generate the 790-012 with the TIE concept; pay 16,08 EUR (first card) at a bank.
4. Prepare: passport + copies, visa or resolution letter, padrón certificate (<3 months), one photo, stamped fee receipt.
5. Attend, give fingerprints, and leave with your resguardo.
6. Collect the card in 30-45 days with passport + resguardo; check the printed data immediately.
7. Diary your permit's expiry: renewal windows open 60 days before and close 90 days after (with a fine) - and each renewal means a new TIE.

This guide is free and independent. It currently contains no affiliate links; if we later add partner links we will label them clearly. This is not legal advice - confirm your case with the Oficina de Extranjería or a licensed gestor.