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Digital certificate or Cl@ve: getting a Spanish digital identity

Most online paperwork in Spain needs one of two things: an FNMT certificate or Cl@ve. The quick video routes you read about are for Spanish DNI holders. Here is what works with a NIE.

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On this page
  1. The two options
  2. Which one to get
  3. Getting the FNMT certificate as a foreigner
  4. Getting Cl@ve as a foreigner
  5. Renewing the certificate
  6. Keep it safe
  7. Sources
  8. Who can do this for you

The two options

The FNMT certificate (certificado de ciudadano, also called persona física) is a digital file installed in your browser or phone. It is free, and the FNMT says any Spanish or foreign adult holding a DNI or NIE can apply. It lets you file taxes, sign documents and use public services online.

Cl@ve is the government's login system. After you register, you sign in with Cl@ve Móvil (the Cl@ve app: scan a QR or confirm a notification) or Cl@ve Permanente (a user code, your DNI or NIE, and a password, with an SMS code for higher-security services). Cl@ve PIN, the older one-time code system, is still listed on the official site.

Which one to get

Get both if you can. They are separate systems and the work for the second is small once you have the first. If you can only do one first:

  • Get the certificate if you need to file or sign something. The immigration office's electronic filing needs one, as covered in applying for the digital nomad visa from inside Spain.
  • Cl@ve is easier day to day (no file to install, works from a phone). But Cl@ve has two registration levels, basic and advanced, and the official site says some procedures cannot be reached with a basic registration. Some services also show an icon meaning Cl@ve must have been registered in person, or online with a DNIe or certificate.

That last point links the two: a certificate also gives you the quickest route to an advanced Cl@ve registration.

Getting the FNMT certificate as a foreigner

The FNMT offers four routes: video identification, in person at an office, with a DNIe, or through its mobile app. For someone with a NIE, only the in-person route is open. The video page says it needs the current electronic DNI, and the app page says video identification currently works only with a valid DNI. A DNIe is issued to Spanish nationals (Organic Law 4/2015, art. 8), so a foreign resident does not have one.

The in-person route has four steps, in this order:

  1. Install the FNMT software (Configurador FNMT) on the computer you will use.
  2. Request the certificate online on the FNMT site. You get a código de solicitud (request code) by email.
  3. Prove your identity in person at an accreditation office, with the code. The FNMT lists more than 2,400, including Tax Agency and Social Security offices. Some need an appointment. The FNMT says it cannot be done at Correos.
  4. Download the certificate about an hour after accreditation, using the same code, and make a backup copy.

The FNMT warns that the private key stays in the software on your computer. Do the request and the download on the same computer, with the same user and browser. If you uninstall the software or change things first, you start again.

What to bring

For a non-EU foreigner the FNMT lists the red, green or white foreigner identity card showing the NIE with your passport, or the official document granting the NIF/NIE with your passport. It also needs your request code. The page does not name the TIE, so if the TIE is all you hold, ask the office. For the NIE document route, see the padrón, health card and TIE guide. Documents issued abroad need an apostille and an official Spanish translation if not in Spanish (see that guide).

You must go yourself. A third person can only act if your signature on the contract has been legitimised before a notary, and the FNMT says a power of attorney is not accepted for this.

Getting Cl@ve as a foreigner

The official Cl@ve site lists these registration routes:

  • In person at a registration office (Tax Agency, Social Security, SEPE, Government delegations, and some regional and town offices). This gives the advanced level. You must attend yourself: the site says nobody can register for you, even with a power of attorney. Many offices need an appointment.
  • Online with a certificate or DNIe. This also gives the advanced level, and you can use a Spanish or foreign mobile number.
  • Online with an invitation letter. This works with a NIE (you are asked for the support number printed on your document), but the letter is posted to the tax address held by the Tax Agency, which may be a problem if you have no tax address on file yet. It gives the basic level.
  • Video identification in the Cl@ve app. At the time of writing it is offered only to Spanish citizens with a valid DNI.

One DNI or NIE can be tied to only one mobile number, and a number can be tied to only one person, so do not register two people on a shared phone.

Renewing the certificate

  • You can renew only in the last 60 days before it expires, and only if it has not been revoked. The FNMT states that an expired certificate cannot be renewed.
  • Renewal is online: install the software, request the renewal while authenticating with your current certificate, then download the new one about an hour later with the code emailed to you.
  • You cannot renew online if the certificate was itself obtained with another certificate, a DNIe or a video identification, or has already been renewed once. You then repeat the identity check in person.

Put the expiry date in your calendar. How to check it is on the FNMT renewal page. Missing the 60-day window means a new application in person. The certificate's validity period is not stated on the FNMT pages we checked, so read the date in your certificate rather than assuming a number of years.

Keep it safe

The certificate is personal and cannot be transferred. The FNMT strongly recommends not handing it to anyone, and warns about unofficial websites that charge for the process or copy the certificate. Only the FNMT sede is official. Do not install it on a shared or public computer. Each adult needs their own, and children cannot hold one (see the family guide).

If an adviser files for you, ask them to act on your behalf under an authorisation (representation) rather than taking your certificate. See choosing a gestor for how representation works.

Sources

Who can do this for you

You cannot delegate the identity check, but a gestor can tell you which offices near you take appointments, check your documents beforehand, and then file on your behalf under a proper authorisation so your certificate stays with you.

This page is general information, not legal advice. It was checked against the sources above on the date shown. Registration routes and document lists change, so confirm on the FNMT and Cl@ve sites before you go.

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